YuGiOh: The Virtual Tournament
by Santoryuu
Summary: This chapter: Tim and Mako must team up to take out the last member of the Big Five. Will Nesbit succumb to Steam Burns, or will he overpower the fire/water combo?
1. Logging In

A/N: Guess who's back! Team Santoryuu here, hooking you up with our latest fanfiction. To all our loyal readers of our last fic, welcome back. To any new readers we've attracted, you might want to read the first fic to get a feel for our fan characters. Just need to include the disclaimer here and we can move onto the story…

Disclaimer: You'd think we'd own the rights to Yu-Gi-Oh by now wouldn't you? Ah well, such is life. Yu-Gi-Oh, both the game and the show, belongs to its respective owner(s) and not us. Now on with the show!

_Hi._

_My name is Tim Hokage._

_I used to be called the Elemental Duelist of Fire, until about one year ago. That was the year that I met Seto Kaiba, Yugi Mutoh, Joey Wheeler, and all of those other famous duelists who get all of the spotlight. Besides Kaiba, they were all fairly decent people._

_If I had met Yugi and the others under different circumstances, I wonder if my life would have turned out differently. Would I still have wound up in a duel with Mr. Kaiba? Would I have regretted kicking his ass that badly? Would I have still burnt two buildings to the ground and almost enjoy it?_

_Probably. Except for the 'Duel Kaiba' part._

_You see, two years ago, my brother (Brian) and I found out about a weird tournament. It was called the 'Grand Elemental Tournament,' and it was hosted by a madman named Needlez. Of course, at the time, we didn't know he was crazy. I probably should have sensed something was…shall we say amiss…after I almost turned my card into ashes with my fingertips. However, I was too busy shouting 'Flame on!' and setting myself on fire._

_In case you haven't figured it out by now, I was the comedian of the group known as the Elemental Duelists._

_Brian was the responsible type. He used dark monsters, and was first to figure something was up. I guess intelligence isn't hereditary, because now I feel stupid for not figuring it out myself._

_Celeste was the protective mother of the group. She made sure I didn't scorch the water duelist's head and shout 'Fish Fry! Fish Fry!' She was also a fairly skilled fairy/light duelist, and was even considered the best of us._

_Mako Tsunami was our water duelist, and he quite frankly pissed me off. He used every form of water monster possible, and worse yet was all theatrical about it. Of course, he was the most popular for being in more professional tournaments. But that didn't mean he had to brag about it._

_Yes Mako, you were in tournaments with Yugi and Joey. The parts you leave out of the story are the parts where you lost._

_Anyway, little Zeffie Gale was the…constant sugar rush of the group. If I had that much energy when I was eight-years old, my mom would have given me tranquilizers. Of course, I'm not sure if that was Zeffie after the tranqs. She was our wind duelist, who could power an entire city for a week if you set her loose on a hamster wheel hooked to a generator. _

_Finally, there was Gold. Mr. Gold. Mr. Gold _sir, _to anyone that was shorter than him. Which was pretty much everyone. But to be honest, he was a very nice guy. He was calm and steady, just like his element: earth. I feel bad for the guy, he's had a rough life between divorces and being Zeffie's babysitter._

_Oh, and our "Great Leader" Lord Needlez. I'm not sure if he was really a lord, but Needlez sure fit 'cause he was a pain in my ass! First of all, he had one of the worst Scottish accents I'd ever heard. Second, he was the crazy guy who sent us on a wild goose chase for world domination. He used what he called an "Alchemy Deck" based around several different elements._

_I personally felt that he just couldn't make up his mind._

_So, we were sent to Japan and Egypt to gather the dueling talent of Yugi, Joey, Kaiba, Marik, Ishizu, and Mai. We were supposed to use their talent to restore Needlez's old powers._

_In the end, Brian turned coat, and betrayed Needlez. I followed suit, and pretty soon all of the Elemental Duelists gained up on him. We finally beat Needlez, thanks to Yugi beating him in a duel, and me sacrificing my fire talent to disrupt his elemental balance…thingy._

_Translation, did you original recipe, or extra crispy?_

_After what had to be the coolest pyrotechnics I had ever seen, we made amends, everyone's talent was returned, and everyone went home. Our whole group split apart._

_Celeste forced us to keep in touch through e-mail and text messages, and I've grown to hate that 'You've got mail!' voice. But in her last e-mail, she mentioned a new tournament. Something about a 'virtual world.'_

_About two days later, Brian and I got an invitation to Kaiba Land D.C. Seemed like a good reason to visit the capitol (that and flipping off congress, which Brian won't let me do because he's no fun.), So I figured 'eh, what the hell? Sounds like fun.'_

_We made it to Kaiba Land, and immediately hopped on every ride we saw. I've thrown up about three times…_

_And it's about to be four!_

**Team Santoryuu**

**Proudly presents**

**Yu-Gi-Oh: The Virtual Tournament**

**Prologue**

**Logging In**

Kaiba Land D.C.

One of the first Kaiba Land amusement parks opened outside of Japan, it was a place to find happy children, young couples, parents, and duelists of all ages. Between the thrill rides and the dueling attracions (such as the arena) there was something for everybody. Little kids could even meet actors dressed as their favorite monsters (word is the guy who plays Kuriboh quits on Thursday).

At the moment, it also was housing two brothers, who were by the exit to the "Burst Stream of Destruction." Advertised as the most gut-churning ride in the park. A huge roller coaster with cars shaped like the Blue Eyes White Dragon, and at least six loops in a row.

One of the bothers, Brian Hokage, had brown hair and blue eyes. Despite the fact that it was a warm and sunny summer day, he wore a black light-weight jacket and t-shirt. He had fresh jeans on, and a pair of faded gray sneakers. Strapped to his left arm was a duel disk, and a deck box was tied to one of his belt loops.

He was currently waiting for his younger brother, Tim. Tim had red, spiky hair that looked like fire from a distance. He had blue eyes like his brother, and at the moment wore a red t-shirt with a fire pattern near the bottom and ends of the sleeves, and baggy, black carpenter jeans. His shoes, though usually black and grey, were currently orange and yellow.

The reason being that he was retching over a garbage can.

"You had to have those nachos before we got on, didn't you?" Brian sighed, shaking his head.

Tim groaned in response, and picked up his duel disk from the ground.

"Next time you say that you'll pay for lunch, think about the consequences." He responded with a low moan.

"How is this remotely my fault?" Brian asked, "I said I'd pay, I didn't say it had to be right before we went on a roller coaster!"

"It's the American way: blame someone else." Tim said as he staggered to a nearby bench.

Brian sighed and pulled something out of his pocket. It was an invitation, written in blue ink on pure white paper.

**Attention Duelist,**

**You have been selected as one of the few to be invited to the grand opening of Kaiba Land D.C.'s newest attraction:**

**The Kaiba Corporation Virtual Dueling World.**

**This grand achievement in entertainment technology is being installed and tested simultaneously at all Kaiba Land Amusement Parks across the world. And only those who hold a copy of this invitation are being allowed to be the first to enjoy it.**

**To celebrate, Kaiba Corp. is hosting a tournament inside this new attraction. Competitors from all across the planet will be able to duel each other without setting foot outside their home country! Kaiba Land D.C., Europe, L.A., Hong Kong and Domino City will all be participating, and giving free admission to the rest of the park to you and all other competitors.**

**All you need bring is your deck, updated to current advanced format rulings, and this invitation to Kaiba Land DC on July 7th, 2006. And of course, be prepared to duel! An announcement at the park will be made to inform you of where to go.**

**We look forward to seeing you!**

**Signed,**

**Seto Kaiba, CEO, Owner, and Chief Stockholder of Kaiba Corporation.**

"Are you looking at your invitation again?" Tim asked as he pulled his own out.

"You know we only got invited because you got lucky against Kaiba." Brian said, taking a seat next to his brother.

"I'm not feeling so lucky now." Tim explained, waving his invite, "Mine says 'P.S. You're dead to me!' written on it."

"Speaking of your relation with our gracious host, how's that internship at Kaiba Corp. U.S. going." Brian asked, pocketing his paper.

"I'm the coffee monkey." Tim growled, folding his invite up, "But amazingly, the pay is pretty good. I think I'll have paid off the damages by the time I'm done in college."

Brian and Tim both had a good laugh at this. They both remembered all of the problems they had caused for Yugi and his friends last summer, but they were glad to see that there was little bad blood between them and the King of Games.

Yugi had even been writing to them and the other Elemental Duelists, explaining that he had received an invite to this tournament as well.

"Well, if Yugi is here I'll bet Joey will show up." Brian said, leaning back.

"How can you be sure?" Tim asked.

"Name a tournament they haven't been in together."

Tim thought for a minute, when a musical chime rang through the park.

"_Attention all Kaiba Land patrons. If you currently hold a blue-and-white invitation, please report to the main duel arena now. You have thirty minutes. This is your only notification." _A pleasant voice with a vague Asian accent announced.

"Doesn't that sound like that girl from the Kaiba buildings we attacked?" Brian asked as the brothers got up.

"Poor Claire, I think if she sees me again she'll have a panic attack." Tim joked.

Both of them snickered, and headed to the main arena at the center of the park.

-----------------------------------------

In the meantime, in Domino City, Yugi Mutoh lay asleep in bed. It was a little after midnight, but he had turned in early (around 5:00 p.m.) at the request of the tournament host.

His hair still retained its miraculous spiky shape and color, and his deck and duel disk lay next to him. Suddenly, a loud buzzing sound rang throughout his…tube. Yugi sat up, and yawned, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Can't say much for these 'tube hotels.'" He muttered as he pushed open the door, "But it was nice of Kaiba to put the tournament guests up…"

Yugi's thoughts were cut short was he heard a loud 'clang' followed by a yelp of pain. The tube across from him opened, revealing his blond haired friend Joey Wheeler. He was currently nursing a bump on his forehead as he clambered out of his mini-room.

"Who's the genius who came up with this idea?" He growled as he reached back in for his disk and deck.

"Someone short I'll bet." Said a familiar voice.

Yugi and Joey turned to their mutual friend/rival Mako Tsunami. His skin was as tan as ever, and his black hair still had a blue stripe in it. He still wore a blue vest and shorts, along with sandals and a blue headband. Like Joey, he was rubbing a fresh bruise as he fetched his disk and deck.

"Sleep well guys?" Yugi asked.

"Not really, too cramped." Joey said as he stretched, "How about you?"

"Like a rock." Yugi smiled.

"Why did Kaiba decide to start this tournament at midnight again?" Mako asked as the three of them walked into the lobby.

"From what I heard, he wanted to be fair to the American duelists." A sweet, female voice chimed in.

"Or, he felt like being mean to us." Said another female voice.

The boys looked up, and saw Mai Valentine, in all her blond haired glory, wearing her usual purple jacket, white shirt, and purple mini-skirt. Her disk and deck were already fully loaded, and her midriff was visible showing off her slim figure.

Next to her was young Serenity Wheeler, her brown hair swept behind her shoulders. Despite the ungodly hour, she had a sweet smile and a sparkle in her blue eyes. She wore her favorite pink-and-yellow shirt, and a pair of denim shorts. She was carrying her duel disk rather than wearing it, and her deck box was strapped to her waist.

"How can you two be so bright and chipper this early?" Joey asked as he stifled a yawn.

"Poor puppy." Mai cooed, "Upset that your little nap got interrupted? I thought a real duelist would be used to this."

"It has been a while since anything weird has happened." Serenity pointed out, "Joey's been catching up on lost sleep over the last year."

"Well he'd better wake up if he wants to have a chance in this tournament." Mai commented, "Now come on, the clerk said we have to go to the main arena here."

"Who have thought Kaiba would invest in a hotel inside the park's grounds?" Mako muttered as they walked out, "It's genius!"

"Tell that to me after the sunrise." Joey grumbled as they left the hotel and headed into the park.

Kaiba Land Domino City after dark was a sight to behold. Far removed from the bustling metropolis of rides, employees, and paying customers it was now a virtual ghost town. A single path was currently illuminated by a set of street lights, leading the way to a large, dome arena at the center of the park. This was the path Yugi and his group followed now.

"So Serenity, how did you get invited to this?" Mai asked as they walked.

"It probably has something to do with me almost beating Joey last year." Serenity explained, "I think we told you…"

Serenity fell silent, remembering how Needlez had tricked her into almost destroying her beloved brother. The vile fiend had discovered the last remaining Seal of Orichalcos, and had given it to her after convincing her that Joey was her enemy. If it hadn't been for Yugi and the others encouragement…she tried not to think about what could have been.

"Besides, I've gotten pretty good." Serentiy explained, "I can even beat Joey sometimes!"

"It's a really cool deck Serenity." Joey smiled, "Just wish we had more of a chance to test it before a big tournament like this."

The gang arrived at the arena, and filed in. Like the outside, only a single path was lit, indicating which way to go. Following it, they went down a long hallway, then entered a steel door.

On the other side, they stopped. In front of them were several metallic pods, with glass covers. Inside each pod was a cushioned seat, with a metal head rest.

"The virtual pods." Yugi, Mai, and Joey all whispered.

"Man, these things have never been good for us." Joey grumbled, "Why did we even agree to come to this?"

"Well, I'd imagine it's because you can't resist a chance to try and show Kaiba up." Mako commented, "Mai is probably interested in the prize, and Yugi…well, he just loves to duel."

Joey and Mai both shot him an angry glare.

"Oh…that was a rhetorical question wasn't it?" Mako said as he sheepishly took a step back.

"Hello their duelists." A familiar voice said.

The team turned around, and looked down (except for Yugi). Standing about chest high on Joey was Mokuba Kaiba. His black hair still went down his back, and he was currently dressed in a gray business suit. He smiled as he gestured to the pods.

"Glad to see you all decided to come!" He said happily, "Seto will love this news!"

Everyone but Serenity seemed less than thrilled about the idea.

"Anyway, I trust you have your invites?" Mokuba asked.

"Sure." Joey said as he pulled his out.

"Great." Mokuba said, "Alright, now as you probably guessed, this tournament is going to be inside the virtual world. We'll need you to leave you purses, spare cards other than your side deck, and duel disks out here."

The quintet looked at one another, but gathered the items requested. Mokuba took them, placing them in a box behind him, and gave each of them a numbered ticket.

"Those are your vouchers for the items you leave." Mokuba explained, "Now just choose a pod, and get ready for an awesome experience!"

"These are safe this time, right Mokuba?" Yugi asked.

"What do you mean?" Mokuba asked.

"I mean, no Big Five, no chance of being trapped in there, nothing like that?" Yugi elaborated.

"Don't worry, we double checked everything, and we triple check it every hour." Mokuba assured him, "There's nothing to worry about."

The five duelists looked at each other.

"Good enough for me." Mako shrugged as he headed for an empty pod, "See you inside!"

Yugi, Joey, Serenity, and Mai all nodded, and headed for other pods. Most of them were free, though they did see a few that were already occupied. Yugi climbed into a pod across from Joey (who was next to Mai he noted), and watched as the arm of the chair opened.

"_Please insert deck."_ An electronic voice beeped as the pod closed.

Yugi placed his deck into the indicated arm, and a whirring sound indicated it was being checked. At the same time, the other arm opened.

"_Please insert side deck."_ The voice requested.

Yugi slid a slim stack of fifteen cards from his jacket pocket. He placed it into the other arm, and watched as they both closed.

"_Thank you, please close your eyes."_ The voice instructed.

Yugi closed his eyes, and heard an electronic whir.

Then a white light filled his vision…

-----------------------------------------

Yugi looked around. He blinked, took a few deep breaths, and wiggled his toes and fingers. Everything seemed to be working properly.

"_At least we came through in one piece." _A voice commented in Yugi's mind.

"_Yami, how are you feeling?"_ Yugi asked.

"_Just fine. As before it seems that I carry through to this world along with you."_ Yami assured his partner, _"So, Kaiba is ready to get this tournament under way then?_

"_Sure seems that way." _Yugi nodded, _"But before we start, I have a request."_

"_What is it?" _Yami asked, puzzled as to what Yugi may need.

"_I want to duel on my own in this tourney."_

Yami was dumbfounded by this.

"_What?" _He gasped, _"Is something troubling you Yugi? Have I been annoying you or…"_

"_Nothing like that."_ Yugi explained to his partner, _"I just can't seem to remember ever competing in a major competition like this without you backing me up. I think I'd like to try this one by myself."_

Yami thought for a minute, and astally projected next to his young counterpart. He placed a hand on Yugi's shoulder and smiled.

"_Very well Yugi." _Yami agreed, _"Normally Kaiba's tournaments have a history of…trouble. But this one should be quiet. To be honest, I could use a little break."_

"_Thanks." _Yugi smiled.

"_And if something crazy does happen, I'll be well rested for it." _Yami nodded.

With that, the ancient spirit retreated back into the Millennium Puzzle around Yugi's neck. Yugi now looked around at the area they were in.

The world around him was a drastic change from the virtual pod room. He now stood in a grassy field, with many other people walking about. They seemed to reflect a variety of cultures and ethnicities. Some were talking, others merely observing, but to Yugi's surprise no one was dueling.

"Hey Yug!" Joey's voice shouted.

Turning around, Yugi saw the other four members of his little team run up. They were dressed in the same clothes, but none of them had their duel disks.

"Looks like you all came through fine." Yugi smiled.

"The coming in part was never a problem." Mai reminded him, "If I recall, we tend to have problems with leaving this world."

"Not this time Ms. Valentine." Said a calm voice from behind Yugi, "I can assure you that there will be no problems."

Turning around again, Yugi and Joey gasped.

Standing before them was a boy, just a little shorter than Yugi. He wore a white shirt and pants, and had short green hair. He gave a smug smile to the group, and shook Yugi's hand.

"Hey Yugi, long time no see." The boy said.

"NOAH!" Yugi, Joey, and Serenity shouted together.

"But I thought…" Serentiy began.

"That I was deleted? Well you're partially right." Noah smiled as he took a step back, "I actually owe a part of my survival to Seto and Mokuba."

"And just how is that?" Joey asked.

"Well, if you'll recall, in our last encounter I had possessed Mokuba for a short amount of time." Noah explained, "However, I relinquished my control over him to ensure that Gozubora Kaiba…"

"Your father." Yugi interrupted.

"If you want to call him that…" Noah scowled, then continued, "Anyway, I made sure that he was deleted. I would have been as well, but I had the forsight to back myself up, and download my true self into another vessel. The copy shut down all links after I left, and ensured my 'father's' defeat."

"So this is the you we met the first time." Joey guessed, holding his head, "Man, this is a little confusing."

Noah thought for a minute, and smiled.

"To put it simply: I cloned myself, and the clone beat Gozubora. During the commotion, I left." He stated.

"But how?" Yugi asked, "All links were shut off as soon as you went back in, right? So what did you escape in?"

"Mokuba." Noah explained.

The other three stared at him, while Mai and Mako just looked at each other and shrugged, not following much of this.

"I was able to transfer my mind into Mokuba, as sort of a split personality." Noah elaborated, "It's sort of like what I observed with you Yugi, only it wasn't as mutually beneficial. I got out, sure, but I was unable to communicate with my host."

"So then how did you get out?" Serenity asked.

"That's where Seto came in." Noah smiled, gesturing to the area around them, "He was recreating my virtual world for his amusement parks, and Mokuba volunteered to help test it. When he entered, so did I, and I was released from his mind."

"And it was quite a shock." Another voice said, "We thought we'd seen the last of Noah."

Seto Kaiba walked over. He was wearing his white jacket and black clothes underneath. His brown hair swept down over his eyes, and he was also lacking his duel disk.

"When he showed up, I was positive it was a virus in the system." Seto growled, "After he destroyed my antivirus programs though, that was proof enough that he was real."

"And to think, you didn't want me back at first." Noah laughed, "Thanks to my help, we had this up and running in less than half the predicted time!"

"Yes, we did." Seto admitted with a sigh, "You don't have to rub it in. Now then, Yugi…"

Yugi and Seto's eyes locked for a minute, a smug smile crossing Seto's face.

"I've been looking forward to this. And I can assure you that I don't plan on losing." Kaiba said simply.

"Well, neither do I." Yugi responded.

Suddenly, Joey screamed at the top of his lungs! The others turned to him, and saw him clutching his chest as he spun around to face…

Brian Hokage, who was laughing out loud.

"I can't (hahahahaha) b-believe (haha) I actually scared you!" Brian choked out between chuckles.

"Why I oughta…" Joey growled.

"Brian!" Serenity smiled.

"Hey there Serenity, its been a while hasn't it?" Brian said, returning the smile.

"Hey, don't forget me!" Tim shouted as he ran up behind his brother.

"Tim, good to see you." Serenity grinned.

"_I guess…"_ Yugi thought, still remembering the fire duelist's destructive streak.

Tim turned to Kaiba, and gave him a wave.

"Hey there Kaiba, gained any IQ points yet?" He asked with a laugh.

Kaiba looked about ready to throttle the younger Hokage brother, when a much more feminine voice intervened.

"Now Tim, isn't behavior like that the fastest way to get kicked out of this tournament?" The voice asked.

"It's also the quickest way to get fired from my job at Kaiba Corp." Tim explained, "Which I hate. Because I'm the coffee monkey."

Turning to the voice, Yugi smiled. A girl, about the same age as Brian, was walking up to them. She had brown hair (currently in a braid) that fell to about her waist, and brown eyes behind purple framed glasses. She wore a white tank-top and yellow, pleated skirt. Her feet were covered by white ankle socks and yellow tennis shoes.

"Ah, Celeste Hikari arrives." Seto grumbled sarcastically, "The girl who believed she was a match for Yugi…"

"Ah lay off her Kaiba!" Joey scolded, "You know she was brainwashed!"

"Yeah, and its better that she matched Yugi than surpass you, right?" Tim asked with a smarmy smile.

Kaiba shot another ugly look at Tim, then smiled as Brian cuffed his brother across the back of his skull.

"You beat Kaiba, we get it already." Brian grumbled, "Now quit rubbing it in before you get us kicked out!"

"I didn't know you wore glasses." Serenity observed as she attempted to change the subject.

"Oh these?" Celeste asked, pointing to the frames, "Well I had perfect vision, but only with my light powers. Once they faded, I needed my glasses again."

"I like her better with glasses. Make her look like…some sort of movie star or somethin'." Said a gruff male voice with a distinctly Brooklyn accent.

"Yeppie!" Said a high pitched voice.

"And the geek parade continues…" Kaiba mumbled under his breath.

Now approaching the team was a massive human. He was at least seven feet tall, and well muscled. He had dark hair, shaved into a crew cut, and dark eyes. He currently wore a white muscle shirt, blue jeans, and brown loafers that showed considerable wear.

Crouching on one of his huge shoulders was the perfect contrast to this man. A small girl, with blond hair that reached to her shoulders. She had sparkling green eyes, and was wearing a green t-shirt and white jean shorts. Her feet were covered by nothing but a pair of green sandals with white straps.

"Hey, geeks aren't called 'Gold the Fighting Mountain' now are they?" The large man challenged as the girl leapt from her perch.

She dashed over, and wrapped her arms around Celeste's lower torso (the highest part she could reach).

"Celestey!" The girl cheered, "Zeffie is so happy to see you again!"

She broke off the hug and frowned.

"We didn't see you while we were loading up in Kaiba Land LA." She explained.

"_Probably because I ducked into a pod ASAP." _Celeste thought, rubbing her sore middle.

"Fuggedaboutit." Gold said, "She probably just got in before we did."

"Guess so." Celeste nodded.

"Bri-bri!" Zeffie cheered, "Timmy!"

She ran over to the two brothers, Brian holding her an arms length away to avoid a rib crushing embrace.

"Okay, I'm happy to see you too Zeffie." Brian laughed.

"Hey Zef, good to be back in the states huh?" Tim laughed.

Zeffie nodded, and then jumped at Mako, knocking him to the ground.

"Maky!" She cheered happily, sniffing the air, "Wow, they even copied your fish smell!"

The others all had a chuckle at this as Zeffie got up and turned to Yugi. The boy braced himself, but Zeffie just pointed at him.

"Hope you're ready Yugi!" She shouted, "This is gonna be the tournament Zeffie beats you in!"

"If we had a yen for everytime we heard that…" Joey sighed as he looked at Yugi.

"I'll look forward to our duel Zeffie." Yugi promised.

Zeffie smiled, and ran back to Mr. Gold. She jumped up, landing on his chest, and clambered back onto his shoulder.

"Well, I can't say this has been fun." Kaiba stated, "But I have a few matters to take care of before we actually begin. Feel free to socialize for a bit!"

And with that, Kaiba headed off. Noah however just stayed, watching him go.

"Don't you need to help him?" Mai asked.

"Not really." Noah explained, "I helped make this world, but Mokuba ran all the final checks and such. Chances are, Seto wants to check with him."

"But how can they run the checks without you finding out what's in the virtual world anyway?" Serenity asked, not noticing as Brian and Mako started to talk behind her.

"Oh, didn't I mention? Seto created a robotic body for me to download myself into." Noah smiled.

"Seriously!" Joey gasped, "That's awesome!"

"Well, it's not quite as good as having a real body, but it sure beats being stuck in a computer all day." Noah agreed.

"Hey Mai, Brian said you had something for me." Mako said, walking to the blond beauty with a curious look, "He thinks you might have forgotten about it…"

Mai looked at Brian, and smiled. She mouthed the words 'thank you' and then clobbered Mako right in the stomach with a well placed kick! Mako fell backwards, gasping for breath.

"That's for last year Tsunami!" Mai smiled.

Zeffie giggled a little, as Gold helped the ocean duelist to his feet. Mako took a few deep breaths, and waved his assistant off.

"I'm good, thanks." He said, sounding fairly choked up from the attack, "I guess I deserved that…"

"So…" Yugi said, trying to ignore what just happened, "Celeste, you make any changes to your deck?"

Celeste smiled, "Yeah, and I actually found a counterpart to one of your cards."

"A counterpart?" Yugi asked, "What do you mean?"

"Winged Kuriboh!" Celeste explained, "And I have to say, Pegasus improved it by giving it wings. He even made it a light attribute fairy!"

"Sounds really cool Celeste." Yugi smiled, "Can't wait to see it in action."

"Say does anyone know who else is in this tournament?" Joey asked as he looked around, "I don't really see anyone I recognize."

"I heard the American National Champion from a couple years back is supposed to be in this tourney." Gold said, "What's his name…Keith?"

"BANDIT Keith?" Joey asked.

"Yeah, that's it." Gold nodded.

"Well at least he can't cheat in here…" Joey grumbled.

"Don't be so sure." Tim warned, "Back in the states, cheating is now called 'Keithing it.'"

"He's been making a comeback recently." Brian explained to Yugi and Joey, "And everyone knows he's been cheating. Problem is, no one has been able to prove it."

"That, and he's one of the biggest jerks ever." Celeste chimed in.

"He's not the only unexpected guest though." Noah chimed in.

"What do you mean?" Joey asked, looking at the boy.

Noah just smiled as he gestured to the other duelists around them.

"Seto didn't want to risk missing out on upcoming talent in the dueling world like he did before. So he sent several scouts to card shop tournaments, and had invitations issued to those who showed promise. For several of the competitors this is their first major tournament, while others may be old pros who just dropped out of the limelight…"

Before this conversation could go any farther, a voice echoed across the virtual plains.

"Attention duelists!" The voice called out, "Prepare yourself for the greatest dueling experience of a lifetime!"

Out of the ground rose a huge platform. Standing on top of it was Seto, his duel disk strapped to his arm. He smiled as he waved his hand over the crowd around him.

"Duelists of the world, welcome to Kaiba Corp Virtual Tournament! I hope you're all ready for duels unlike any you've ever experienced." Kaiba challenged, "For in this world, the monsters are as real as you are!"

Several members of the crowd began to whisper excitedly among themselves. As they did, a grid of cards appeared before Kaiba.

"Now then, it's only fair to warn you that we'll be playing under very special rules in this competition." Kaiba explained, "Rules known as the Deckmaster System."

"Deckmaster system?" Brian muttered.

"Oh boy." Joey muttered, "I remember this."

"The rules for this system are easy. At the start of your duel, you select one monster from your deck." Kaiba stated as he tapped a card on the grid before him, "Go Lord of Dragons!"

The card shattered, and a man wearing brown robes and a dragon skull helmet rose from the platform next to him.

"Now then, the monster you select is known as your deckmaster. It shall remain by your side, off the field, for the duration of the duel. Every deckmaster has a special power, and with over 2000 monsters in the database you should have fun trying them all. For this demonstration, I will use Lord of Dragons, and my foe will use Ultimate Baseball Kid."

From the platform in front of Seto, another monster arose. This one was a little boy wearing a red baseball uniform and carrying a bat. He set the bat aside, and strapped on a duel disk. Both players drew five cards, with Kaiba drawing a sixth.

Kaiba: 8000

UBK: 8000

"Now then, during your duels the deckmaster can not be attacked. Nor will it be affected by any card currently on the field. In other words, it's completely safe. Now then, I'll begin this demonstration by summoning Vorse Raider (1900/1200) in attack mode. That will be all for this turn."

Kaiba slapped a card onto his disk, and a fierce creature wearing green and black armor and wielding an ax jumped up before him.

The baseball kid drew, and placed a card into his disk. A swirling vortex of black shadows rose over the field, and pulled Vorse Raider inside! The effects of the Dark Hole spell wore off, and only Lord of Dragons, the enemy deckmaster, and Kaiba were left on the field.

"You see? Lord of Dragons and Ultimate Baseball Kid are perfectly safe."

Ultimate Baseball Kid continued his turn. He placed a card onto the field, and a gloppy pile of mama rose up. It formed into a human figure, and the Molten Zombie (1600/600) let out a low moan. The kid pointed, and it spat a stream of liquid rock at Kaiba, who grunted as the blast hit him head on!

Kaiba: 6200

UBK: 8000

The kid laughed, and picked up his bat again. The zombie let out one last moan, and transformed into a glowing orb of flame. The child took aim, and swung his bat, knocking the ball right into Kaiba's chest! Several of the observers screamed as Kaiba stumbled backward from the blow.

Kaiba: 5800

UBK: 8000

"As you can see, Ultimate Baseball Kid here can sacrifice a monster to deal his opponent direct damage equal to 100 times the tributed monster's star level." Kaiba explained as he dusted off his jacket, "Too bad that won't be enough to save him…"

The kid just stuck his tongue out, and laid two cards facedown. The cards appeared before him, and he waved to end his turn.

"Why do I get the feeling that it's more than a coincidence that he's using a fire monster for this?" Tim asked.

"Probably because it is more than a coincidence." Celeste stated, "He's going to kill it."

"Shh, Zeffie can't here." Zeffie hushed them.

Kaiba drew, and placed another card onto his disk. A purple scaled humanoid rose up before him, brandishing a golden spear.

"My Kaiser Seahorse (1700/1650) would be enough to deal some damage." Kaiba explained as his Lord of Dragons began to glow, "But I think I'd rather use my own deckmaster's power: master of dragons!"

Kaiba's cards began to glow, and he removed Kaiser Seahorse from his disk.

"I just surrender 500 life points, and I can have an extra normal summon this turn, so long as I summon a dragon. Like this one…"

Kaiser Seahorse vanished, and in its place raised the intimidating, silver scaled Blue Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!

Seto: 5300

UBK: 8000

"Attack!" Kaiba ordered his dragon, "White lightning!"

The kid gasped, and waved a hand over his disk. One of the facedown cards lifted, and four fluffy Scapegoat Tokens (0/0 X4) jumped in front of the attack. One of them was immediately wiped out, leaving the other three huddling together in terror.

"Each monster will also display a unique personality, depending on their nature and the nature of their duelist." Kaiba smiled, "It should make you all feel more…involved."

He nodded to the child, who drew and smiled. The kid pointed to his facedown card, which lifted to reveal DNA Transplant. It began to glow with a flaming aura, and the remaining three goats, plus Seto's dragon all turned a burning orange color. Kid smiled, and grabbed his bat, jumping onto the field next to his goats.

"Now then, at anytime during your turn accept the battle phase, you may special summon your deckmaster to the field. This gives you a slight advantage, for it will still have its own abilities as well as its deckmaster power. In the case of the Ultimate Baseball Kid, he now gains 1000 attack points for every fire monster on the field aside from himself. Since there's currently four, he gains 4000 points."

The UBK (4500/1000) let out a ferocious war cry and jumped forward. He slammed his bat against the dragon and sending its head flying into the distance.

Seto:3800

UBK:8000

The kid laughed again even as his stats dropped to (3500/1000), and waved to end his turn. Kaiba drew, and smiled as he turned back to his audience.

"There are two drawbacks to summoning your deckmaster however. The first is that you can't move it back unless its power says you can." Kaiba explained with a smirk, "And also, if your deckmaster is destroyed, you automatically lose the duel. Allow me to demonstrate. I activate Premature Burial!"

Kaiba's card flew into its slot, and with a massive roar the Blue Eyes (3000/2500) returned to the field! UBK (4500/1000) just spat on the ground and readied his bat.

"Guess again chump, I play the spell that will end this duel!" Kaiba shouted as he tossed a card into his disk, "BURST STREAM OF DESTRUCTION!"

The energy of the spell gathered around the dragon, which opened its great maw. Crackling white energy gathered in its mouth, and UBK gulped.

"Now every monster on my opponent's side of the field will be destroyed. And since this includes his deckmaster…"

The wave of blinding energy shot forth, obliterating the goats and the mini athlete.

Seto: 3000

UBK: DECKMASTER DESTROYED

Kaiba's disk shut down, and he smiled. He looked back over the other duelists once again and raised his disk over his head.

"A few more things to keep in mind:"

A glowing number one appeared over Kaiba's head.

"One, You can't sacrifice your deckmaster, nor can you steal control of an opposing deckmaster. Such attempts fail automatically."

The one was replaced by a two.

"Two, You can transform your deckmaster through fusion or similar methods. In those cases, the new deckmaster will only have the powers of the previous one, plus whatever normal abilities it may have."

The two shifted into a three as he continued.

"Three, if you choose to use a spirit monster as your deckmaster, it will remain on the field if you summon it there. However, it will lose all powers except its deckmaster ability."

Three gave way to four now, and all eyes were on Seto.

"Four, though you lose if your deckmaster is destroyed, you won't lose if it is removed from play. So long as it returns to the field by the end of the turn it was removed in."

Everyone was paying rapt attention to Kaiba as his platform began to drop down to the ground.

"Now then, onto the basic structure of the tournament. It shall be fairly similar to Duelist Kingdom, so those of you that attended that should feel right at home. You will each start with two win points, which you may bet in duels. The victor will receive the agreed upon amount of points, and then be randomly transported to a new section of the world. Lose all of your points, and you're out of the tournament."

Kaiba now stood on the ground, even with the rest of the duelists. His voice was still echoing, as though coming from an invisible amplifier.

"Oh yes, one last thing. In this tournament special programs that have been dubbed as Eliminators lay hidden around the Virtual World. If you can find and defeat one in a duel you'll automatically be awarded with three win points, as well as a special prize. Lose however, and you're out. Circumstances can sometimes change these rules however…"

Several members of the audience began to whisper again, wondering what the prizes may be. Kaiba cleared his throat, ending the recreational conversation.

"Now then, the first sixteen players to obtain a total of ten points will be declared finalists. Once the last finalist is selected, all duels will immediately cease, and you shall all be transported to our virtual arena to pay witness to finals of this competition! So remember, duel well, but duel quickly."

With that, Seto's voice stopped echoing. He smiled as he walked back toward Yugi and the others.

"Deckmaster system huh?" Yugi asked, "Was that your idea or Noah's?"

"Noah talked me into it." Seto explained, "I felt it would be a nice…twist for my little party."

"Well the opening was sure theatrical enough." Joey commented.

"I'm so excited! When do we start?" Serenity asked, bouncing on her heels.

"Any minute now, we'll be sent to the Virtual World proper." Seto explained.

"Wait, you mean we aren't really in the Virtual World right now?" Mai asked, narrowing her eyes at Kaiba.

"Nope, this is just a loading area." Kaiba explained.

Suddenly, the ground began to shift and roll. Everyone present stumbled a bit as a giant card appeared under their feet.

Looking down, Zeffie let out a squeal of delight, and jumped from Gold's shoulder. A card of her own materialized underneath her.

"Yay! Compulsory Evacuation Device is Zeffie's favorite trap!" She said happily.

Before anybody could react any further, the traps glowed and a large cannon formed around each person present.

"Prepare for your flight people. Final Destination: Kaiba Corp Virtual Planetoid!" Mokuba's voice shouted.

"I don't like where this is going." Brian muttered from inside his trap.

"Woo Hoo!" Zeffie shouted.

"Hey, mine is too small!" Gold complained.

"It's dark in here! Let me out!" Tim shouted.

"You realize there's only one way to get out of a _cannon_, right?" Mai asked.

"…_DON'T_ LET ME OUT!" Tim screamed.

"This is just Kaiba getting back at us." Celeste sighed.

"That doesn't mean this will be pleasant." Mako moaned.

The cannons all fired together, sending dozens of pulses of light screaming into the heavens. They flew upward, toward the sky, which shifted suddenly. Now a large planet was floating over head, and the green meadow below turned into a cloudy atmosphere.

--------

Sitting out in the real world, Mokuba leaned back and smiled as he watched the lights strike random points all over the virtual planet.

"Looks like the Kaiba Corp Virtual World Tournament is under way!" Mokuba smiled.

He looked down from his station at the dozens of programmers watching their own screens.

"Alright people, we've got a tournament to watch over!" Mokuba shouted, "So let's get this started!"

_Hey, Tim Hokage here again! Looks like the Virtual World Tournament has started with a bang…well, several bangs actually. Everyone is going to land on the virtual planet, and our first duel will be Yugi vs. Noah in a chapter we like to call:_

_Crash Landing._

_This is Tim Hokage saying 'I'd better be paid for this narrative'! Good night folks!_

_---_

Deckmaster Powers

---

Ultimate Baseball Kid

Warrior

Fire

3 stars

500 attack

1000 defense

DM Power: Grand Slam: Tribute one FIRE monster on your side of the field. Deal direct damage to your opponent equal to

100 times the level of the sacrificed monster.

---

Lord of Dragons

Spellcaster

Dark

4 stars

1200 attack

1100 defense

DM Power: Master of Dragons: Pay 500 life points. You may have one extra normal summon as long as you summon a dragon-type monster. This power may only be used once per turn.


	2. Crash Landing

Disclaimer: We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, only our original cards and characters. 'Nuff said.

_I'm Yugi Mutoh, the world renowned King of Games._

_I don't like to brag, it's just that no one lets me forget it. Let me tell you, I sometimes envy normal kids my age. I was just like them until I had to save my grandfather's soul from Maximillian Pegasus with the help of the spirit of an ancient pharaoh that shares my consciousness._

…_Okay maybe 'just like them' is stretching it. Of course I wouldn't trade the friends I made for anything, but I always seem to wind up in trouble these days. Yami and the others are always there to help pull me out though._

_But that got me thinking: I always rely on the pharaoh or my friends in a duel. I had to test if I could hold my own, with no supernatural assistance. And this tournament seemed to be the perfect chance._

_So here I am, plummeting roughly one-thousand feet toward the ground, and my only thoughts are centered around this:_

_Will this effect my life points?_

**Chapter 1**

**Crash Landing**

Sitting in the control room in the real world, Mokuba smiled as a large screen lit up. The image on it showed a small planet, with multiple colored dots sprayed across the surface. Some were over the ocean, some in mountain ranges, others in froests.

"Alright Mr. Kaiba, the map is all set." Said a voice.

Mokuba looked down from his station at the back of the master control room. Spread out between him and the large screen were multiple rows computer terminals, each with a man or woman in a white lab uniform sitting at them. They all had their eyes on the screen as Mokuba picked up a sheet of paper.

"Okay people, I hold the list of the duelists my big brother wanted us to keep an eye on." Mokuba stated with authority, "Seto wants us to record every second of their stay, which we're doing anyhow for research, but I want to be informed of where they are and what they're doing the second I ask."

Everyone else in the room lifted up a copy of the list, and looked it over.

"Any questions?" Mokuba asked.

"Yes, why there are people other than Yugi Mutoh and Joey Wheeler on here?" One of the techs asked, raising his hand.

"That's classified info Jackson, unless you'd rather take it up with Seto…" Mokuba let that hang in the air.

"Um…forget I asked." The employee said nervously.

"Good, now display those duelists as they land." Mokuba ordered.

One of the dots on the screen, this one over a forest, began to blink. One half of the screen was immediately filled with the image of Brian Hokage, screaming as he plummeted from above.

----------------------------------

Flying from the sky in the Virtual World Brian was screaming, just like how the Kaiba Corp. technicians saw him.

"OH MY GOD! TREES!" Brian screamed in horror, bracing himself and closing his eyes as he noticed the woods he was flying toward.

Brian winced as he passed through the canopy of leaves, and heard multiple branches and trunks whiz past him. Opening his eyes, he blinked as he saw himself slowing down as he approached the ground. Smiling, he looked back toward the trees he'd past.

"Yes! Take that Murphy's Law!" Brian cheered.

BAM!!

---------------

All the computer workers winced as Brian crashed into a rather large tree, doing a wonderful imitation of the legendary George of the Jungle.

"That had to hurt." Jackson commented as Brian peeled of the bark and landed in a bush at the base of the tree.

"One point to Murphy's law." Laughed his neighbor, "And five-thousand yen to me!"

"Now wait a minute Sota, you might owe him five grand after we see where the next guy lands." Interjected a young woman, two computers over.

"Mako Tsunami is approaching the surface." Another technician declared as Brian's screen was replaced with Mako, in a similar predicament.

------------------

Mako had long since prepared for his landing. Years at sea had taught him the proper way to land when falling from a reasonable height (like off a boat). He was currently curled into a ball, and was holding his breath…

When his body slammed into the ground. He involuntarily uncurled, the end result being him sliding across sand-covered earth. Mako screamed as the tiny granules scraped along his entire front.

"Okay…that was unpleasant." Mako moaned as he pushed himself up, "But all this sand can only mean one thing."

Mako pointed one finger triumphantly into the air.

"I've landed at the beach!" He shouted, "Prepare yourselves duelists, as I, Mako Tsuanami, shall…"

Mako stopped in mid-declaration. Looking around, he saw that there was nothing but flat stretches of sand and dunes as far as the eye could see, with the sun blazing overhead.

"A desert?!" Mako shouted indignantly, "Who's the wise-ass that dropped me in a desert!"

----------------------------

"You're such a bastard Sota." Jackson grumbled.

"A bastard who you now owe ten-thousand yen." Sota smiled as he leaned back, "Hey Rei, where are you going?"

The female tech had got up, and was walking toward the door.

"Be right back boys, I just need to powder my nose." She said, "Be good while I'm gone."

Looking back to the screen, Sota smiled. Jackson frowned as he saw three dots were blinking together.

"Who do those represent?" He asked, typing into his keyboard.

The screen lit up with another new image…

-----------------------

"YEEEEEEEEEEE-HAAAAAAAAAW!" Zeffie cheered as she fell from aloft.

Her hair and clothes were flapping in the breeze, and she was loving every minute of it. Noticing a series of craggy rocks below her however, she realized the gravity of the situation.

"Uh oh." She gasped, looking around.

As luck would have it, Zeffie spotted a tree branch, just overhanging from a cliff edge above the rocks. She smiled, and grabbed hold as she flew past. Twisting her body, she spun gracefully around the branch like a gymnast, and settled her feet right on top of it like an uneven bars champ.

"Zeffie's parents were right! Gymanastics are fun." Zeffie giggled as she jumped down, her back to the edge of the cliff.

A screaming missile with red hair flew past the ledge behind her. Zeffie turned around, and scratched her blond hair.

"Hello?" She asked.

Not seeing anyone, she turned back around and marched off.

What she had missed was Tim blazing past the cliff she had picked as a landing place. He was screaming his head off, staring at what was soon to be his destination.

"OH NO, GROUND!" He yelled like his brother.

Unlike Brian, Tim didn't miss his landing pad. He lowered to the ground like an airplane, and then began skipping across it like a skipping stone. He grunted as he ground to a halt finally, leaving him dazed on the stony floor.

"I hate Kaiba." He muttered as he rolled onto his back.

This proved to be a poor choice as something fell from above and landed standing right over him. Due to his blurry vision, Tim was only able to see a splash of white in a sea of purple.

"What…the…?" He muttered, his vision starting to clear a bit.

----------------------------------

The techs gasped as they watched Mai Valentine perform a graceful flip in midair and land in a crouching position…

Directly over Tim's face.

"Oh boy." Jackson muttered, not seeing Rei as she came back in.

"What the!?" Rei exclaimed, seeing the image on screen, "Is he looking up her…"

"Did he sign a waver?" Sota asked, chewing his lip nervously.

"Yeah." Jackson confirmed.

"Good, cause he's going to die." Sota muttered nervously.

Everybody winced as Mai moved to Tim's side, and kicked him with enough force to send him flying once more (adding a cry of the word 'Pervert'). They gasped as he crashed into a boulder, and fell to the ground unconscious.

"Good thing that doesn't hurt their real bodies." Mokuba commented, uncovering his eyes.

Mai walked off in a huff, and Jackson looked at the list.

"_Kaiba wants us to watch this kid?_" He thought, looking back to the screen, _"Well, that shouldn't be tough. He's not going anywhere for a bit."_

Another indicator began to blink, this one on the other side of the mountains.

"Looks like that Julius Gold fellow is coming in." Sota observed, "Hey Jackson, this could be a chance for you to recoup your losses."

"I just hope he's as strong as I heard." Jackson prayed.

----------------------------

Mr. Gold was falling like the rest of his friends, almost. Rather than flying like a cannonball, the trap that had launched him had been just able to get him into the atmosphere of the planet. From there he plummeted straight down toward the top of one of the mountains.

Rather than panicking though, Gold had his eyes set on the stone barricade before him. He wound his fist back, focusing his strength into it, and just as he reached the summit he slammed his fist into the top.

The result, even given Gold's strength, mass, and momentum, was devastatingly impressive. The mountain's top cracked, and fell into multiple pieces. They slid down the side of the peak, leaving Gold standing on a twenty-five square foot platform on top of the range.

Recovering his wits after the energy expended for that, Gold blinked and looked around.

"Hm…how come all the other mountains are pointy and this one…" He wondered out loud as he looked around.

He then noticed his fist, which was significantly scratched and held a fistful of pebbles.

"Oh yeah." He muttered, "That. These virtual mountains ain't very strong."

------------------------------------

Sota's eyes were almost bugging out of his head as he saw what had happened.

"I spent five hours perfecting that mountain range." He whined, "And this guy demolishes part of it in five seconds!"

"Guess you didn't program it very well." Jackson said coyly, "And by the way, we're even now."

Sota grumbled, wondering now why he ever bet against Gold in their "Mountain vs. Mountain" gambling pool.

"So who's left?" He asked.

"Other than Mutoh and Wheeler, Celeste Hikari." Jackson explained, looking around, "Where's Rei?"

"She went to the player readouts to check Hokage's vital signs after Mai kicked him." Another tech interrupted, "Said she'd be back when she knew he was okay."

"Well, looks like Celeste is landing now." Sota said as Gold was replaced by an image of the light duelist.

----------------------

Celeste was dropping like a stone, her hands struggling to hold her skirt down as it ruffled in the wind of her fall.

"This is so embarrassing!" She shouted, her face turning red as she headed toward the forest below.

Thankfully, she was moving toward a clear spot in the sea of green trees. Nothing was between her, and a crystal clear lake beneath her. The world around her went wet and cloudy, as her glasses were almost knocked off by the force of her landing.

Grabbing her eyewear, she kicked back to the surface.

--------------------------------

The techs watched as Celeste resurfaced in the small lake, and Sota smiled deviously.

"Oh yes, white shirt plus water equals good times." Sota said thrusting his fist up, "OH!"

"Sota…" A voice growled behind him.

Sota turned around, and found himself facing Rei, her face now red with rage. On screen, Celeste had noticed her…wardrobe malfunction, as her white top clung to her skin and now visible undergarment.

"You planned that didn't you?" Rei hissed.

"Um…not until I saw what she was wearing." Sota squeaked, obviously hoping that honesty would be best here.

Jackson winced as Rei clobbered Sota with his own coffee mug. Sota nursed a large bruise on his forehead as Rei went back to her terminal.

"Sota, you're a freaking pervert." Jackson commented, "She's five years younger than you!"

"I'm a man, and I won't apologize!" Sota shouted.

He was silenced as Rei smacked him with her own coffee mug, right in the back of his skull.

"I feel better now." Rei smiled as she set her mug down.

On screen, Celeste had settled down on a large rock, her arms across her chest.

"I'm not going anywhere till I dry off." She swore as she took a comfortable position.

"Fine by me." Sota whispered, not seeing Rei about to pour Jackson's coffee onto his lap.

Suddenly, the screen changed to Yugi. Rei stopped tipping the mug, and Sota frowned.

"Hey…" He started.

"Sorry, but Yugi is landing now." Said yet another technician, "We have to watch him."

"Looks like Yugi's path crosses with someone else though." Jackson noticed, "This could be messy."

------------------------

Yugi was, of course, screaming as he sailed toward the planet beneath him. As he fell though, he couldn't help but notice a small dot in the distance. Obviously, this was another duelist falling along with him. This wouldn't be a problem, except Yugi could see the dot getting bigger, indicating it was moving closer.

And it was growing very quickly.

Yugi gasped as he realized just who the dot was…

"JOEY!" He shouted.

"YUGI!" The dot cried out.

The two were moving closer to each other, forced along by their unintended flight paths. It was quite obvious they were going to collide right there.

-----------------------

"Uh oh." The technicians all muttered in unison.

"Well this won't be pleasant." Mokuba stated as the two came closer.

----------------------

CRASH!

Yugi and Joey slammed against each other. Yugi locked his left arm around Joey's right. The two were now falling together, and roughly straight down.

"Yugi, what are you doing!" Joey shouted, "I like you as a friend and all but…"

"Just follow my lead!" Yugi shouted, pointing to the ground below them.

Looking down, Joey saw they were falling toward a city. He screamed as the buildings came closer, and closer. Soon they were beginning to fall past one of the larger ones…

Joey screamed again as he felt Yugi's arm shake loose from his. He fell past his shorter friend, and grabbed hold of Yugi's legs. Looking up, Joey almost laughed as he saw Yugi holding onto a flag pole that came from the side of the building.

"Yugi you are a genius!" Joey shouted gratefully.

"Can't…hold…on!' Yugi gasped as the pole began to bend.

Joey nervously glanced at the roughly forty stories of empty air between them and the ground. Looking right in front of him though, Joey noticed a fire escape descending to the ground level.

"Don't let go, I've got a plan!" Joey shouted as he began to kick his legs back and forth.

Yugi tightened his grip, his sweaty palms slipping over the metal lifeline. He gasped as he suddenly found himself holding it at a strange angle. Looking down, he saw that Joey had hooked his legs onto the fire stairs. Understanding what needed to be done, Yugi released his grip…

Joey gasped, and managed to get both feet on the landing of the fire escape. He tightened his grip on Yugi's legs, and pulled him up onto his shoulders. Hearing a clang, He glanced up to see Yugi slump forward after hitting his head on the landing above them.

"Oh…Sorry Yug." Joey muttered sheepishly, "Guess I didn't think that through to well."

"I'll be fine." Yugi muttered, his face a mix of pain and relief, "At least we're not dead right?"

Joey placed his little friend down to avoid any further cranial injury. As he did, another figure happened to blaze past them, smacking into the pavement below. The two friends gasped, and looked down.

"Oh man, someone just got killed." Joey gasped, wiping some blond hair from his eyes.

"Come on, he might need help." Yuig shouted, heading for the stairs.

After a quick, and uneventful, run down the fire staircase Yugi and Joey found themselves at street level. They were in a fairly wide alleyway between the building they had climbed down and the one next to it. The figure lying on the ground seemed fairly familiar, given his green hair and white clothes.

"Oh my gosh, Noah!" Yugi shouted, crouching down next to the boy.

Noah pushed himself up, groaning a little bit as he opened his eyes. Joey drew back in fear at the sight of this.

"Oh no, he's a zombie!" Joey screamed, "Head for the hills!"

"Don't worry, I'm okay." Noah groaned as he stood up, "That wasn't fun though."

Noah shook his head and dusted his clothes off. Yugi and Joey looked at each other, and then at the boy before them.

"Um…you just fell at least a mile into solid concrete." Joey pointed out, "How is it you're not dead?"

"Virtual world remember?" Noah pointed out, "These falls aren't going to kill anybody. Those with little stamina and pain tolerance however will probably be out until the end of the tournament. Seto's idea of a way to weed out the weak duelists."

"He really needs professional help." Joey muttered, holding his head, "First Battle City finals on top of a blimp, and now this. He's sadistic, why'd you agree to help him?"

"Partially pride." Noah admitted, "After revealing that I was still alive, I also had prove I was better at something than Seto. After our first meeting, I knew it couldn't be being Mokuba's brother or the head of Kaiba Corporation, and I doubted it was dueling. So I settled for proving I could make a better Virtual World for his little competition."

"I'd say you succeeded." Yugi commented as he gestured to the huge buildings and rows of streets and sidewalks around them, "Just look at this place. If I didn't better I'd swear I was in a real city."

"Yes, but there's something missing." Noah pointed out.

Looking around again, Yugi and Joey were quick to pick up on what wasn't there.

"There's no people." Joey realized, "How can there be a city with no people?"

"Because I couldn't program humans any better than Gozubora." Noah admitted with a scowl, "They'd be perfect at first, but with limited options they were too much trouble in the end. Besides, this way we know who the duelists are."

A shimmering light gathered around Noah's arm, and he smiled as a duel disk materialized on it. Similar lights gathered around Yugi and Joey, who watched as their own disks appeared.

"Speaking of which…" Noah smiled as he adjusted the disk.

Yugi blinked in astonishment at this.

"Wait, you're playing in the tournament?" He gasped, "But I thought you helped build this place."

"True. But don't forget Seto made the final set up." Noah responded with a smile, "That, and neither one of us knows anything about the other contestants decks. We were both kept completely in the dark about that. Combine that with the 'random jump' rule for after you win and we're just as lost as the rest of you."

"So Kaiba's really in here too?" Joey growled, clenching a fist, "Where his he? I can't wait to knock that smug grin off his face."

"Calm yourself Joseph. I'm sure you'll come across Seto eventually. Until then you'll just have to focus on earning win points." Noah suggested as he backed away from the two.

"Noah's right Joey. We have no clue where Seto may be." Yugi agreed, before noticing Noah was activating his duel disk, "Um…Noah, what are you doing?"

"Why Yugi, I thought it would be obvious." Noah smiled, "We need to earn points, and currently you two are the only duelists around. So what do you say to a little rematch?"

"Rematch!" Joey shouted, "You're jokin' right?!"

"No. I want a chance to duel Yugi on fair terms." Noah explained, "After all, you could hardly call our last duel fair. I forced you to face me with a useless deckmaster, a mixed deck of yours and Seto's, and a huge life point gap."

"So this time it will be completely even." Yugi realized, nodding his head, "No handicaps and no other cards, just you, me, and our choice of deckmasters."

"Exactly." Noah smiled.

"Yug, you aren't really gonna…" Joey began.

He was cut off as Yugi turned on his own disk.

"I guess you are." Joey sighed, taking a step back, "I'll just watch from here."

"Let's each put up one point." Noah suggested as his deck began to glow, "That way we both still have a chance of reaching the finals afterward."

"Agreed." Yugi smiled, "I'm ready when you are!"

"Then let's choose our deckmasters." Noah stated.

With that, a grid of cards materialized before each of the boys. Yugi blinked, and looked over the grid. Dark Magician Girl, Giant Soldier of Stone, Valkeryon the Magna Warrior…every monster in his deck sat on the grid, just waiting to be selected. Yugi looked past the grid to Noah, who was considering his choices as well.

"Let's see…" Noah muttered, scratching his chin, "They say old tricks are the best tricks, so why prove that wrong?"

Noah carefully reached out and pressed his finger against one of the cards before him. The others faded away, but the one Noah selected began to float into the air above him.

Seeing this, Yugi smiled and repeated the action with one of his cards. This one floated behind him as the others vanished, and then both of the selected cards shattered. Behind Yugi, his card was replaced by a familiar figure in purple robes. He wore a large purple hat and carried a green staff.

"I've chosen my Dark Magician to serve as my deckmaster! And I'm sure you know what he can do." Yugi shouted, "So who did you pick Noah?"

"Do you even have to ask?" Noah challenged as a shaft of light struck the ground behind him.

From the light emerged a ten-foot tall figure. It was blue all over, even his face, except for the six golden wings behind him. He seemed incredibly peaceful, while exuding an aura of power.

"I"ve chosen Shinato: King of a Higher Plane as my deckmaster." Noah smiled, "Do you remember what he does Yugi?"

"All too well." Yugi grimaced, his deck flashing before his life point counter set, "But I defeated him before and I can do it again!"

Noah's disk imitated Yugi's and the two moved into dueling stances.

"Very well then." Noah smiled.

"IT'S TIME TO DUEL!" Both of them called out.

Yugi: 8000

Noah: 8000

----------------------------------

In the real world, Jackson's computer was beeping wildly. He typed in some keystrokes, and watched as Yugi and Noah appeared on the big screen.

"Well, looks like the first duel is already underway." He said with a grin, "Hey Sota, who do you think will win?"

Sota looked over the two on the screen, and thought for a minute.

"I'm putting ten-thousand yen on Yugi." He stated.

Jackson blinked in surprise, and looked back at the screen.

"I don't know, I've seen Noah practice. I think I'll take you up on that bet…" Jackson offered.

Rei watched as the two of them shook hands, and sighed.

"_Poor, stupid Jackson."_ She thought, _"That's ten-thousand he'll never see again."_

-----------------------------------

Yugi and Noah both drew five cards, and Noah let out a chuckle.

"Tell you what Yugi, how about you go first." Noah offered with a wave, "I'm sure that will make for an exciting opening."

"Okay then. I draw." Yugi accepted as he picked up his sixth card.

Yugi swiftly placed one card onto his monster zone.

"And my first card of the game is Breaker the Magical Warrior (1900/1000) in attack mode." Yugi declared.

To both Yugi and Joey's surprise, Dark Magician raised his staff over his head. A bolt of black energy flew off, and struck the ground, out of which emerged a pale skinned warrior in scarlet armor. He carried a thin sword and a strange shield, both set with an odd orb.

"Wow, that's impressive." Joey said with a low whistle, "You think every deckmaster does that?"

"Probably." Yugi nodded.

"_Definitely." _Said another voice, this one softer but more confident.

Yugi gasped and looked around, before hearing the voice again.

"_Fear not Yugi, it's only me: Dark Magician."_ The voice explained.

"Something up Yug?" Joey asked, "You look a little weirded out."

"You can't hear him?" Yugi asked.

"Hear who?" Both Joey and Noah asked.

"My Dark Magician!" Yugi almost screeched, "He was talking to me…"

"_Through telepathy." _The voice chimed in, _"As such, they can not hear me."_

Yugi turned to his monster, and frowned.

"You couldn't this before they thought I was crazy?" He asked, noticing Joey's stare.

The voice laughed, and the Spellcaster chuckled a bit.

"_I apologize. If you just focus your thoughts on me I can pick them up."_ He offered.

Yugi took a deep breath, and focused his mind to his monster.

"_CAN YOU HEAR ME?"_ He thought as loudly as possible.

Dark Magician winced, and nodded.

"_Yes, and you don't need to be that focused." _Yugi was told.

"_Sorry."_ Yugi thought simply.

"Yugi, are you talking to your deckmaster?" Noah asked, tapping his foot.

"They aren't saying anything." Joey pointed out.

"He's a Spellcaster, they speak telepathically." Noah sighed, "It was programmed for a lot of deckmasters so you wouldn't have to reveal their powers to soon."

"Tele-what?" Joey asked.

"They talk with their minds." Noah said, sounding out each word very carefully, "Understand?"

"Sorry about that Noah." Yugi interjected before Joey could shout anything rude in response to being treated like a moron, "I just needed to talk strategies. I end with one card facedown."

Yugi slid another card into his disk, and it came into being behind his monster. Noah drew, and smiled.

"Alright then Yugi, let's see what you can do on your own." Noah challenged as he put down a card, "I'll summon Susa Soldier (2000/1600) in attack mode."

As the card was played, Shinato pointed at the air in front of Noah. From the huge monster's finger emerged a beam of light which coalesced into a semi-transparent man in Chinese armor. He had white hair, and carried a bronze sword which crackled with lightning.

"2000 attack points!" Yugi gasped, "That monster wasn't in your deck before!"

"I know, he's new Yugi." Noah smiled, "I'm sure you remember the theme of my deck though: Spirit monsters. Creatures of Oriental mythology and legend, created by Pegasus after a trip through China and India."

"So this is a new spirit monster?" Joey guessed, "Oh great."

"It gets better. I also choose to summon my deckmaster to the field right now!" Noah shouted, pointing right at Yugi, "Shinato, come forth!!"

The angelic figure floated forward, past Noah, and stood next to the soldier. The two looked at one another, and nodded.

"Now then it's for my battle phase." Noah smiled, "Susa Soldier, destroy Breaker now! Thunder blade!"

The soldier jumped forward, and swung his weapon at Yugi's monster…

When Yugi's facedown card lifted up. A trio of hats fell from above, one of them covering Breaker. They shuffled around at amazing speed, and Yugi smiled as he slid two cards from his deck and put them on the field.

"It's not that easy Noah. I activated my Magical Hats trap card, so now you have a guessing game." Yugi smiled.

"A guessing game!" Noah growled, "What do I have to do, find Breaker?"

"Bingo. But it's not all that easy." Yugi explained with a wink, "The trap version of Magical Hats is different than the spell I normally. In this case, one hat holds Breaker hiding in defense mode. The other two house non-monster cards from my deck. If you hit those you probably won't like the result…"

That last part hung for a minute, and Noah snickered. The snicker swelled to a full laugh as he broke into a huge smile.

"I should have known you'd have something waiting. It was stupid of me to think you wouldn't." Noah giggled, "Okay then, attack the center hat my soldier!"

Susa Soldier swung his weapon at the hat in the middle, and a black stone set in a necklace appeared in it. It cracked, and a bolt of energy flew out and slammed into Noah's chest!

"Looks like that was my Black Pendant card." Yugi said as the necklace vanished, "When it's destroyed, you lose 500 life points."

Yugi: 8000

Noah: 7500

Noah rubbed his chest a bit, and frowned.

"Clever Yugi, but not clever enough. I have an even chance of finding Breaker now." Noah stated, pointing at the hat on his right, "Shinato, attack the right hat! Divine ring!"

The fairy lord raised his hand over his head, and six orbs of light floated down before him. They spun around in a circle before Shinato, blurring into a ring of energy. Shinato tossed it forward, and it slammed against the indicated head gear…

And from the hat emerged book, Yugi's Book of Secret Arts card. It vanished in a burst of light.

"Drat, not again." Noah grumbled, "I missed Breaker."

"That's right Noah." Yugi smiled, "Looks like round one goes to me."

"I'll just end my turn then." Noah sighed, "Which of course means that Susa Soldier returns to my hand."

The soldier faded away, and Noah tapped the end button on his disk. Yugi drew, and looked over his cards.

"_Oh boy, I don't have anything to beat Shinato with."_ He fretted, trying to come up with a plan.

"_Calm yourself Yugi." _Yami's voice echoed through his head, _"Shinato is powerful, but not unstoppable. Remember, you know what both of the deckmasters are capable of…"_

"_Yami, I wanted to do this on my own."_ Yugi scolded, turning his thoughts to the pharaoh.

"_That's why I didn't advise you directly._" Yami smirked inside his soul room, _"Just think of me as part of the cheering squad, like Tea and Tristan."_

Yugi nodded slowly, and slid a card into his disk.

"Okay Noah, I'll play Graceful Charity letting me draw three cards…" Yugi stated.

An angle swooped from above and sprayed a light over Yugi's deck. He pulled three cards from the top, and then held up two more.

"…And then I discard two." Yugi finished, dropping the selected cards into his grave. He frowned, seeing nothing he could use.

"I end my turn here Noah." He sighed.

"Wonderful, I draw." Noah announced as he did so, "And I think I'll bring back Susa Soldier (2000/1600)."

In a flash, the oriental spirit had reappeared. He hefted his sword, and smiled.

"Soldier, obliterate his facedown Breaker with thunder blade!" Noah ordered.

The soldier swung his weapon, firing a bolt of lighting from it into the facedown monster. Breaker rose up and shouted before shattering into bits.

"Shinato, attack directly!" Noah commanded.

Shinato formed the ring of light again, and it swooped forward. Yugi screamed as it crashed into his stomach, forcing him to his knees in pain as it faded. Yugi moaned weakly as his life points dipped.

"Oops! Are you okay?" Noah fretted, covering his mouth and sounding very worried, "I'm sorry I forgot: The simulators in this world are much more intense than regular duel disks. The pain and attacks feel real because you're just as real as the monsters here!

Looking at Noah, Joey could tell he was actually regretting that last attack. Yugi got back to his feet with a wince.

"I'm fine Noah." Yugi grunted, clutching his ribs, "I've had worse, don't worry."

"Well…If you're okay." Noah said, lowering his hand, "Before I forget, Shinato's deckmaster power of life transference kicks in. I gain any life points you lose in battle."

Shinato glowed with a pure-white aura, and Noah's score took a huge jump.

Yugi: 4700

Noah: 10800

Yugi released his ribs as the pain subsided, and breathed a sigh of relief. The attack hadn't seemed to do any actual damage. Granted, this wasn't his real body, but still…

"You sure you're alright?" Joey asked as he stepped toward Yugi, "That attack looked like it hurt."

"I'm fine Joey, really. The attack hurt more, but the pain didn't last." Yugi assured his friend, "Guess this is just another way for Kaiba to test us."

"I really tried to talk him out of it…" Noah began, stopping as Yugi held up a hand.

"It's okay Noah. It's not like this is my real body anyway, right?" Yugi asked, "So the attacks won't really do any damage. It's almost like a very realistic dream."

Noah nodded, slightly unsure. As Yugi smiled though Noah did too, glad that there were no hard feelings.

"Well, guess we'll continue then." Noah said as he slid another card into his disk, "I play my Spring of Rebirth, so now I'll restore 500 life points each and every time a monster returns to either of our hands."

From the ground behind Noah rose a fountain, spraying clear water into the sky. Perched on top of the structure was a woman with blond hair and angel wings. Noah smiled as he waved his hand.

"Okay Yugi, I end my turn now." Noah decided, "Meaning that Susa Soldier comes back to my hand and my spell kicks in."

The water in the spring began to glow, and the angel waved one hand. Light flowed from the water and over Noah, who took a deep breath as his life points boosted again.

Yugi: 4700

Noah: 11300

Yugi drew, and his eyes went wide upon seeing the hunched creature on the card. He struggled to avoid smiling as he placed the card horizontally onto his disk. A hidden monster materialized in front of him.

"I'll just lay this monster facedown and end my turn." Yugi declared with a nod, "All yours Noah."

Noah gave the monster a suspicious glance before he drew. The boy thought for a minute, and placed another card onto his disk.

"I don't know what you have planned Yugi, but I know that nothing in your deck can beat Shinato." Noah challenged as Susa Soldier jumped back onto the field, "Last time we dueled, you were only able to drive it away by using Seto's Cyber Jar. So I know it's safe to attack and my Susa Soldier will!"

The thunder-type cast forth his lightning again, striking the facedown card. It turned over, revealing a hunched old man in colorful robes, carrying a crooked staff. Rather than shattering, the monster began to chant and gather dark energy around his body.

"What's that?" Noah shouted, staring at the aged sorcerer.

Yugi chuckled a bit as his monster continued to chant.

"You were right when you said I don't have a Cyber Jar in my deck." Yugi said, "But what I do have is my Old Vindictive Magician (450/600). And once he's flipped over I can select one other monster and send it to the graveyard! Magician, wipe out Shinato!"

The black magic flew away from the aged wizard, who finally shattered from the attack, and soared right toward the heavenly king! Noah gasped and waved his hand.

"Not so fast Yugi, I use Shinato's other power! Go reversal!" Noah commanded.

Shinato vanished into thin air, causing the dark spell to fly harmlessly past Susa Soldier. Noah breathed a sigh of relief as Shinato reappeared behind him in a pulse of light.

"Shinato's second power." Yugi smiled, "He can jump back to the sidelines when he's about to be destroyed, but then you can't call him back to the field for the rest of the duel."

"So you did remember." Noah frowned as he looked over his hand, "Pretty clever Yugi, but I'll have the last laugh this time. I'll set one card down and end my turn for now."

Susa Soldier once more blinked out of existence, vanishing back to Noah's hand. At the same time a new card materialized next to the glowing spring.

Yugi: 4700

Noah: 11800

Yugi drew, and a thought occurred to him upon seeing the new card.

"I play one card facedown." Yugi began, setting a card on the field

The brown rectangle materialized on the ground before him. Yugi slid another one into his disk.

"Next comes my Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your facedown card!" Yugi exclaimed as a powerful wind kicked up around him, "But I'll chain another card from my hand: Emergency Provisions!"

"Oh crud…" Noah gasped.

"That's right Noah, now I can sacrifice spells and traps on my side of the field to gain 1000 life for each one. So I'll get rid of the Spellbinding Circle I just set and my Mystical Space Typhoon." Yugi declared as a mouth appeared behind him and inhaled sharply, "But since the typhoon already started I still get to destroy your card."

The winds shattered Noah's facedown Draining Shield, before being pulled in by the mouth. Yugi's facedown card also shattered, bathing the spiky headed teen in a torrent of magical pixels.

"Now I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior (1700/1600) in attack mode!" Yugi announced as he slapped another cad into place.

From the card leapt a small yellow creature with magnets all over its body. The magnetic creature beeped, and raised its arms in a threatening posture.

"Beta, attack his life points directly with magnet pulse!" Yugi shouted.

Noah braced himself as a wave of crackling energy flew from Yugi's monster. It slammed against him, knocking him back a couple steps.

Yugi: 6700

Noah: 10100

"This turn is over Noah." Yugi declared as his opponent straightened up, "Make your move."

"Very well." Noah said as he drew, "Remember Susa Soldier?"

Playing the card, the mythological warrior flashed onto the field for the fourth time.

"Soldier, destroy Beta!" Noah called out.

A bolt of lightning flashed, and Beta was smashed into pebbles by Noah's monster. Yugi cringed as Noah's deckmaster bathed him with more light.

"Of course Susa Soldier pays for having such high attack points and only being four stars." Noah smiled, "He only does half the damage you'd expect him to, but that still gets added to my total."

Yugi: 6550

Noah: 10250

"Before I end my turn though, I think I'll play this card." Noah said as he slid one last card into his disk, "Infinite Cards!"

A spell with the image of a hand catching multiple cards jumped in front of Noah. He smiled as his soldier vanished back into his hand, and the spring increased his life again.

Yugi: 6550

Noah: 10750

"Infinite Cards?" Joey asked, staring at the spell, "All that does is eliminate the hand limit. Why would you play that?"

"I think I can guess." Yugi said slowly, "It's because your spirits keep going back to your hand isn't it? If you didn't have this you'd have to discard at the end of almost every turn."

"Right in one." Noah applauded, being careful not to drop his cards, "Now we can both hold as many cards as we like. Oh by the way, it's your turn Yugi."

"_And I need someway to deal with his Susa Soldier. Otherwise it will keep coming back."_ Yugi thought as he drew.

Seeing the card though, he immediately smiled.

"Alright Noah, do you remember how I dealt with your Inaba White Rabbit?" Yugi asked as he played the card.

Noah thought for a bit, and then gasped.

"Your Card Destruction spell!" He realized as his hand vanished into thin air.

Yugi smiled as he indicated to the card he just played. As Noah feared, it was Card Destruction. Yugi drew two new cards, while Noah picked up a full six. Yugi now played another card, causing an eruption of golden light to fill the alley.

"Now I'll use my Card of Sanctity, so we each draw until we hold six cards." Yugi instructed as he drew five times, "Of course, you already have six cards Noah…"

"So your spell doesn't help me at all. Very clever Yugi." Noah said, applauding his opponent, "Anything else?"

"Yes actually." Yugi smiled as he turned another card toward Noah, "I'll play Dian Keto the Cure Master to boost my life points by another thousand…"

Above Yugi appeared a kind old woman, who shook a container filled with white sparks over the boy. He smiled as his life points increased some more, watching as the sparks were absorbed into his body rather than his disk.

Yugi: 7550

Noah: 10250

Yugi then placed another card into his disk and a ring of light appeared on the ground before him.

"Now I'll cast my Premature Burial Spell, letting me summon a monster from my grave." Yugi declared, "And I choose a monster I put there when I played Card Destruction: My Summoned Skull (2500/1200)."

From the circle emerged a huge skeletal monster with a terrifyingly visible muscle structure. His hands had sharp claws and a pair of wings extended from his back.

"Oh boy, this will not be fun." Noah flinched as he crossed his arms in front of his body.

"Summoned Skull, attack with lightning strike!" Yugi shouted.

Bolts of thunder moved across the demon's body…

And then shot right at Noah! He screeched in pain as the electricity coursed over him.

Yugi: 6350

Noah: 8250

Noah slumped forward, whips of smoke rising from his body.

"Are you alright Noah?" Yugi shouted, quite worried.

"I'm fine Yugi." Noah grunted as he stood back up, "I'm just as pain tolerant as you are. Don't forget, I took direct attack from all three Blue Eyes White Dragons."

"Good point." Yugi nodded as he placed his last card into his disk, "If you're ready to continue then I'm moving to my second main phase…"

"Go right ahead." Noah invited with a low bow.

"I play Pot of Greed, letting me draw two cards." Yugi declared as a grinning jar sprang up next to him.

Yugi drew two cards, and then smiled to his Dark Magician.

"_Ready?"_ He asked.

"_All set."_ The master magician nodded.

"I'll also use my deckmaster's power of master of magic." Yugi announced as a purple aura flared around Dark Magician, "I just give up 1000 life points to duplicate the effect of the last spell I played. So go once again, Pot of Greed!"

The green jar pulled up again, and Yugi drew two more cards. The jar shattered as Yugi looked over his options.

Yugi: 5350

Noah: 8250

"_Shoot, still nothing more I can do."_ Yugi thought, _"I'm not off to a good start in this tournament…"_

"I can't do anything more." Yugi admitted with a shrug.

"My turn then." Said his foe, drawing another card, "And I think I'll play my own Pot of Greed."

A third jar appeared, and Noah drew his two cards. Smiling, he played another card, causing a large tapestry to appear in mid air behind him! Stitched onto it was the image of the Summoned Skull.

"I play Next World, which…" Noah explained.

"I remember this!" Yugi interrupted with a gasp, "Now you can summon a spirit monster whose star level is equal to the level of my monster!"

"That's right, and I don't need a sacrifice for high level monsters either." Noah smiled, as he selected a card, "And the one I choose is my Dark Dust Spirit (2200/1800)!"

From the carpet flowed a cloud of dust and soot, which gathered into a new (and more horrifying) monster. It was red all over with white hair and long claws. The dust still floated around its body, and Noah smiled.

"Now that he's been summoned, my monster will destroy every creature on the field besides himself." Noah explained with a grin, "And so it's goodbye Summoned Skull!"

The dust cloud spread out, and the skull screamed in horror. It shattered, leaving Noah's spirit alone on the field. Yugi drew back in fear…

"Dark Dust Spirit, attack him directly with dust of death!" Noah cried out.

The zombie type pointed at Yugi, and the dust soared forward. It wrapped around Yugi's body, and he began to cough and choke on the dust as his life points dropped dramatically.

"Oh, I'm also going to chain a spell from my hand." Noah added with a grin as he turned one of his cards around, "Sebek's Blessing will take the life points you just lost and add them to mine. Add that to my deckmaster's power…"

Next to Noah rose a crocodile standing on its hind legs. It carried a golden scepter, which it waved over Noah's head. At the same time Shinato cued up his light, and Noah became impossible to see within the light.

The light faded away quickly. Yugi and Joey both blinked to clear their eyes, and Noah was laughing out loud.

"Man that feels good!" He said with a grin, "And I'm far from done Yugi! I'll set this card down and end my turn."

Noah played another card, and it appeared facedown before him. The zombie spirit jumped back to Noah's hand, and the Spring of Rebirth flooded over with light again.

Yugi: 3150

Noah: 13150

"_Ugh…I better come up with something fast."_ Yugi thought as he drew his next card.

"_Stay confident Yugi, you can win this."_ Yami coached in a resounding voice, _"Believe that you can!"_

Yugi saw his card, and gave it a strange look. He slid it into his disk, and the card materialized facedown before him.

"I'm going to lay this facedown…" Yugi began as he placed another monster onto his disk, "And this monster facedown. That's all."

"Fine then." Noah said as he drew, "Now let me see…"

Noah smiled once more as he saw the card in his hand.

"Man I'm getting tired of seeing him smile like that." Joey stated from the side lines, "What could you have that's so great?"

"Let me show you." Noah said as he held another card up over his head, "I play my own Emergency Provisions, destroying my Infinite Cards, Spring of Rebirth, and my facedown card to restore another 3000 life points!"

The mouth jumped up behind Noah, and slurped up the two indicated cards. As the green haired youth's life points jumped though, a large golden worm with a demonic face rose up before him!

"What the…Where did that come from!?" Joey shouted.

"My hidden card was Statue of the wicked." Noah explained as he gestured to the creature before him, "And when it's destroyed while its facedown, I get one of these Wicked Tokens (1000/1000)."

"Do they have any special powers?" Yugi asked, slightly revolted by the monster.

"No, but I can sacrifice them to summon new monsters." Noah continued as he placed a card down, "Monsters like my Dark Dust Spirit!"

The golden monster vanished, and the red-skinned undead faded back into view. It shrieked, and the dust flew forward again. Yugi cringed as his Big Shield Gardna was blasted into powder.

"And now it's time for another direct attack." Noah smiled, "Go Dust Spirit!"

Yugi screamed as the deadly particles surrounded him again, and Noah just smiled as his life points skyrocketed.

Yugi: 950

Noah: 18350

"Now it's time to discourage any direct attacks." Noah said as he placed another spell on his disk, "I activate Spiritual Energy Settle Machine!"

A humming noise filled the air as a giant machine covered with lights and nozzles emerged from the building next to the two duelists. It began to buzz wildly, and a shimmering aura was drawn off of the Dark Dust Spirit. It became more solid looking, and Yugi frowned as he remembered this card.

"That spell…It stops your spirit monsters from returning to your hand." Yugi realized.

"That's right, and all I have to do is discard one card I don't need at the end of my turns." Noah confirmed, "That's why I got rid of my spring: I'm hardly going to need it."

Noah laughed as he discarded a card and waved to end his turn. Yugi drew, and smiled as he held up one of his own cards.

"You're going to regret letting your monster stay." Yugi warned as he played his card, "I activate Brain Control, giving up 800 life points to seize control of your spirit!"

A ghastly brain floated down in front of Yugi, who wiped some sweat form his face as glowing energy was drawn from his body. The brain extended a pair of mist-like hands, which dragged Noah's monster to Yugi's field.

Yugi: 150

Noah: 18350

"Please Yugi, I'm so far ahead that one monster hardly matters." Noah sighed as he shoved his hands into his pockets, "That move has almost done you in."

"But it hasn't, so now I'm going to win." Yugi explained as his facedown card lifted, "I play Life Equalizer!"

A trap with the image of two men connected by a bolt of green energy appeared. Noah raised an eyebrow in response…

And then heard a loud beeping noise. Looking at his life point readout, he gasped as it dropped uncontrollably!

"What…what's happening!" He shouted, "My life points…"

"Are dropping." Yugi nodded, "My Life Equalizer trap card can only be used if the difference in our life points is 8000 or more. You took care of that part Noah, so thanks. Now both of our scores change to 3000."

Yugi held up his own disk, showing that his score was increasing.

Yugi: 3000

Noah: 3000

Noah was in shock at this sudden upset. He had lost over fifteen-thousand points to a single card! He also felt slightly drained of energy as the pain simulators kicked in.

"And now I tribute your monster to summon my Dark Magician Girl (2000/1700)." Yugi declared as Noah's monster vanished.

A cute melody began to play, and the buxom sorceress jumped out from behind Yugi's deckmaster. She grinned as she floated to the ground in front of Yugi, and shot a wink at Noah.

"And now I'll summon my deckmaster to the field." Yugi continued as his Dark Magician stepped forward, "I'm sure this looks familiar to you Noah…"

Noah squeezed his eyes shut as he remembered a similar situation.

"Those two almost beat me last time, along with your Magician of Black Chaos." He realized a quiver of fear in his voice, "My Chaos Barrier Field stopped you before…"

"But this time your field is clear, so this duel is mine." Yugi called out, "Now my mighty magicians, attack his life points directly! Double dark magic attack!"

The two spellcasters crossed their staves, and fired a wave of purple and pink magic at the boy. Noah screamed as the attack hit home, knocking him off his feet.

Yugi: 3000

Noah: 0

----------------------------------------

Jakcson stared slack-jaw at the screen as Noah fell to the ground in crumpled heap.

"Looks like somebody just lost another bet." Sota smirked.

"Oh my gosh." Jackson muttered, "Is that Mutoh kid human? How could anybody have that much luck?"

"Ask Smith, he's supposed to be handling the random chance programs." Sota suggested.

"We don't know how Yugi does it, but he does." Rei commented as she typed a command into her station, "And he's good at it too."

Jackson slumped down in his seat and turned to Sota.

"How much do I owe you again?" He sighed in a defeated manner.

-----------------------------

Back in the alley, Yugi helped Noah back to his feet.

"Sorry Noah, I guess that was overkill." Yugi apologized as Joey ran up.

"Oooh…No apologies necessary." Noah said with a pained grin, "Aside from the mind-blowing agony that was fun. I think I'd better request that these pain simulators be turned down though."

"Don't worry Noah, Jackson's on it." Mokuba's voice echoed from overhead.

"Mokuba!" Joey gasped, looking around, "Where are ya?"

"I'm in the real world, watching you guys." The voice explained, "Awesome duel Yugi, I won't be surprised when you get to the finals."

"Who's Jackson?" Yugi asked, turning to Noah.

"One of the programmers that's keeping track of the tournament." Noah explained, "I believe he's supposed to handle the pain simulation and life point programs."

"I'm tuning down the pain now sir." A new voice declared, "Now we shouldn't have to worry about duelists passing out."

"Excellent." Noah said, holding up his duel disk, "Now then, you won fair and square Yugi. So I have to give you one point like we agreed…"

A single mote of light hovered out of Noah's disk, and was absorbed by Yugi's. In the life points window a three glowed brightly.

"And now you get to jump to a new location." Noah smiled as a ring of light appeared at Yugi's feet.

"What about me!?" Joey shouted, "Yug, you can't leave me behind!"

Yugi looked to Noah, who nodded in thought.

"Don't worry Joey, just grab hold of Yugi before he vanishes." Noah instructed, "The two of you will jump together. Rei, countdown please."

"Three…Two…One…" A female voice counted off.

Joey grabbed Yugi's shoulder, and the two shouted a quick "Goodbye!"

In a flash of light, both friends had disappeared. Noah walked out of the alley, and looked around. Down the street he could see another figure appear in a ring of light. He wore a duel disk, with a four glowing in the readout.

"Next challenger." Noah smiled as he walked toward the duelist.

_Wow, after an opening like that what do you do for an encore? I had a tough duel there, and Noah didn't even bring out his strongest spirits!_

_Oh well, you'll get to see more of Noah (and his deck) later. Next time, we're focusing on Brian Hokage, who has decided to refine his deck a little since our last encounter. The 'Duelist of Darkness' has finally started his exploration of this world, and even found his first opponent…Too bad it's one of my old rivals. You can probably guess who by the title:_

_Mosquito Bite_

_Can Brian prevail with his newest strategy? Find out next time._

---

Original Cards

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Next World

Normal spell

Image of an angel holding a glowing orb

Select one monster on your opponent's side of the field. You may summon one spirit monster of the same level from your hand. No tributes are required for a monster of five stars or more. This counts as your normal summon for the turn.

_This card was first used on the show by Noah in the anime episode "Noah's Final Threat (Part 1)." All creative credit goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Deckmaster Powers

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Dark Magician

DARK

Spellcaster

7 stars

2500 attack

2100 defense

Master of Magic: whenever you activate a normal or quickplay spell card, you may pay 1000 life points to activate that card's effect again

_This monster first served as Yugi's deckmaster in the anime episode "Merger of the Big Five (Parts 1-3)" All creative credit for its effects goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

Shinato, King of a Higher Plane

LIGHT

Fairy

8 stars

3300 attack

3000 defense

**This monster has two deckmaster powers**

Life Transference: All battle damage dealt to your opponent is added back to your life points

Reversal: When Shinato is on the field you may call him back to his deckmaster position. If you do so you may not summon Shinato to the field for the rest of the duel.

_This monster first served as Noah's deckmaster in the anime episode "Noah's Final Threat (Parts 1 and 2)" All creative credit for its effects goes to the writers of those episodes._


	3. Mosquito Bite

Disclaimer: We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, only the original cards and deckmaster powers we came up with.

That said, let's get to the good stuff.

_**My name is Brian Hokage.**_

_**I've been dueling for about five years now. Before I became known as the Elemental Duelist of Darkness, The most I could ever brag was tying with my brother at our favorite card shop's tournament.**_

_**Ever since helping Yugi take care of my former employer Needlez, All of the Elemental Duelists have moved on to bigger and better things.**_

_**I, for one, managed to become one of the top duelists of Chicago along with my brother Tim. The only thing that kept me from the National Championship was the fact that it took place during finals week at my school.**_

_**But now, I'm here. Participating in a huge tourney, hosted by Kaiba Corp. no less. This could be the chance for me to become a big name in the dueling world.**_

_**But first, I have to handle a little pest control…**_

**Mosquito Bite**

Brian batted a few more leaves from his jacket. It had been at least thirty minutes since he extracted himself from the bushes he'd landed in and he was still finding foliage all over his hair and clothes.

"Whoever coined the title 'Great Outdoors' should be forced to live out there." Brian grumbled as he pulled the last sprig from his pocket, "Let him see how 'great' it really is…"

The teen continued to grumble to himself as he wandered along the forest trail. This path, at least, had no plant life present to snag at him like the bushes had. Despite his grumblings though, Brian was getting a touch worried. It had been a while since his landing.

"_For all I know, everyone else may already be ahead of me."_ He realized as he looked at his cards, _"And I haven't had much of a chance to practice with my new deck…"_

Brian walked on, entering a large clearing. Other than the brown, dirt path cutting through it and a large rock near where the path re-entered the forest, there was nothing remarkable. He continued forward, heading for the forest again, when an eerie cackle filled the air.

Brian stopped, and looked around.

"Who's there!" He shouted.

The cackling continued, and Brian's gaze scanned the area. There was no one present, but the laughter seemed to come from everywhere at once!

"'Come into my parlor, said the spider to the fly.'" A voice snickered, "You've wondered right into my trap you fool!"

Brian spun, and faced the rock, and out from behind it leapt a young man. He was a good deal shorter than Brian was (only up to his chest), and wore a green shirt and shorts. He had golden framed glasses, and both his shirt and eyewear had a scarab beetle depicted on them. His hair was an odd bluish-green, and his eyes were blue.

"I have you now Yugi!" He screeched in a high pitched voice as he pointed to Brian, "Now I'll have my…revenge?"

The boy lowered his arm, and sighed.

"Oh, not again!" He growled in a frustrated manner, "I go through all the trouble of waiting to trap Yugi, and I just find another loser!"

"Loser!" Brian shouted.

"I mean seriously, you think it wouldn't be so hard to find him!" the boy continued (ignoring Brian), "This is just going to be another waste of time."

"What's that supposed to mean? Who are you?" Brian asked, readying his duel disk.

The boy stopped his rant, and looked over at the dark duelist. He smiled as he held up his right arm, revealing a duel disk of his own.

"You don't recognize me? I'm hurt." The boy snickered, "I thought any duelist worth his deck would recognize the great Weevil Underwood, master of insects."

Brian cautiously moved from his offensive pose. He thought for a minute, and then he smiled.

"Oh yeah, Mako told us about you." Brian confirmed with a nod, "You're that bug obsessed kid that threw out Yugi's Exodia cards."

"So what if I did?" Weevil responded, "That was almost three years ago, and so was Duelist Kingdom."

"Yeah, but it's stuff like that people tend to remember." Brian explained, "Last I heard Weevil, you had disappeared from the face of professional dueling. How did you get invited to this tournament?"

Weevil just grinned and patted his deck.

"After the little 'Orichalcos' incident, Rex Raptor and I decided to start from scratch at card shop tournaments." Weevil explained, "It didn't take long for the two of us to make quite a name for ourselves again, especially in underground tourneys."

"So that's why no ones seen the two of you." Brian guessed, "And you got invited because Kaiba did a little slumming for this tournament's guest list."

"It seemed too good to be true." Weevil sighed, "I knew if I was being invited, Yugi certainly would be as well. This tournament is my big chance to show the world that he's nothing compared to me!"

Weevil brandished his duel disk, and it beeped as it activated.

"And with all of the rare cards I've won playing in card shops and alleys, He won't have a prayer!" Weevil shouted, "So get ready to be my next stepping stone on the path to greatness…again!"

"_Next_ stepping stone?" Brian asked, turning on his own disk, "You've fought someone else today?"

"I got lucky, some amateur from the U.S. landed right next to me and I beat him easy." Weevil smirked, "I only need six more points, and I'm in the finals with Yugi."

"Well tough, I only have two points." Brian explained.

"Doesn't matter, I'll only have to bet two of my own then." Weevil smiled.

"_I was afraid of this." _Brian thought, _"I have to win this and start catching up, or else I'm going to be swarmed by people looking to get to the finals. Hope it wasn't one of my friends he took out…"_

"You don't stand a chance against me!" Weevil chortled, "But just so you won't feel bad, I'll let you go first."

"Gee thanks." Brian muttered sarcastically, "But in case you've forgotten, we need to choose our deckmasters first."

Weevil stopped laughing and shot a surprised look at Brian. His face quickly twisted into a sneer as several images of cards began to float in front of him.

"I knew that…I was just testing you!" Weevil snarled.

He tapped one of the cards, and they all faded away. A single card slid from Weevil's deck and floated next to him for a minute, then shattered into pixels! Rather than fading away, the pixels swirled around Weevil. They soon reformed into a large, blue-green grasshopper, with translucent blue wings.

"Meet my Howling Insect!" Weevil announced, "With a deckmaster like this, I can't lose!"

The insect let out a loud screech in response, and Brian covered his ears.

"Argh!" Brian shouted, "Alright, I get it! Your monster has an annoying high pitched whine like yours!"

Weevil and his insect both fell silent and glared at Brian. The dark duelist looked at the array of cards floating in front of him, and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"_I have absolutely no clue what any of these guys would do as a deckmaster."_ Brian thought.

His gaze settled on one of the cards.

"_Hmm…with my latest strategy, this guy is one of the hardest to summon. Maybe he'd be a better deckmaster."_

"_It doesn't matter what he chooses,"_ Weevil thought, _"Thanks to those websites I found, I know more about deckmasters than anyone in this tournament! I know what every monster can do!"_

"My deckmaster will be…Invader of Darkness!" Brian shouted, tapping the monster he'd selected.

"_Except that one."_ Weevil realized, _"Come to think of it…I don't think I've ever heard of that creature."_

A card appeared behind Brian, and shattered. Rather than reforming though, the pixels fell to the ground. A rumbling sound filled the forest, and a pit of shadows appeared next to Brian. Out of it rose a seven foot tall figure. He looked like a human, with gold colored skin and talons on his fingers, wearing a pure black cloak.

Weevil gasped in horror and drew back.

"Invader of Darkness, meet Weevil." Brian said, "Weevil…**Meet your worst nightmare!"**

"_Using scare tactics for evil reasons, not cool."_ Brian thought, _"Using them on twerpy loudmouths like Weevil, who probably deserves it, fun."_

Weevil shook himself from his daze, and glared at Brian.

"Your monster doesn't scare me." He declared as he activated his duel disk, "Now let's duel!"

Both players pulled five cards from their respective decks.

Brian: 8000

Weevil: 8000

"_Okay,"_ Brian thought as he drew a sixth card, _"Let's see what we've got to work with…"_

"_Brian…"_ Sounded a voice in the teen's head.

"_Who said that?" _Brian thought. Looking around.

"_It was I."_ The voice continued, _"Your deckmaster."_

Brian looked up at the Invader.

"_You can speak telepathically?"_ He asked.

"_I have many powers, one of the advantages to being one of the strongest fiends in existence."_ Invader explained with a nod, _"And you chose well in picking me. My deckmaster ability, Invasion of Darkness, will serve us well."_

"_I like the sound of that! What does it do?"_ Brian queried.

"_Once per duel, I may destroy one card on your opponent's side of the field for every monster you control."_ Invader explained, _"But be warned, if you choose to do so, you may do nothing else that turn except draw during your draw phase."_

"_Skip my whole turn to destroy cards huh?"_ Brian thought, _"Not a bad deal if you ask me."_

"Hey, are you gonna move or what!" Weevil shrieked.

"Sorry, just discussing strategies." Brian announced, "Now that I'm done though, I'll open with Archfiend Soldier (1900/1500), in attack mode!"

Brian placed the card on his disk. Invader of Darkness extended one arm, and a bolt of golden energy slammed the ground in front of Brian. A column of shadows shot up, and out of it stepped a creature that, by basic body structure, could be mistaken for human. He had purple skin, wore purple and gold armor, and had a pair of ram horns on his head. He also wore a green cape, and carried a large sword by his side.

"Wow, These really are realistic." Brian said, "Any way, I'll end my turn with a facedown card."

Brian place a card in his disk, and a larger, holographic one appeared behind the soldier.

"Oh please, that pathetic fiend can't hold a candle to what I'm about to summon." Weevil snickered, "I'll start my turn by using my deckmaster ability: Insect Call!"

The Howling Insect began to screech again, causing Brian and his monsters to cover their ears. The noise continued, until a card floated out of Weevil's deck and into his hand.

"What was that all about?" Brian asked.

"During my turn, I can skip my draw phase." Weevil explained, "If I do, then my deckmaster will fetch a level four or lower insect type monster from my deck, and add it to my hand. And now I'll summon it! Arise, Insect Knight (1900/1500)!"

Weevil slammed the card onto his disk, and Howling Insect let out a loud chirp. Out of the trees, came a creature that looked like a large bug walking on two legs. It was covered with brown, chitinous armor, and its wings were folded back like a cape. In its left hand was a small shield, and in its right, a long sword.

"What do ya say to that?" Weevil taunted.

"I say that, despite all your boasting, our monsters have equal attack scores." Brian pointed out.

"We'll see if this facedown card changes your tune." Weevil laughed as he slid another card into his disk.

The card appeared behind Insect Knight.

"What a waste of a turn." Brian muttered as he drew.

He smiled as he placed a new cad onto his disk.

"I summon Opticlops (1800/1700), in attack mode." Brian announced.

A huge creature with orange skin and a single eye materialized on the field. He and Archfiend Soldier nodded to each other, and then turned to the Insect Knight.

"HA! Why would you summon such a weak creature in attack mode?" Weevil laughed.

"Because of the card I just drew." Brain explained, "My field spell, Yami!"

Brian slid a card into his disk's field zone, and the forest around them began to change. The trees shifted and swayed, until they were consumed by their own shadows! Slowly, an unnatural darkness covered the field, until not even the sky could be seen anymore.

"Welcome to the world of darkness Weevil." Brian said with a grin, "In this field, all of my fiend-type monsters will gain an extra 200 attack and defense points."

Archfiend Soldier (2100/1700) and Opticlops (2000/1900) both looked glad to be in their natural habitat.

"_Oh crud!"_ Weevil panicked, _"Please don't let him destroy my facedown card, please, please, ple…"_

"Opticlops, attack with opti-laser!" Brian ordered.

The orange fiend roared, and a blast of black energy shot from his eye. It slammed into Insect Knight's chest, and the bug screeched as it shattered into pieces!

"Now, Archfiend Soldier, direct attack with blade of demise!" Brian commanded.

The purple fiend now leapt forward, and swung his sword across Weevil's chest! Weevil screamed and fell over, his glasses going askew on his face.

Brian: 8000

Weevil: 5800

Weevil got his feet, a sour look on his face as he adjusted his glasses.

"Okay, it's safe to say you use fiends." He growled, "But they won't help you! I draw!"

Weevil snapped a card from his deck, and smiled as he saw it.

"Perfect! Since my bluff didn't fool you, I'll activate my facedown card: Insect Barrier!" Wevil shouted.

Weevil's card turned over, and a glowing green web materialized in front of him.

"This simple spell protects me from the attacks of insect-type monsters for as long as it remains face up!" Weevil declared.

"Then it's a complete waste, I don't have any insects in my deck." Brian snickered.

"No? Then I'll set one facedown card, and summon my Skull Marked Lady Bug (500/1500) in attack mode." Weevil declared as he placed two cards onto his disk.

A facedown card appeared, followed by a large beetle, about the size of a dinner plate. It had a black shell, with a white mark shaped like a skull on it.

"Now who's playing weak monsters?" Brian taunted.

"My turn, my choice." Weevil stated, "And now you can take yours."

Brian shrugged, and drew his card.

"_I wonder if I should use my deckmaster…"_ Brian thought, _"No, I can only use his power once. I can't afford to waste it on what might be a bluff."_

"Okay Weevil, I'm about to expand my lead." Brian declared, "Opticlops, wipe out his bug!"

Opticlops began to gather energy, when Weevil's facedown card flipped.

"Guess again, bright-eye, I activate DNA Surgery!" Weevil declared.

A trio of doctors stepped onto the field behind Weevil, who smiled at them.

"Time to operate." Weevil joked, "With this trap, I can choose the type of every monster on the field, and I want them to be insects!"

The doctors nodded, and one of them held out his hand. In it, a large model of DNA appeared. The model turned an acidic green, and Brian gasped in horror as his monsters began to transform!

Opticlops's single eye turned into a large compound one. His skin turned shiny and hard, like an exoskeleton, and his single horn transformed into a large feeler! The energy blast from its eye struck the web of lasers over Weevil's field, and ricocheted into the distance.

At the same time, Archfiend Soldier screamed! His sword merged with his arm, forming a purple blade (much like that of a praying mantis). His eyes turned compound, and his horns turned into a pair of long, feathery feelers. His armor merged with his body, giving him a chitinous look like Insect Knight.

"My monsters!" Brian shouted.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Weevil cheered, "Thanks to my trap, they're insects. That means they don't get a bonus from your field card, and they are repelled by my barrier!"

Opticlops (1800/1700) and Archfiend Soldier (1900/1500) both looked dismayed now, as they looked around at the shadows that had replaced the forest.

"Crud!" Brian shouted, "I can't do anything else, I end my turn."

"Excellent!" Weevil cheered, "Then I think I'll use my deckmaster ability again!"

Howling Insect let out another screech, and a new card floated into Weevil's hand.

"Now then, I'll sacrifice my Ladybug…" Weevil stated as he switched the card on his disk for one in his hand.

The beetle shattered into fragments, some of which swooped around Weevil.

"Which, by the way, causes me to restore 1000 life points…" Weevil explained.

Brian: 8000

Weevil: 6800

"And I summon Insect Princess (1900/1200)!" Weevil finished.

In place of the beetle, there was now a creature that looked to be part girl, part insect. She was covered in a yellow exoskeleton, and a pair of colorful butterfly wings extended from her back. She flashed a smile to Brian's monsters, both of which waved sheepishly at her.

"I don't believe it…" Brian gasped.

"I know, even I didn't think that an insect could be so beautiful." Weevil sighed.

"No, I mean I don't believe it's so weak for a monster that requires a sacrifice." Brian explained.

"So, you think she's weak?" Weevil asked with a sick grin, "Well you're in for a very unpleasant surprise. Princess, attack his Opticlops with seductive dance!"

The bug girl giggled, and hovered over to Brian's monster on her wings. Opticlops watched her every move, sighing with each flick of her glorious feelers. Finally, the princess grabbed his monster in a tight embrace.

"Oh brother…" Brian muttered.

The princess smiled at Brian, and then opened her mouth revealing several rows of sharp teeth!

"Hey, watch out!" Brian warned Opticlops.

Too late. The princess chomped down on the one-eyed monster's neck. Opticlops groaned, and shattered into pixels. The princess smiled with satisfaction, and floated back to Weevil's side of the field.

Brian: 7900

Weevil: 6800

"Ah…True love." Weevil sighed.

"You call _that_ love!" Brian shouted.

"Didn't you know?" Weevil asked, "In the insect kingdom, it's usually the female that attracts the male. After they've mated, the female will then eat her partner, so she can be strong enough to carry the eggs."

The princess smiled, and held up her hands, showing a barbed stinger protruding from each of her finger tips.

"Of course, my princess is far too delicate to be considered for child rearing. But it's never too early to practice!" Weevil laughed, "And she even gains 500 attack points for every insect she destroys!"

Insect Princess (2400/1200) giggled along with her duelist.

"Weevil, you're about as funny as a canker sore." Brian growled, "Is it my turn?"

"Not quite. I lay one card facedown, then end my turn." Weevil declared.

Brian drew.

"_Even if I used my deckmaster now, I could only get rid of part of his strategy."_ Brian reasoned, _"And it's probably a safe bet that he has something even worse waiting in the wings."_

"I'm switching my Archfiend Soldier to defense mode." Brian stated as he move his hand to his disk.

As he did though, a spark of lightning shocked his hand! Brian yelped in pain, and pulled his hand back.

"What the…" He gasped.

"Sorry, but Insect Princess keeps you from moving any of your face up insect type monsters into defense mode." Weevil expained.

"Well that's…not good." Brian gulped, "So I'll play this monster in facedown defense mode…"

Brian was about to slide a card onto his disk, but then Weevil's card flipped over!

"Guess again chump. I activate Light of Intervention, so now all monsters have to be played in either face up attack or defense mode!" Weevil declared.

A light shone down on both players' monster zones, and Brian frowned.

"Then I'll summon La Jinn (1800/1000) in defense mode." Brian announced.

A green man with a mustache and legs that disappeared into a trail of smoke appeared in front of Brian. He let out a deep, throaty laugh as he stared down Weevil.

"Very good, but watch what happens…" Weevil instructed.

La Jinn began to groan, his skin turning shiny and hard and his eyes segmenting. His smoky legs changed into a segmented tail, and his mustache turned into a clicking set of mandibles!

"ARGHH! He's a bug!" Brian shouted, drawing back in disgust.

"Thanks to DNA Surgery." Weevil confirmed, "And since he's a bug, he's lured into attack mode by the Insect Princess!"

La Jinn turned toward the beautiful bug lady, and sighed. He reached out for her, and she responded by giving him a wave and a giggle.

"_No! He's got me trapped." _Brian realized, _"Every monster I summon face up will become a bug, and go into attack mode. And I can't play monsters facedown thanks to his Light of Intervention!"_

Brian looked at his facedown card, and sighed.

"I'm done Weevil, it's your turn." He grumbled.

"Excellent." Weevil grinned, "Then I draw…"

Weevil slid a card off his deck…

"And summon Leghul (300/350) in attack mode." Weevil concluded, placing a card onto his disk, "And in case you didn't guess, he's the monster I searched for on my last turn."

A large purple and yellow centipede burst out of the ground, and turned its gaze on Brian.

"What good will he do you?" Brian asked.

"It's very simple." Weevil explained, "Leghul has the wondrous ability to bypass your monsters and go straight for your life points when it attacks. And you know what, that's just what he's gonna do!"

Leghul jumped into the air, flew past Brian's love struck monsters, and chomped down on his leg! Brian winced in pain, and shook the insect off.

"And now my Princess will devour La Jinn!" Weevil declared.

The Insect Princess floated forward, and grabbed La Jinn in a tight embrace. Brian winced and turned away, hearing a loud crunch that signaled the end of his monster.

As he looked up, he saw the Princess (2900/1200) float back to Weevil, her hands now resembling the blades of a mantis.

Brian: 7000

Weevil: 6800

"And that's my turn." Weevil snickered.

Brian drew, and Invader put a hand on his shoulder.

"_Fear not Brian, our opponent seems to have the upper hand at the moment, but we can prevail."_ The fiend told him.

"_How?"_ Brian asked.

"_I'm afraid I can't give you any advice."_ Invader responded, _"Just remember, you still have my ability at your disposal."_

Brian looked over his cards, and then to his facedown one. He nodded slowly, and smiled.

"Okay Weevil, let's see what you make of this move." Brian said with a smile, "I choose to activate my facedown card: Reload!"

Brian's card lifted, and an ancient looking pistol appeared. It clicked once, and Brian' hand and deck vanished. Then it clicked a second time, and the deck reappeared. Brian pulled five cards off of his deck, and smiled.

"What just happened?" Weevil asked.

"My facedown card was just a bluff, like yours was." Brian confessed, "But it was a useful bluff. If I don't like my hand, then Reload will take all the cards in it, and shuffle them back into my deck. Then, I draw a new hand equal to the number of cards I put back in my deck."

"And that helps?" Weevil sighed.

"Immensely." Brian responded, "Because one of my new cards is my Mystical Space Typhoon!"

Brian slid a card into his disk, and a blast of wind shot forward, wiping out the Light of Intervention. Weevil cringed a bit, then sneered.

"So what? Nothing you have could be a match for my monster." He growled.

"I beg to differ." Brian said, "I set one monster facedown and end my turn."

Weevil looked at the new facedown creature as it appeared.

"I think you're bluffing." He stated.

Brian stayed silent.

Weevil drew his card, and smiled.

"Well, even if you aren't bluffing, I don't have to attack that monster. Leghul, go for his life points!" Weevil shouted as he pointed at Brian.

The centipede launched forward again, and chomped on Brian's arm. Brian frowned, and swatted the pest away with his other hand. The Leghul screeched in surprise, and jumped back to Weevil.

"Insect Princess, go for his soldier!" Weevil ordered.

The bug girl sashayed forward, and then ran Archfiend Soldier through with her blades! The soldier gasped, and the princess smiled as she leaned in and took a bite. He immediately shattered, and Insect Princess (3400/1200) spread her wings. They were now even more vibrantly colored, and she smiled as she settled herself next to Weevil.

Brian: 5700

Weevil: 6800

"I'm done, but it looks like I'm in the lead now." Weevil chortled.

"Looks can be deceiving." Brian responded as he drew, "Did you even consider that it might not matter whether or not you attacked my facedown monster?"

"What do you mean?" Weevil asked.

"I assume you know what a Man-Eater Bug is." Brian stated.

"Sure, it's an insect that destroys one monster on the field when it's flipped over." Weevil declared with a nod.

"Well let me show you the fiend version." Brian offered as he turned his card over, "I flip summon my Night Assailant (200/500)!"

A strange creature in a black cloak appeared in front of Brian. The monster had chitinous, blue arms (due to DNA Surgery) and carried a long, serpentine dagger.

"Much like the infamous Man-Eater Bug, my monster will destroy any other monster I choose as soon as he's flipped over." Brian declared, "And I want him to destroy Insect Princess!"

The cloaked figure nodded, and he vanished in a cloud of shadows. The princess stared at where the monster had been, and Weevil nervously looked around.

"Where is he!" Weevil panicked.

"Night Assailant is a trained assassin for the armies of the fiends." Brian explained with a smile, "He won't strike until you least expect it."

At that moment, the serpentine blade shot out of Insect Princess's chest! She screamed, and shattered, revealing the Night Assailant had been standing behind her.

"MY PRINCESS!" Weevil shrieked, "NOOOO!"

"I play one card facedown, and end my turn." Brian announced, sliding a card into his disk as his monster reappeared in front of him.

A new facedown card appeared.

"You…are going…to pay!" Weevil wheezed, "I invoke Insect Call again!"

The Howling Insect sounded off, and Weevil pulled a new card from his deck.

"Let's see you deal with this!" Weevil shouted as he slammed a card onto his disk, "My Neo Bug (1800/1700) in attack mode!"

A monster that resembled a large green grasshopper with huge mandibles jumped down from the shadows, and alighted in front of Weevil.

"Now Neo Bug, avenge your fallen princess! Destroy his Night Assailant!" Weevil commanded.

The bug jumped toward Night Assailant, but Brian's facedown card turned over.

"Guess again Weevil, I activate my Waboku trap!" Brian declared, waving a hand over his disk.

A trio of priestesses appeared, and Neo Bug scurried back to Weevil's side of the field.

"Now your monsters can't hurt me or my monster for one turn." Brian called out.

"Fine!" Weevil spat, turning a card on his disk, "I switch Leghul to defense mode and end my turn!"

The centipede curled into a ball, and Brian drew his card.

"Okay then Weevil, I sacrifice my Night Assailant to summon something new." Brian said with a smile as he switched the card on his disk with the one he had drawn.

Night Assailant faded into shadows…

And a new creature walked out. He was a green skinned man, dressed in regal looking robes. He carried a goblet of green liquid in one hand, and his glowing, red eyes focused on Weevil.

"Meet the leader of the fiends." Brian announced, "Dark Ruler Ha Des (2450/1600)!"

"You mean king of the bugs!" Weevil laughed, "My trap card is still in effect!"

Ha Des groaned, and his eyes immediately turned compound. A pair of brightly colored wings, like those of a butterfly, sprung from his back, and a pair of feelers erupted from his head.

"Aw shoot, I forgot about that." Brian grumbled, "And you still have your Insect Barrier up too?"

"Yep!" Weevil announced.

"Then I end my turn." Brian declared.

Weevil drew, and his face lit up.

"Perfect! I couldn't have planned this better." Weevil cheered, "I sacrifice Leghul and Neo Bug…"

Both monster glowed, and vanished.

"And summon my Insect Princess's mommy!" Weevil called out as he placed a card on his disk, "Now, prepare for your 'dark ruler' to bow before my Insect Queen (2200/2400)!"

The ground shook, and a humongous spider dropped to the ground! She had an almost human face, and her body was colored red and blue. She stood over Weevil, and let out a terrible roar.

"Only 2200 attack points!" Brian exclaimed, "How is that thing worth two sacrifices?"

"Because she gains 200 attack points for every insect type on the field." Weevil chortled, "That includes herself, and your dark ruler!"

The Queen (2600/2400) shrieked again, and eyed Ha Des hungrily. Ha Des stepped back nervously, and looked over his shoulder at Brian.

"Lucky for your monster, she can only attack if I sacrifice a monster to her first." Weevil stated, "Since I can't, I'll end my turn here."

Brian quickly drew, and smiled.

"You can relax Ha Des, I've got a plan to keep that royal pain off us." Brian declared, "I activate Nightmare's Steel Cage!"

"What's that?" Weevil asked as Brian slid a card into his disk.

Weevil soon got his answer, as a huge cage of iron bars swooped out of the sky and trapped him and his monster!

"You've got that combo to protect you, I've got this." Brian said with a smile, "I've just trapped you and your monster in a cage that no mere duel monster can get past. Until two of your turns have passed, neither one of us can attack."

"Fat lot of good that will do ya!" Weevil taunted, "Two turns will be more than enough to ensure your defeat!"

"I won't quote you on that." Brian joked, "Now then, I'll lay one card facedown…"

A new card appeared in front of Brian.

"And move my deckmaster to the field!" Brian finished.

Invader of Darkness (2900/2500) smiled and stomped on to the field. He didn't even seem to mind when a pair of feelers shot out of his forehead. The Insect Queen (2800/2400) drooled hungrily.

"You idiot! Now my Queen grows even stronger!" Weevil laughed, "And don't forget, if your deckmaster is destroyed, you lose the duel!"

"Just let me worry about that." Brian continued, "By the way, I'm also summoning my Witty Phantom (1400/1300) to the field."

As Brian put his last card down, an orange humanoid stepped out of the shadows and next to the Invader. He wore an impeccably clean purple tuxedo, and smiled as he waved hello to Weevil. Then, his eyes turned compound and a pair of feelers emerged as he too became an insect.

Insect Queen (3000/2400) was drooling ravenously, and Weevil let out a shout of disgust as a rather large drop of saliva fell on him.

"What, are you trying to get my monster to drown me?" Weevil shouted.

"You'll see soon enough. It's your move." Brian declared.

Weevil sneered, and pointed to his own deckmaster.

"I use Howling insect's power again!" He declared.

The bug screeched, and another card found its way into Weevil's hand. He quickly placed the card onto the field.

"And I'll summon the monster right now! Say hello to my Cockroach Knight (800/900)." Weevil announced.

A four legged humanoid, carrying a sword and shield, appeared on the field next to the Insect Queen (3200/2400).

"But like you, he won't be staying long." Weevil chortled, "Because I activate the spell card Multiplication of Ants! This spell lets me tribute my knight to summon two Army Ant Tokens (500/1200) in defense mode."

The cockroach man began to glow, and split into two huge, green ants. Insect Queen (3400/2400) stared down at the two monsters with a hungry look.

"Don't worry my queen, just a few more turns and you can sate your hunger." Weevil promised, "And just so you know, whenever Cockroach Knight would go to the graveyard, he's sent to the top of my deck instead. Now take your turn!"

A mote of light appeared on top of Weevil's deck, and it turned into a card.

"_Okay, I need my next card to be a monster…"_ Brian thought as he reached for his deck.

Brian drew, and smiled.

"I summon Ryu-Kishin Powered (1600/1200) in attack mode!" Brian announced.

A stony, pink creature, which looked like a small dragon with no wings, dropped from the sky. It roared as it began to change, a pair of stony, pink feeler sprouting from its head.

"And that's all." Brian stated.

Weevil drew his card and smiled as he put it in place.

"I re-summon my Cockroach Knight (800/900)." Weevil declared.

The man-insect jumped onto the field again, and pointed his sword at Brian.

"And that's it." Weevil laughed, "But on my next turn, you've had it! I'll be able to sacrifice my knight so the queen can attack, and your deckmaster will be fried."

The iron bars melted away, and Insect Queen (3600/2400), the two ant tokens, and the Cockroach Knight began to chitter excitedly.

Brian calmly drew his card.

"So you think it's over do ya?" Brian asked, "You couldn't be more wrong."

"How do you figure that?" Weevil asked.

"Because I'm activating my deckmaster's ability! Go Invasion of Darkness!" Brian ordered.

Invader of Darkness glowed with a golden aura, and that aura spread to every monster on Brian's side of the field! The four monsters charged forward and Weevil gasped in horror.

"Now then, I get to destroy one card on your side of the field for every monster I control." Brian explained, "So I think I'll destroy DNA Surgery, Insect Barrier, Cockroach Knight, and Insect Queen!"

"NO! YOU CAN'T!" Weevil screamed as his monsters began to shriek in fear.

"I just did." Brian retorted.

The four monsters jumped forward. Witty Phantom and Ryu-Kishin Powered attacked Weevil's trap and spell cards, causing them to shatter. Ha Des shot black flames from his hand which engulfed the Cockroach Knight. And finally, Invader of Darkness fired a beam of golden energy from his finger tip, right through the Insect Queen.

Weevil screamed in horror as his cards shattered, leaving him with nothing but two ant tokens.

"I have to pass the rest of my turn now." Brian explained, "But it was worth it to cripple your little plans."

"You…you…" Weevil stammered as he turned purple with rage.

"Oh, by the way, you might want to keep two things in mind." Brian offered as a card formed on top of Weevil's deck, "First, Cockroach Knight is back on top of your deck, and second, my monsters are fiends again…and my Yami spell never left the field!"

Brian's creature returned to their original shapes. Invader (3100/2700), Ha Des (2650/1800), Phantom (1600/1500), and Ryu-Kishin (1800/1400) all began to cheer as they drew power from the shadows.

"_Well played Brian!"_ Invader shouted, _"I couldn't have planned it better myself!"_

"_Don't thank me yet, we still have to win this duel."_ Brian thought.

Weevil was growling, and he glared at his deck master.

"Insect Call! Now!" He demanded.

The insect looked frightened, but screeched again. Weevil slid a new card from his deck and smiled.

"I've got you now!" He cheered, "I'll destroy your deck master and end this duel! First, I'll put the monster I just searched for facedown."

Weevil slid a card onto his disk, and it appeared in front of him.

"And then I activate the spell card Book of Taiyoh!" Weevil shouted, "Letting me flip it over, and activate its effect right now!"

A golden book appeared floating over the face down monster, and the card turned over to reveal a giant greenish-brown bug!

"A Man-Eater Bug (450/600)!" Brian exclaimed.

"Don't let the name fool ya, he's fiend eating too!" Weevil shouted, "And now he's gonna eat your deck master!"

The bug lunged forward. Invader gasped in terror…

And vanished into thin air! The bug landed where he had been standing, and looked around confused.

"He's gone?" Weevil muttered.

Then he perked up.

"He's gone! That means I win!" Weevil cheered.

"Not quite Weevil." Brian said as he held up his arm.

His disk was still active!

"What!" Weevil shrieked.

Brian pointed to his formerly facedown card, which now showed a strange machine that appeared to be made of crystals.

"Your bug didn't destroy my deckmaster, he missed." Brian explained, "I used my Interdimensional Matter Transporter to move him out of harm's way until the end of this turn. And since he wasn't destroyed, and he's coming back at the end of this turn, I'm still in this game."

"No! I was so close!" Weevil moaned.

"Close only counts with horse shoes and hand grenades." Brian stated, "Now end your turn!"

"First I lay this face down." Weevil grumbled as his last card materialized behind the ants, "And now I'm done."

As Weevil said this, Invader returned.

"_That was close."_ The fiend admitted, _"Thank you for rescuing me."_

"_No problem, now let's finish this."_ Brian thought as he drew.

"All right Weevil, I'll take out your tokens first." Brian declared, "Witty Phantom, Ryu-Kishin Powered, you two can do the honors."

The two lesser fiends leapt forward, and stomped on the frightened ants. A flurry of green sparks shot out from under each fiend's foot.

"Next, Ha Des will take out a chunk of your life points by destroying your other bug." Brian continued.

"What do you…" Weevil started as he looked at his Man-Eater Bug, "Oh no! My book left it in attack mode!"

"That's right, so say good bye!" Brian shouted, "Ha Des, wipe it out with dark flames of Purgatory!"

The fiend king raised his hand, and a wave of black flames shattered the giant bug!

"Now Invader, attack him directly with golden beam of destruction!" Brian ordered.

The cloaked fiend laughed, and fired a ray of golden light from his finger. Weevil screamed as it hit him, and fell flat on his back!

Brian: 5700

Weevil: 1500

"That's all, your turn." Brian announced.

Weevil got to his feet and drew his card.

"Get anything useful?" Brian taunted.

"Actually, yes." Weevil smiled.

"How's Cockroach Knight gonna help you?" Brian asked.

"This isn't Cockroach Knight." Weevil explained, "I may not have mentioned this, but my deckmaster reshuffles my deck each time I use Insect Call. That means my knight is back in my deck somewhere, so I drew this instead!"

"And just what is it?" Brian asked.

"My Pot of Greed!" Weevil shouted as he played the card.

He drew twice, and then began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Brian growled.

"I'll show you, but first I need a little help from my trap card Soul Resurrection!" Weevil called out.

His trap flipped over, and a ghostly white mist flowed out.

"I didn't want to use this trap last turn, since I figured I'd need the monster to help rebuild my forces. This trap lets me bring back one normal monster in defense mode." Weevil announced, a card ejecting from his graveyard, "I'm bringing back Insect Knight (1900/1500)…"

Weevil placed the card on his disk. The brown, insectoid soldier stepped out of the mist, and fell to one knee.

"But he won't stay long. I sacrifice him to summon an insect so old, that it makes a Highlander look like a kindergartener!" Weevil shouted as he removed the monster from his disk.

The Insect Knight vanished, and in his place was a huge, blue scorpion covered in strange yellow markings.

"My best monster, Millennium Scorpion (2000/1800)!" Weevil cheered.

"How is that any better than the rest of the fish bait you've thrown at me?" Brian questioned.

"Because this one gets stronger with each monster he beats, and that includes any type, not just insects!" Weevil explained, "Millennium Scorpion, wipe out his Witty Phantom!"

The orange fiend gasped in terror as the scorpion bore down on him. It raised its tail, and speared the poor creature through the chest! Witty Phantom screamed in pain, and then shattered into fragments. The scorpion (2500/1800) then began to glow, and its stinger developed a sharp looking barb on the end.

Brian: 5300

Weevil: 1500

"That had to hurt." Weevil snickered.

"Anything else you'd like to do to annoy me?" Brian asked.

"Yes actually." Weevil stated, "I play my Swords of Revealing Light spell card!"

Immediately, an array of glowing swords slammed into the ground in front of Brian. The teen frowned, and Weevil continued to laugh.

"Yugi had me pinned with these in our last duel. When I finally go up against him, he'll be in for a nasty surprise when I catch him with one of his favorite spells!" Weevil laughed, "And now, I can pick off your fiends one-by-one, until my scorpion is strong enough to destroy your deckmaster! And, since you can't attack for three turns, that should be a piece of cake."

"Since that was the last card in your hand, I'm assuming it's my turn." Brian grumbled as he drew.

Brian looked over his hand, and frowned.

"_Just when did I lose control here?" _He wondered, _"If I don't get rid of his big bug before it destroys Ha Des, it will be too strong for my Invader to beat!"_

"Nothing I can do, your move." Brian growled.

"Excellent!" Weevil shouted, "Then I draw…"

Weevil picked up his card, looked at it, and slid it right into his disk.

"And play my De-spell card!" Weevil shouted, "Antiquated, sure, but it's perfect for getting rid of field spells like Yami."

A huge tornado appeared in the center of the field. It spun wildly, and the shadows were all blown away. Brian and Weevil both blinked several time as they were returned to the sunny, peaceful forest.

"Okay, should have closed my eyes first…" Weevil muttered, "But, no matter. Now your fiends lose their bonus."

Ha Des (2450/1600), Invader (2900/2500), and Ryu-Kishin (1600/1200) all stared fearfully at the scorpion.

"And that means I can complete my plans a turn early." Weevil snickered.

"Oh-no!" Brian shouted.

"Scorpion, destroy Ha Des with venom barb!" Weevil commanded.

The Scorpion launched its stinger right through the regal fiend's chest. He gasped, and shattered. The scorpion (3000/1800) began to glow with black flames.

"Your turn." Weevil laughed, "But keep in mind that your deckmaster is next…"

Brian: 5250

Weevil: 1500

"_No! I have to beat that thing this turn, or next turn my deck master is toast!" _Brian realized.

He drew, and his face lit up.

"I play Card of Sanctity!" Brian shouted.

The forest blazed with golden light, and both players drew until they held six cards.

Brian's eyes widened as he saw the last card he drew.

"_Hey, I forgot I still had this!"_ Brian thought, _"But this is just perfect for ending this duel."_

"You're finished Weevil!" Brian shouted as he placed a card on his disk, "I activate Heavy Storm!"

A tremendous rush of wind shot around the field. The swords of light shook, and then vanished into thin air.

"And now, I summon Newdoria (1200/800)!" Brian declared.

A scrawny looking orange monster, with a studded black belt over his eyes and matching vest appeared in front of Brian.

"Ha! That's way weaker than my scorpion. It will be destroyed in an instant!" Weevil shouted.

"I agree." Brian nodded, "Newdoria, attack his scorpion with death bindings!"

The fiend jumped forward, and latched onto the bug. It roared and exploded in a blast of dark energy.

Brian: 3450

Weevil: 1500

The energy cleared away, and both monsters were gone!

"What happened!" Weevil screamed, "My Millennium Scorpion…"

"Is gone!" Brian cheered, "Because when Newdoria is destroyed in battle, he can destroy one other monster on the field. And this time it was your last line of defense!"

Weevil let out a yelp of fear.

"Ryu-Kishin, finish him off!" Brian ordered, "NIGHTMARE TALONS!"

The dragon gargoyle roared, and jumped toward the bug duelist.

"NOT IN THE FACE!" Weevil screamed, raising his hands up.

Brian cringed as his monster struck Weevil right across the cheek.

"My face…my beautiful face!" Weevil sobbed as he fell over.

Brian: 3450

Weevil: 0

Brian stepped forward as two points of light floated from Weevil's disk into his. His win readout beeped, and the two turned into a four.

"Looks like I squashed your plans." Brian joked as stood over his opponent.

"Don't think this is over." Weevil moaned, "After I get Yugi, you're next buddy!"

"Do you have to swear revenge against everyone you duel?" Brian queried as his body faded away, "You'd have more fun if you relaxed."

And with that, the Duelist of Darkness vanished. Weevil just lay on the ground, unmoving as he plotted his next scheme.

"_Maybe it's time for a little change in strategy."_ He thought as he pushed himself up.

_**Okay, Weevil was obnoxious but he was a good challenge. I might be able to catch up in this tournament after all…**_

_**But before you can see that, how many of you want to know what Celeste is up to? I'm no spotlight hog, so next chapter Celeste faces off with a duelist who has made quite a name for himself in his local circuit…**_

_**And it looks like he's hoping to impress Celeste. Our next chapter is called:**_

_**Love is a Battlefield.**_

**_See ya next time! (Now where's my next opponent?)_**

---

Original Deckmaster powers

---

Invader of Darkness

DARK

Fiend/effect

8 stars

2900 attack

2500 defense

Invasion of Darkness: Once per duel, you may choose to destroy one card on your opponent's side of the field for each face up monster you control. If you do so, you must end your turn after your draw phase.

---

Howling Insect

EARTH

Insect/effect

3 stars

1200 attack

1300 defense

Insect Call: You may choose to skip your draw phase to instead search your deck for a level four or lower insect type monster and add it to your hand. Then shuffle your deck.


	4. Love is a Battlefield

_**My name is Celeste Hikari.**_

_**I grew up in the suburbs of Los Angeles, and technically, I've been dueling since I could walk. However, I only started serious dueling last year.**_

_**I chose what I thought was a very good deck strategy. I found out very quickly that no one respects fairies. That all changed after the Los Angeles Regionals.**_

_**So here I am, in a Virtual Tournament, and so far I think I'm doing pretty well. **_

_**Of course, this is my first opponent in this competition, but he's amusing to say the least.**_

_**Though he is getting annoying…**_

**Love is a Battlefield**

Celeste sighed as she sat on a large boulder, wringing out her long, braided hair. Her clothes were almost dried out thanks to the virtual sunlight, but her hair was another matter.

"_It would probably dry faster if I unbraided it." _She thought, _"But I don't want to spend another hour fixing it."_

Celeste gave her hair another quick wringing, and looked around the clearing she had landed in. Other than the boulder she now sat on, the small lake of in one corner, and the ring of trees surrounding her, the area was completely empty.

"_For a 'grand tournament' there doesn't seem to be a lot of people."_ She said to herself as she began to hum a little melody.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

As Celeste was thinking, another duelist was making his way through the woods.

He had tan skin, and eye length, curly black hair. His eyes were a deep blue, and he wore a ruffled shirt, brown cotton vest, and brownish-green pantaloons, which somehow seemed to go with his vest. Strapped to his left arm was a duel disk, which he was fully loaded with a deck of cards.

"Some tournament this has been so far." He muttered to himself in a lightly Spanish accent (something the translator program didn't seem to catch), "I've been searching this forest for an hour almost, and I haven't seen a single person!"

He stormed past a few more trees, and then stopped as a noise reached his ears. It sounded like someone was humming, though it wasn't a tune he recognized.

"_Perhaps my luck is changing." _He thought with a grin as he started toward the source of the music.

---------------------------------------------------

Celeste ran a finger over her braid, and smiled as she found it was practically dry.

"Time to get going." She smiled as she stood up.

She stopped however, as she felt someone place a hand on her shoulder. She screamed, and fell forward, landing on her knees.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" A lightly accented voice exclaimed, "I didn't mean to frighten you!"

Celeste scrambled to her feet, and spun around. Standing directly behind the rock she had been using as a chair was a young man, about her age (seventeen). His blue eyes went wide as he saw Celeste's face, and a coy smile crossed his tan face.

"You didn't get hurt did you?" He asked reaching a hand out.

"No, you just startled me." Celeste explained.

"I do apologize, my fair princess." The boy stated as he stepped around the rock, "That was not my intention."

Celeste looked over the youth, taking in his fancy shirt, pants, and vest combo.

"_What's with the fancy get up?" _She wondered to herself.

She was shaken from her thoughts as the youth took her hand, and kissed the back of it.

"Allow me to introduce myself." He smiled, "My name is Ronaldo Cortez, the Duelist of Nobility. And you are…?"

"Celeste Hikari." The girl said, shaking her hand loose from his, "Elemental Duelist of Light, Fairy-type specialist, and Champion of Los Angeles."

"Small world." Ronaldo smirked as he took her hand again, and moved closer, "I happen to be a champion as well. The Champion of Barcelona, Spain."

He looked over Celeste and smiled.

"If I had known that there were duelists as beautiful as you in Los Angeles though, then I would have attended your championship as well." He said, the smile never leaving his lips.

Celeste blushed a bit, and pulled away again.

"Of course, I'm sure that any man would be perfectly willing to give up a championship to one of your beauty." Ronaldo continued.

Celeste stopped blushing immediately at those words.

"After all, fairy-types aren't all that powerful." Ronaldo continued, not noticing Celeste's glare.

"Excuse me!" Celeste shouted, "How dare you say that!"

Ronaldo went pale and stepped back a bit.

"I'm sorry, did I say something to offend you?" He asked.

"You basically just implied that I'm a weak duelist who only won because of my good looks!" She shouted, "Why is it that almost every guy who hears that I'm a fairy duelist automatically assumes that I have no place in a major tournament!"

Ronaldo seemed quite taken back with the outburst, but quickly regained his composure.

"_Wow, she's cute when she's mad."_ He said to himself.

"I apologize again, it was not my intention to insult you." Ronaldo said hastily, "I was merely attempting to pay you a compliment my angel."

Celeste looked over Ronaldo's face. He seemed sincere with his apology…

"Okay," She said, activating her disk, "If you want to make it up to me, let's have a duel."

"Excuse me?" Ronaldo asked.

"We'll duel, and I'll prove how strong a duelist I am." She explained.

Ronaldo thought for a second, then smiled and turned on his own disk.

"_I see, she says she wants to prove she is a strong duelist." _Ronaldo thought, _"But she really wants to see how strong I am."_

"Very well my love_."_ Ronaldo said as a flurry of cards flew before him, "Then let us choose our deckmasters!"

Celeste watched as her monster cards all floated in the air before her. She carefully looked over them, wondering which one to choose. Finally, she nodded, and jabbed her finger at one of the cards. The others vanished, and behind Celeste appeared a young woman made of silvery light, with angel wings of the same material.

"My deckmaster is Soul of Purity and Light!" Celeste declared, as her monster wrapped its arms around her shoulders.

"Good." Ronaldo nodded as a column of lightning struck the ground behind him, "Mine shall be: Zaborg the Thunder Monarch!"

From the lightning bolt emerged an imposing figure. He stood at least 7 feet tall, and wore white armor. On his head sat a small crown, and each of his hands sparked with electric bolts.

"_Okay, that's impressive."_ Celeste thought.

"_Don't worry, I'm sure it's all for show." _Said a peaceful voice in her head.

"_Yeah, I'll bet you're…"_ Celeste nodded.

Then she stopped. She looked around, and realized that the only person around was Ronaldo, and the voice she had heard was definitely female.

"Is something the matter Miss" Ronaldo asked, concern in his voice, "Perhaps the fall affected you more than you realized…"

"I'm fine." Celeste responded.

"_Who said that?"_ She wondered in her head.

"_Me of course." _The voice responded, _"Just look over your shoulder…"_

Celeste looked over her shoulder, and her deckmaster smiled and winked at her.

"_See?" _The voice said.

"_Soul of Purity and Light?"_ Celeste realized

"_How else was I supposed to tell you about my deckmaster ability?"_ Soul responded, _"If you failed to notice, I'm not exactly talkative."_

"_Good point." _Celeste agreed, _"So what do you do?"_

"_My ability is known as Intervention."_ Soul explained with a gentle pat on the shoulder, _"At any point during your turn or his, I can be special summoned to the field or returned to your side, even in battle. If I come in during a battle, I'll redirect one attack to myself. But if I leave when he targets me for an attack, the attack will hit you instead, even if another monster is present. I can only jump once per turn, so be careful."_

"_I will." _Celeste promised, _"But what can you tell me about his deckmaster?"_

"_Nothing, I'm afraid." _Soul thought, _"And he isn't required to tell you either until he activates it."_

Celeste looked to Ronaldo, who nodded to his own deckmaster. A confident smile crossed his face as he turned back to Celeste.

"_Looks it does something good."_ Celeste fretted.

"Shall we begin then?" Ronaldo asked.

"Let's." Celeste nodded as both drew five cards.

"Let's Duel!" Both shouted together.

Ronaldo: 8000

Celeste: 8000

"Would you like the first movemy lady?" Ronaldo offered.

"No thanks, and it's Celeste." Celeste retorted.

"Very well." Ronaldo sighed as he drew, "Then in your name, I will win this duel for your heart!"

"_He's so lucky that there's an entire field between us." _Celeste thought.

Ronaldo looked over his hand, and quickly laid a monster on his tray.

"And I shall open with Blade Knight (1600/1000) in attack mode." Ronaldo declared with a dramatic wave of his hand.

Zaborg raised one arm, and a bolt of lighting struck the ground. In front of Ronaldo appeared a soldier in silver armor. He carried large sword in one hand, and a silver shield in the other.

"And now, it is your turn." Ronaldo stated.

Celeste drew and almost burst out laughing.

"_I haven't had this good a hand in months!"_ She thought, _"This is just perfect!"_

"I'll open with Mirage Dragon (1600/600)." She almost shouted, putting the card down.

Soul waved one hand, and a hole opened in the air before Celeste. A hazy purple mist floated out, and in the mist appeared a golden scaled, serpent like dragon. It growled, and began to coil around in the mist.

"A dragon!" Ronaldo exclaimed in terror, "Surely it holds your mind within its terrible grasp! Fear not my lady, for I…"

"Will find yourself halfway across the virtual world if you don't be quiet and let me finish my turn." Celeste interrupted threw gritted teeth, "I'll lay this card down, and end my turn."

Celeste slid another card into her disk, and a large card appeared behind the dragon. Ronaldo drew, and quickly began to plug several cards into his disk.

"Very well, prepare for your dragon to be vanquished!" Ronaldo declared, "I lay five cards facedown, and summon Command Knight (1200/1900) in attack mode!"

Ronaldo's hand emptied, as five cards appeared behind the armored knight. Then, in a blaze of fire, a young woman wearing ceremonial leather armor, and carrying a blazing sword jumped onto the field. She swung her sword forward, a smile on her face.

"You set your _entire hand!"_ Celeste gasped, "Why would you do that?"

"To activate Blade Knight's ability." Ronaldo smiled as a silver glow appeared around the knight, "If I have one or zero cards in my hand, Blade Knight gains 400 attack. And my Command Knight already boosts all warriors on the field by 400 points."

Blade Knight (2400/1000) and Command Knight (1600/1900) crossed their swords, and stared down the dragon. Mirage Dragon drew back, and growled nervously.

"Blade Knight, attack her dragon with silver blade!" Ronaldo ordered.

The armored soldier lunged forward, and began to swing his sword…

When a large, purple and red box sprang up in front of him! Carnival style music poured from the box, and several figurines shaped like Mirage Dragon began to pop in and out of the holes. Blade Knight stopped, and stared at the strange phenomenon.

"What…" Ronaldo began to ask.

"Around my house, there used to be an arcade." Celeste explained as a golden coin floated into her hand (one side marked with an eye, the other was blank), "One of the games was reminiscent of this, at least in terms of appearance. This trap is called Fairy Box, and I believe Joey Wheeler is fond of it. Now I'm going to flip this coin, and if I call it correctly, your monster's attack drops to zero. Of course, since the target won't change, the attack can't be called off."

"Uh oh." Ronaldo muttered, "I don't think I like where this is going."

"The side with the eye is heads, and the blank side is tails. I call tails!" Celeste shouted, tossing the coin into the air.

The coin sparkled in the sunlight, and floated toward the ground. Celeste snatched it out of mid-air, and slapped it onto the back of her right hand. She smiled, as she revealed the blank side of the coin to Ronaldo.

"Tails, you lose." Celeste smiled.

The carnival music stopped, and a loud buzz emitted from the box. Mirage Dragon leapt out from behind the box, and sank its teeth through the now powerless Blade Knight (0/1000). The monster groaned, and shattered into silver fragments.

Ronaldo: 6400

Celeste: 8000

"Oh my." Ronaldo gasped.

"You done now?" Celeste asked, "Or does Command Knight want to try her luck?"

"Even if I won, the battle would be a tie." Ronaldo pointed out, "I did not get to be the champion of Barcelona by being a fool. Your move, fair lady."

Celeste nodded and drew. She carefully looked over Ronaldo's five facedown cards.

"_He set all of those facedown. But it was probably just to power up his knight."_ Celeste reasoned.

The box began to beep, and Celeste snapped from her thoughts.

"Almost forgot, I need to pay 500 life points each turn to keep my box." She stated, her life points decreasing as the box stopped beeping.

Ronaldo: 6400

Celeste: 7500

"Now then, I summon Hysteric Fairy (1800/500) in attack mode." Celeste declared, placing another card on her disk.

Next to the dragon, a young woman with blue hair appeared. She wore a purple, knee-length skirt with a matching jacket. Under her arm was a large tome with an ankh on the cover, and a pair of white wings extended behind her. She smiled, and adjusted a pair of red-framed glasses, staring down Command Knight.

"Hysteric Fairy, throw the book at her!" Celeste ordered, "Literally!"

The winged woman smiled, and reared back with the arm holding the book. As she did, Ronaldo quickly tapped a button on his disk.

"Alas, it shall not work fair princess, for my Mirror Force will destroy both of your monsters!" Roanldo declared.

"Come again?" Celeste asked as her dragon roared.

Ronaldo gasped in horror, as the mist around Celeste's dragon floated over his side of the field. The trap that was about to lift settled back to its facedown position. At the same time, Hysteric Fairy flew forward and slammed her book right into Command Knight's face! The knight moaned, and shattered.

"But…my trap card…" Ronaldo protested.

"You can't use traps during the battle phase as long as Mirage Dragon is on the field." Celeste explained patiently, "Didn't you know?"

"Of…of course I did!" Ronaldo stated, regaining his composure, "I just wanted to see if you truly knew the potential behind your own cards."

"Hello, _I _didn't get to be champion of Los Angeles with by being an idiot." Celeste stated, "Now then, Mirage Dragon, attack with spectrum blast!"

The dragon opened its mouth, and a beam of rainbow light flew out. Ronaldo waved his hand over another of his cards, and it lifted.

"Your dragon doesn't stop quickplay spells though, so I defend myself with Scapegoats!" Ronaldo shouted.

Four goats (0/0 X 4); one blue, one red, one orange, and one pink jumped before Ronaldo as his card lifted. The spectrum beam struck the blue one, which shattered into pieces. The other three goats bleated in fear, and ducked underneath the other facedown cards.

"_I'm being defended by cowards." _Ronaldo thought as he held his head, _"This does not bode well for me at all…"_

Ronaldo: 6200

Celeste: 7500

"Crud." Celeste cursed, "I'll just set one facedown then, and that's all."

Celeste plugged another card into her disk, and a second spell/trap appeared behind her monsters. Ronaldo drew, and looked over his hand.

"Hmm…Looks like I'll need a new plan." Ronaldo declared as he put another card down, "So I summon Queens Knight (1500/1600) to the field."

A blond woman wearing ruby red armor came to the field. She wielded a thin sword in her right hand, and Ronaldo smiled as he turned one of his facedown cards over.

"Now, I'll activate this equipment spell card known as Excalibur!" Ronaldo shouted.

"Isn't that the sword from the story of King Arthur?" Celeste asked.

"Yes, but in this game it is an incredibly rare spell card." Ronaldo explained as a shimmering silver sword appeared before Queens Knight, "I won it as a prize in the Barcelona Regional Championship. It doubles the attack of any monster I equip it to, but if I draw a card for any reason I must destroy it. Thankfully, it lets me skip my draw phase as long as it is on the field."

Queens Knight (3000/1600) took the blade, and pointed it toward Celeste's monsters.

"Now my knight, strike down her dragon with Excalibur strike!" Ronaldo ordered.

The knight jumped forward, but before she reached her target the box began to play music again.

"Forget about Fairy Box?" Celeste asked as the coin reappeared, "I call Heads this time. You feel lucky?"

Celeste tossed the coin again, and caught it. Ronaldo groaned as he saw what it had landed on.

"Heads, I win." Celeste smirked.

Ronaldo just groaned again, as Queens Knight (0/1600) was torn apart by the Mirage Dragon.

Ronaldo: 4600

Celeste: 7500

"There is nothing more I can do my precious angel." Ronaldo sighed, "I must pass the turn onto you."

"_Why does he keep trying to flatter me?"_ Celeste thought, _"I'm not that cute."_

"_Don't sell yourself short." _Soul responded, _"Hey, maybe he's throwing the duel to try and get some attention from you."_

"_Would he really be that desperate?"_ Celeste asked.

"_How should I know, I'm just a computer program." _Soul reminded her.

"Umm...before you end your turn, I activate Solemn Wishes." Celeste declared, her other card lifting, "Now when I draw a card, I gain 500 life points. So I'll draw…"

Celeste drew, and a beam of golden light came down around her. At the same time, the box began to beep.

"And I'll surrender the life points I just gained to keep my box in play." She stated.

The box fell silent, and Celeste put another card on her tray.

"Now I summon Asura Priest (1700/1200) in attack mode" Celeste continued.

A beam of light floated to the ground, and a man with blue skin, six arms, and three faces (One on the front, left, and right sides of his head) appeared. He wore a red cape, and blue briefs.

"Then I'm to guess you will be destroying my Scapegoats?" Ronaldo assumed.

"Them, and the rest of your life points." Celeste explained after quick mental calculation, "My Asura Priest can attack all of your monsters at once, and that's just what he's going to do."

The blue man held up his hands, and revealed a sharp dagger in each one. He tossed three of them, and they sliced easily through the cowering goat tokens.

"Next, Mirage Dragon and Hysteric Fairy attack directly." Celeste ordered.

The two monsters nodded, and Mirage Dragon breathed its rainbow breath again. Hysteric Fairy fired a laser from her eyes, which intertwined with the rainbow, and both attacks slammed into Ronaldo's chest. He clenched his teeth and staggered backwards, but didn't fall over.

"It seems you made a miscalculation my dear, I'm still standing." Ronaldo pointed out.

"Not for long." Celeste smiled, "I activate my deckmaster's ability of Intervention. Now I can summon her to the field, even during my battle phase."

The soul (2000/1800) smiled, and detached from her controllers shoulders. She hovered forward, and floated over the ground in front of Celeste.

"And since it's still my battle phase, she can end this duel now." Celeste explained, "Attack with silver spirit ray!"

Soul raised her hands, and fired a beam of silver light. Ronaldo braced himself as the attack closed in.

"_If I fall, I shall do so like a true knight."_ Ronaldo thought.

The beam struck, but Ronaldo neither fell nor screamed. He simply tensed up as the beam washed over him.

Ronaldo: 0

Celeste: 7500

"_Too bad Mirror Force, Sakuretsu Armor, and A Hero Emerges couldn't help me this time." _Ronaldo lamented.

The attack faded, and Ronaldo slumped a bit. He started to fall to his knees, but Celeste ran forward and quickly provided him support.

"Bravo." She smiled, "You're one of the few people I faced who can take three direct attacks from me without whining or screaming."

"Thank you." Ronaldo said as he caught his breath and stood up straighter, "I'm fine my lady, you needn't concern yourself with me."

Celeste stepped back, and Ronaldo managed to stay up on his own. His disk began to beep, and he waved a hand over it.

"You won, so you may take the two win points I have." He explained, two points of light floating from the contraption.

Celeste tapped a button on her own disk. The first light floated over into her disk, but the second was absorbed back into Ronaldo's! Ronaldo blinked in astonishment at this, and looked at Celeste.

"We never agreed how many win points we'd each bet." She pointed out, "And it's not your fault I had one of my best hands ever. Besides, it might be fun to duel again if you get to the finals."

Ronaldo just remained silent, and a circle of light appeared around Celeste's feet.

"Guess I'm going somewhere new now." Celeste realized as she began to fade, "But good luck!"

Celeste vanished, and Ronaldo smiled. He sat down on the boulder Celeste had been using earlier, and looked at the lone win point in his counter.

"_I think I'm in love." _ He said to himself as he leaned back…

And fell of the rock with a thud.

_**You know what they say when something is too easy, right? Well, this was, so I'm pretty sure I haven't seen the last of Ronaldo.**_

**_Of course, he's just the first of the duelists I'll be facing in this tournament. Until my next chapter though, why don't you see what Zeffie is up to?_**

**_In the mountains, Zeffie has discovered an odd new opponent, one with a unique strategy that embodies his outlook on life…_**

_**We call it:**_

_**The Mysterious Mr. Richington.**_

_**See ya then!**_

---

Original Card

---

Excalibur

Equipment Spell

Image of a shimmering, silver blade.

Double the attack of a Warrior-type monster equipped with this card. This card is destroyed if you draw for any reason. As long as this card remains face up on the field, you may skip your draw phase.

_This card was first used in the anime by Yami, in the episode "Reliving the Past." All credit for it goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Soul of Purity and Light

LIGHT

Fairy

Six stars

2000 attack

1800 defense

Intervention: At any time during your turn or your opponent's, you may either special summon this monster from your sidelines to your field or vice-versa. If you summon this monster when your opponent declares an attack or activates a spell that targets a monster, this monster becomes the target. If you move it to the sidelines when this monster is targeted for an attack, the attack is redirected to your life points.

---

Zaborg the Thunder Monarch

LIGHT

Thunder

Six stars

2400 attack

1000 defense

Deckmaster Power?

_If you want to know what Zaborg can do, you'll have to wait for a later chapter. Yep, Ronaldo will duel again!_


	5. The Mysterious Mr Richington

Disclaimer: WE don't own Yu-Gi-Oh in any form, other than our original cards and characters.

Now, let the show begin!

_**Hello! Zeffie's name is Zeffie Gale.**_

_**Zeffie loves Duel Monsters, it's so much fun! And Zeffie has made a lot of friends playing it too.**_

_**But not everyone Zeffie plays with is so nice. There are these boys back at school who think girls shouldn't play Duel Monsters. And there was Damosel, who was a really bad loser. And there was also mean old Needlez, who was just plain old bad.**_

_**Today though, Zeffie gets to play in a big tournament with lots of other friendly duelists. She can't wait to get to the finals to duel with Mr. Yugi and all of her other friends.**_

_**But Zeffie's first opponent is really strong. He's using monsters that are the same kind as Goldie's…**_

_**But Zeffie doesn't think Goldie would use these monsters.**_

**The Mysterious Mr. Richington**

Zeffie sighed as she looked around the landscape.

She had landed in a mountainous valley, with very little plant life around other than the branch she had caught herself on. After meandering around in a big circle for roughly forty-five minutes, and there was no sign of other duelists anywhere. Only mile after mile of rocky land, dead-looking trees, and the occasional boulder.

Right now she sat at the top of a short drop. The ground was barely seven feet below her, and just as blasted and barren as the rest of the valley. Laying on her back with her legs dangling over the edge she let out another sigh.

"Zeffie is so _bored!_" She moaned, "Where are all of Zeffie's dueling friends?"

Zeffie lay completely still and silent…for all of fives seconds. Receiving no answer from the blue sky above her, she sat right back up.

"Okay then! Zeffie will just keep looking!" The little girl cheered, pumping her fist skyward.

She stood up, and as she did a ring of light flew past her face! Zeffie blinked, and looked down as the ring landed at the bottom of the cliff. From the ring emerged a man.

From above, He seemed to be in his mid-forties. He wore a deep purple tuxedo and shiny, black dress shoes. His head was topped with a purple top hat, and just under his large nose was a bushy black mustache. He had on white gloves, and a golden duel disk strapped to his left arm (matching the handle of the gem-topped cane in his right hand).

"Well that was an easy victory." He said in a snobby British accent, "Those Eliminators aren't half as hard as I heard."

He carefully dusted off his jacket, not noticing Zeffie standing above him. He made a quick gesture, and an array of holographic cards appeared before him, divided into three sections. The largest held at least fifty or sixty cards, the second largest held a scant fifteen, and the smallest housed a single card. He pulled a monocle from the pocket of his jacket, and set it in his eye. Smiling, he tapped the single card and it floated into the largest section. He snapped his fingers, and the array vanished.

Zeffie smiled as she crouched low, like a cat waiting to pounce on an unsuspecting rodent.

"Now then, I wonder where my next challenge is?" The man wondered as he began to move away.

"Right here!" Zeffie cheered as she leapt from the cliff.

The man looked up.

"Who said…Oh my stocks and bonds!" He exclaimed as the blond terror landed square on top of him.

The two fell to the ground, getting absolutely covered in virtual dust. Zeffie was quick to spring to her feet again, smiling as her disk switched on.

"Hello weird new dueling friend!" Zeffie said happily, "Zeffie's name is Zeffie Gale! Nice to meet you!"

"Indubitably." The man said as he slowly got up, "My lawyer's name happens to be Mr. Greed, and you'll be hearing from him young…"

He stopped, and chuckled as he realized he was talking to a nine-year-old. Zeffie blinked, wondering what was so funny.

"Well, well. I was about to sue a child! How foolish of me, I do apologize." He said promptly and politely.

"Um…Okay! Zeffie is sorry she jumped on you." She apologized.

"Quite alright, I have a son about your age. He's a bit energetic himself." The man assured her.

He then took off his hat, and made a sweeping bow.

"My name is Sir Reginald Richington Esquire." He introduced himself, "Entrepreneur extraordinaire, millionaire miraculous and duelist divine."

"Neat." Zeffie smiled, "Are you really rich?"

"Well I'm not called Richington just because I legally changed my name to it, you know." He laughed.

Zeffie once more wondered what was so amusing, as the adult before her chuckled at his own joke. Noticing this, he stopped laughing.

"I suppose that joke is a little too…mature for you." He commented.

"That was a joke?" Zeffie asked, cocking her head a bit.

"Your parents must have sent you public school." Richington sighed, "Poor dear."

"Are you a really good duelist?" Zeffie asked quickly, "How did you get invited?"

Richington chuckled a bit, and waved his hand nonchalantly.

"I happen to be a twenty-five percent share holder in both Kaiba Corp and Industrial Illusions." He explained, "In other words, I own about a quarter of each company. My mmmmoney probably helped to build these pods we're using."

Zeffie couldn't help but notice the fact he had drawn out the 'm' in money. Still, she smiled as she took this as an answer of 'yes.'

"So. Mr. Kaiba brought you here because you helped make this place?" She asked.

"Well, that and I gave him a small kickback." Richington confirmed with a wink, "But let's keep that between us."

Zeffie nodded, and then looked at her new conversation partner's disk.

"How many points do you have?" She asked.

"Five." Richington answered with a smirk, showing a glittering five over his head, "I just recently defeated one of those dreadful Eliminator programs. You'd think that Artificial Intelligence would actually imply intelligence."

He once more chortled at his joke, while Zeffie was still a little stumped. Mr. Richington sighed again, and placed his head in one hand.

"I believe you mentioned something about a duel." He stated, obviously exercising a fair amount of patience.

"Oh yeah, Zeffie wants one!" The girl said, brightening up immediately, "Zeffie's first duel of the tournament!"

"Very well." Richington said as he flicked his own disk into place, "But I'm afraid you don't know what you're getting into. You're about to see that in life and Duel Monsters…"

A grid of cards appeared before the Rockefeller, and he jabbed one of them with his cane.

"…Greed is very good." He smiled, "And no one knows that more than my deckmaster and financial advisor: The Goblin of Greed!"

The card he had selected burst, and behind the mogul materialized a fat green humanoid with muscular arms. He wore rich looking red robes, which were slightly tattered, and equally conditioned purple pants. In one hand he held a Jar of Greed, and in the other was a Pot of Greed, both overflowing with jewels.

"You can just call me Asmodeous." The fiend-type smiled, "Ready for work boss!"

"Good, hold this." Richington smiled as he jammed his cane into the jar.

Zeffie watched as her own grid of cards appeared, and smiled as she recognized her monsters (both old and new).

"_Who should Zeffie pick?"_ She asked herself, _"Zeffie doesn't know what they do."_

Finally deciding to leave it to chance, the child closed her eyes and stabbed her finger at a card. Opening her eyes once more, she saw she had selected a four-star normal monster.

"Okay, Zeffie picks Takuhee as her deckmaster!" The girl shouted.

A screech echoed from overhead, and a large bird (about the size of a falcon) swooped down and landed on a tree that spontaneously popped out of the ground next to Zeffie. It had red eyes and brown feathers, and a fierce look on its feathered face.

"Neat!" Zeffie smiled, "Hi Takuhee!"

"Hello Zeffie." The bird squawked in reply.

Zeffie gasped, and then began to jump up and down in excitement.

"Takuhee can talk! Takuhee can talk!" She cheered.

"Well of course I can, I'm not an average bird Zeffie." The winged-beast said, "After all, I'm harbinger of doom. And since you chose me that's exactly what will befall your opponent."

"Doom?" Zeffie asked as she bounced up and down, "Doomdoomdoomdoomdoomdoom…"

"Stop doing that." Takuhee ordered, clearly annoyed, "Just hold still while I tell you what my deckmaster power is…"

The bird jumped from his branch and hovered next to Zeffie's ear. It whispered something, and Zeffie nodded.

"Okie dokie, Zeffie's ready to play!" Zeffie cheered, "You can go first Mr. Richington!"

Both players drew five cards, and Mr. Richington drew a sixth.

Richington: 8000

Zeffie: 8000

"I'll open with an old favorite: Pot of Greed." Richington declared as the selfish green pottery emerged from the ground next to him, "This, as even you no doubt realize, allows me to draw two cards from my deck."

"But now you've got my deckmaster power to worry about." Asmodeous chimed in as his own Pot of Greed emitted green light, "I call it management material, and it doubles almost all card effects that change the amount of life points or the number of cards in either player's hand. So the boss here gets to draw _four _cards thanks to his Pot of Greed!"

Mr. Richington smiled and swiftly took the four cards from the top of his deck.

"Next, I play the continuous spell Infinite Cards!" He declared as he slid another card into his disk, "Now we can hold as many splendiferous cards as we like. You can hold your entire deck if you want."

"Why would you play a card that helps Zeffie too?" The girl asked.

"Because it helps me more." Richington explained, "And now I'll set one card facedown to end my turn. And even though I'm holding seven cards, I don't have to discard a single one."

A facedown card appeared, and Zeffie drew her first card of the game. She gave her opponent a big grin, and placed the monster she had drawn onto her tray.

"Zeffie summons Faith Bird (1500/1100)!" She cheered.

Takuhee let out a screech, and from the sky descended a larger bird, this one with shimmering blue feathers and a long tail.

"Meet Takuhee's big brother. While Takuhee spreads doom, Faith Bird spreads joy and happiness!" Zeffie cheered.

"Though doom is cooler." Takuhee butted in.

"Of course, Faith Bird really likes making little girls like Zeffie happy." Zeffie said as the blue avian looked to her, "And Zeffie would be really happy if he attacked you directly right now!"

"But before he does, I activate my facedown card." Richington interrupted as his only defense lifted, "Go Command Silencer!"

A giant totem pole with multiple speakers emerging from it fell to the ground behind the rich duelist. A piercing shriek filled the air, and Faith Bird looked around in a confused manner. It settled back down, and began to smooth its feathers as the noise stopped.

"Hey, why didn't he attack?" Zeffie asked, staring at her bird.

"Because he couldn't hear you." Richington explained.

"ATTACK, FAITH BIRD!" Zeffie shouted in a slow and exceedingly loud voice.

Faith Bird gave her a look, and shrugged its wings.

"He couldn't hear you, and now my quickplay spell stopped your battle phase." Richington scolded as he reached for his deck, "And what's more, my little trick also lets me draw one card. And thanks to my deckmaster, that means I draw two!"

The wealthy man swept two more cards from his deck bringing his hand up to nine. Zeffie cocked her head at an odd angle as she thought for a minute.

"If you keep drawing cards like that, won't your deck run out?" She asked, pointing at her foe's large hand.

"You needn't worry my fantabulous little friend." Richington assured her, "My deck is far larger than average. You'll be out of life points long before I'm out of cards."

Zeffie looked at her remaining five cards, and then waved to end her turn. Richington drew once more, taking his hand up to an impressive ten. He began to laugh a bit as he placed another card down.

"Now I summon Muka Muka (600/300)." He said calmly.

Out of the stone littered ground in front of him dug a tiny crustacean with crab like features, including a large pair of pincers. It let out a strange rattling noise as energy began to flow from the remaining nine cards in its master's hand.

"That thing only has 600 attack points." Zeffie pointed out, "It's too weak to beat Faith Bird."

"Actually it's much stronger than you think." Richington explained, "You see this monster is much like a company: It gets stronger the more you invest in it, and every card in my hand is an investment. In fact for every card I hold my Muka gains 300 attack and defense points!"

Muka Muka (3300/3000) began to glow with the energy from the cards, and then began to grow in size! It doubled…tripled…quadrupled…soon it towered over the cliff Zeffie had jumped from. Zeffie and Takuhee both stared up at the stone beast in fear.

"Uh oh." Zeffie muttered.

"Well, this won't be pleasant." Takuhee mumbled.

"Muka, attack her little parakeet with pincer pummeling!" Richington ordered.

The crab raised one claw (which was larger than Mr. Gold!) and swung it down, crushing Faith Bird underneath. Zeffie braced herself as the ground shook under her feet from the force of the blow.

Richington: 8000

Zeffie: 6200

"Oh dear me that was fun!" Richington said as he clapped his hands, "Good show there Muka, dashing good show! Now I know why my son enjoys this game so much."

"Zeffie doesn't think your monster is fair." Zeffie complained.

"Well that's too bad because you're going to see a lot of him." Richington retorted, "Especially if you don't put a monster down to defend yourself. But before you do, I'm laying one card facedown to end my turn."

A new facedown card appeared next to the Infinite Cards, and Muka Muka (3000/2700) shrank a bit. Granted, it was still larger than most monsters, but now it seemed slightly less ridiculously over powered. Zeffie hastily drew her card, and looked over her choices.

"Um….Okay! Zeffie plays her Pot of Greed!" Zeffie shouted, holding up the green spell card.

The sinful jar sprang up next to Zeffie, and Asmodeous's pot began to glow again! Zeffie gasped as not two, but _four _cards came loose from her deck.

"Um…I think she figured us out boss…" The goblin said with a worried frown.

"Aha! You have to double Zeffie's cards too!" Zeffie cheered, as she jumped up and down, "Goodie goodie, Zeffie has a plan!"

"Oh really?" Richington scoffed, "Then let's see it."

"OKAY!" Zeffie shouted as she set two cards onto her disk, "Zeffie sets one monster in defense and one card facedown! Take it away Mr. Richington."

"Before I do I activate my facedown card at the end of your turn." Richington stated as his card lifted again, "Solemn Wishes will normally give me 500 life points every time I draw. But my deckmaster doubles healing effects also, so I'll gain 1000 points per draw."

Mr. Richington drew, and a shower of light fell over him, his deckmaster's Jar of Greed glowing with red energy as it did. At the same time, Muka (3300/3000) powered up once again.

Richington: 9000

Zeffie: 6200

"And now my supertastically marvelous creature will smash whatever you're hiding in defense mode!" Richington shouted.

The giant stone crab swung its massive claw at Zeffie's monster, revealing a multicolored bird with bulging eyes. It let out a surprised squawk as it was turned into a smear on the canyon floor. Zeffie just giggled though, and a card flew out of her deck.

"You attacked Zeffie's Ashinigrai (500/500), and when it's flipped over you have to discard one card from your hand…" Zeffie began to explain.

"But due to my own deckmaster power I have to discard two!" Richington lamented!

"Really? Zeffie thought that was just for drawing." The girl said as Richington looked over his cards.

He scowled and chose his two, pitching them into his grave. Muka Muka (2700/2400) let out a groan as its power decreased.

"And now, Zeffie can summon another Ashinigrai in facedown defense mode since the first one was destroyed in battle." Zeffie smiled as she took the card her deck had ejected and placed it onto the field.

Another facedown monster appeared before Zeffie. Richington winced as he realized what that meant.

"There's nothing more I can do this turn." He sighed, "Go ahead Zeffie."

Zeffie drew, and pointed to her facedown card.

"Go Compulsory Evacuation device!" Ordered Zeffie as the card flipped, "Now Zeffie can send one monster back to its owner's hand, and Zeffie wants to send Muka there!"

A strange dome with a hole on top sprang up in front of Zeffie. A powerful wind began to blow from it, pulling Muka Muka forward. The crab struggled to resist the pull, shrinking back to its beginning size as it did so, but it was finally yanked inside. A buzz sounded, and the rock-type was launched skyward! As its card vanished from his disk, it reappeared in Richington's hand.

"Now, Zeffie flips the Ashinigrai (500/500) she got last turn." Zeffie continued as she turned the card over, "So that means you drop two more cards."

The bug-eyed bird appeared on the field in place of the brown card, and Richington sighed. He swiftly selected and pitched two more cards, bringing his hand down to the regular limit of six.

"And now Zeffie tributes Ashnigrai to summon her really big birdie…" Zeffie said as she swapped the card on her disk, "Roc from the Valley of Haze (2400/1400)!"

The Ashinigrai burst into a cloud of brightly colored plumage, and a terrible caw filled the air. From the sky swooped a huge eagle, with a cow skull sitting on its head. Its feathers were brown and red, and it had a fearsome look in its eyes (somewhere inside the cow skull).

"Oh my…" Richington muttered as he drew back.

"Roc, attack directly with canyon caw!" Zeffie ordered.

The skull opened, revealing an opening yellow beak. Rings of energy and sound flew from the maw of the beast, and Mr. Richington screamed as he was blasted to the ground by the attack.

Richington: 6600

Zeffie: 6200

Mr. Richington groaned a bit as he stood up. He quite obviously had not expected such a powerful blow from the child before him.

"And now Zeffie lays two cards facedown." Zeffie said as she slid two cards into the open slots on the back of her disk, "Your turn."

"Very well, I draw one card." Mr. Richington said as he took his draw, "And thanks to my trap and my deckmaster I restore another 1000 points!"

The healing light flowed over the business emperor, and he sighed with relief as some of the pain of the last attack faded.

Richington: 7600

Zeffie: 6200

"And now I'll…" Richington began as he reached for the Muka Muka in his hand.

He stopped as he looked at Zeffie's facedown cards. Frowning, he reached for a different monster and placed that on his disk.

"I set this monster face down and then activate the card I just drew: Dragged Down into the Grave!" Richington shouted.

Zeffie gasped as a zombified hand burst out of the ground before her, and one jumped out before her opponent as well. Zeffie walked back, and then her cards were pulled from her hand! She watched as her cards floated over to Mr. Richington, and his cards floated over to her.

"Now then, normally this card forces us both to look at the other's hand and discard one card." Richington explained, "But my deckmaster doubles that to two, so just send any two you want to my grave…"

Zeffie looked at the five cards that hovered in front of her: Muka Muka, Premature Burial, Mystical Space Typhoon, another Solemn Wishes, and Mystic Wok.

"_Why didn't he play Muka again?"_ She thought as she looked at the strange monster.

"Careful Zeffie, he must have a reason to do this…" Takuhee cautioned as Zeffie took the Muka Muka and Premature Burial cards.

"Don't worry, Zeffie knows what she's doing." Zeffie smiled as she handed the cards to the zombie arm in front of her, "Zeffie makes you discard Muka Muka and Premature Burial."

"Very well, I'm getting rid of this third Ashinigrai of yours and your Call of the Haunted." Richington said as the zombie hand before him took the gift.

Both arms shot back into the ground, holding their cards, and the remaining cards floated back to their respective owners.

"Now we each normally draw one card after all that, but once again my deckmaster increases that to two." Richington said as Asmodeous glowed green again.

"Eh, it's a living." The goblin sighed.

Zeffie and Richington each drew their two cards, and the businessman was once more bathed in the combined light of Solemn Wishes and his deckmaster. He smiled as he set another card facedown.

Richington: 8600

Zeffie: 6200

"That one facedown card will signal the end of my turn." He declared, "Now go ahead."

Zeffie drew, and looked over her opponent's field. She nodded, and slapped another card onto her disk.

"Zeffie was afraid of your facedown, but your dragging card gave her what she needs!" Zeffie cheered as another bird call echoed from overhead, "Zeffie summons Eagle Eye (1300/1200) in attack mode!"

From the sky soared yet another bird, this one a black eagle with golden tail feathers. It wore a golden headdress, and its eyes glowed with red light.

"You aren't allowed to use traps to stop Eagle Eye's summon, so Zeffie's birdie is safe." Zeffie smiled, "And now Zeffie plays Mystical Space Typhoon on Solemn Wishes!"

Zeffie played the spell, resulting in a blast of wind shooting forward and wiping out the healing trap. Richington cringed as his trap was wiped out, while Zeffie opened the field slot on her disk.

"And now Zeffie plays a field spell card." The nine-year-old called out as she placed a card into the slot, "Go: Rising Air Currents!"

A howling noise filled the canyon around them and then a light breeze began to flow over the duel. Both players felt the breeze grow stronger, and Zeffie's two monsters spread their wings and hovered higher over the field. The winds increased in intensity (almost sending their remaining cards flying) and the wind monsters now soared high overhead.

"Zeffie's spell gives all wind monsters 500 attack points, but takes away 400 defense points." Zeffie explained, "Cool huh?"

Roc (2900/1000) and Eagle Eye (1800/800) both let out their respective cries from above as they began to circle overhead. Zeffie smiled as he pointed to one of her facedown cards, causing it to turn over and fire another blast of wind.

"And now Zeffie's Dust Tornado card will destroy your facedown card! Bye bye facedown card!" Zeffie smiled as the wind arched toward Richington.

"You should have done that when I ended my last turn. If you had I wouldn't be allowed to chain this." Richington chortled as a bright red pot sprang from the card, "I activate Jar of Greed, and thanks my deckmaster I draw two cards!"

The jar laughed as Richington took his cards and brought his hand to six once again. Zeffie just frowned as her wasted trap shattered itself.

"Oh well." She shrugged, "Roc, attack the facedown monster!"

The giant bird directed its sonic attack toward the ground, and the wave of energy forced the facedown monster to flip over. It was a large, gray rat carrying a human skull. It cringed as it blew apart, but the skull stayed and the ground beneath it began to ripple.

"Oh dear, that was my Giant Rat (1400/1450)." Richington said with mock concern, "And since you destroyed him in battle I may summon any creature of earth I want that has 1500 attack or less. Care to guess what element my Mukas are?"

Zeffie gasped in horror as she realized what this meant.

"You're gonna summon another Muka Muka!" She shouted in horror.

"Close, Muka Muka is only a three star creature. I had something more of the five star persuasion in mind." Richington explained, "So now I summon the Enraged Muka Muka (1200/600)!"

A card flew from his deck, and he slammed it onto his tray. From Asmodeous's pot leapt a strange cross between a bullfrog and crab, covered with stony skin. Its body began to glow with energy as Richington's hand of cards began to shimmer.

"Um…does he get stronger like Muka Muka does?" Zeffie asked with fear.

"Indubitably." Richington nodded, "But he gains 400 attack strength per card, rather than just 300. Now that's richer than I am!"

Enraged Muka Muka (3800/3000) now lived up to its name. It swelled in size and started to glow a bright red. Smoke poured from its body, and it began to tremble with anger.

"Um…Zeffie lays one more card down and ends her turn." The girl squeaked as she slid a card into her disk.

It materialized facedown in front of her. Mr. Richington smiled as he drew…

And the card immediately flipped face up, causing a spark to ignite at his fingertips! He dropped the card he had drawn, and watched as it floated into his graveyard.

"Zeffie's Drop Off trap forces you to discard any card you draw when your turn starts." Zeffie explained, "Now Muka doesn't get any stronger!"

"Very clever my dear…" Mr. Richington nodded as he selected another card, "But your little trap didn't make Enrage Muka Muka any weaker. Your card specifically says I have to lose the card I just drew, so my deckmaster has no effect on it."

The Goblin of Greed let out a throaty chuckle as Mr. Richington selected another card from his hand.

"Of course I can't risk that facedown card at the moment." Richington said as he placed a card into his disk, "So I'll use the Mystical Space Typhoon you let me keep to destroy whatever your last facedown card is."

A blast of wind like the one Zeffie called earlier flew forward through the breeze that lifted Zeffie's monsters. Zeffie screamed as her facedown card (Begone Knave!) was wiped out. With only five cards to draw strength from, Enraged Muka Muka (3400/2600) seemed to calm itself a bit, but was still rather miffed.

"Okay Muka Muka, wipe out Roc with enraged pincer pummeling, now!" Commanded Richington.

The huge toad/crab sprang high into the air, and grabbed Roc by its neck. It fell back to the ground, and proceeded to dash the giant bird against the ground over and over until it burst into pixels. Zeffie was in near shock after witnessing one of her most powerful creatures die so…violently.

Richington: 8600

Zeffie: 5700

"Birdie go boom?" Zeffie muttered as her lower lip quivered.

"Birdie go big boom. Bye bye birdie." Richington laughed, "Oh, I can't remember the last time I had so much fun without counting mmmmmmoney!"

"Oh…" Zeffie sighed in depression.

"I guess that's it for my turn." Her foe said with a smile, "Let's see you match this."

Zeffie adopted a look of furious determination as she drew. Looking over her six cards, she realized that she didn't have many options. Ashinigrai had been more-or-less the only thing in her deck that forced the opponent to discard cards. Her eyes settled on one card in particular though, and she smiled as a plan formed.

"Zeffie sets one card facedown, and moves Eagle Eye to defense mode." Zeffie said as she placed another card into her disk and turned Eagle Eye's card, "Go ahead."

Eagle Eye swooped down to the canyon floor and folded its wings around its body. Richington paid it no mind as he drew, and Enraged Muka Muka (3800/3000) increased in size again.

"Okay Zeffie, I attack your little song bird with my Muka!" Richington shouted.

The furious monster rushed forward to grab Zeffie's creature, but Zeffie started to giggle.

"Hooray! Zeffie can use her trap now." Zeffie smiled as her facedown lifted, "Ordeal of a Traveler!"

The card lifted, and on it was the image of a man standing before the great sphinx of Gaza. A rumbling sound permeated the area, and the sphinx on the card burst out of the ground behind Zeffie! Its gaze seemed to focus on the incoming monster, which stopped in it tracks.

"Okay Richie, now you have to play a game." Zeffie instructed as she held up her hand, "Just choose one card from Zeffie's hand, and guess whether it's a monster, spell, or trap. If you're right then nothing happens!"

"And if I'm wrong?" Richington asked, growing nervous.

"Then the monster you attack with goes back to your hand!" Zeffie smiled as she fanned out the four cards, "So choose! Choosechoosechoosechoose…"

Zeffie continue chanting 'choose' over and over as her opponent looked over his choices.

"Okay, I'll say the far left card…" He began.

Zeffie looked at the card and smiled as large as she could.

"Is a monster!" Richington shouted.

Zeffie turned the card around…revealing another copy of Rising Air Currents! The sphinx's eyes glowed green, and Enraged Muka Muka screamed as it was launched through the air. Richington gasped as the monster flew from his disk and landed back in his hand.

"Oh my…" He said, looking helplessly over his hand.

"_Okay, don't panic."_ He instructed himself, _"These cards aren't all for show, each one is still powerful…"_

"I'll set this one card down and end my turn." Richington declared, sliding another card into his disk.

The hidden spell or trap sprang up before him as Zeffie drew.

"Zeffie isn't scared of traps." She smiled as she played another monster, "And to prove it, Zeffie summons Sonic Duck (2300/300)!"

A multitude of quacks rang out across the valley, and a green duck wearing a bucket helmet and red scarf came riding in on the powerful air currents. It quacked in a hyperactive manner, beating its wings so quickly they were a blur.

"What in the name of tax cuts is that?" He asked, staring at the creature, "That has to be the most absurd card I've seen! I do hope none of my mmmmmmmmmoney went into that."

"Even if it did, you can't stop Zeffie's attacks." Zeffie smiled, "First Eagle Eye goes back to attack mode…"

The black eagle swooped up into the sky again with a triumphant cry.

"And now both attack your life points!" Zeffie shouted, pointing at Richington, "Eagle Eye, talon terror!"

The majestic creature swooped down and dug its talons into the rich man's shoulders. He screamed in pain from the attack.

"Ducky, beak bomber!" Zeffie shouted to her duck.

The green mallard swooped higher into the air, and then stopped flapping. It tucked its wings into its body, and dove straight down. It crashed beak first right into Richington's chest, causing him to stumble backward in pain.

Richington: 4500

Zeffie: 5700

"I swear, I'm having duck de l'orange for dinner tonight." He growled as he stood back up, clutching where he had been struck, "Ordered directly from Paris at that."

"Your turn!" Zeffie smiled as Richington drew.

"I gathered as much, now to gather some more cards." He said as his facedown card lifted, "I activate Sixth Sense."

A trap with the image of a woman on it was revealed. She had waves of energy coming from her head, and a terrified look on her face. From the card emerged a golden, six sided die.

"What's that trap do?" Zeffie asked, staring at the die.

"Something very special. You see, I now have to choose two numbers between one and six." Explained Richington, "Then, I roll this die. If one of the numbers I picked comes up, then I draw that many cards. If any other number comes up, I send that many cards from my deck to the grave. And since it would be foolhardy to call anything else, I call five and six!"

The golden die spun and bounced forward, landing on one corner. Its spinning began to slow, before it fell onto the five.

"Well! Looks like I get to take five cards, times two due to my deckmaster." Richington smiled as ten cards flew from his deck, his hand size expanding to sixteen!

"Wow, sixteen cards!" Zeffie gasped, staring at the insane hand size of her foe.

"About to fifteen. I summon my second Muka Muka (5100/4800)!" Richington shouted.

A swelling bubble of stone rose from the ground beneath Richington. He smiled as it continued to rise, and from the ground beneath him emerged an enormous Muka Muka! It completely dwarfed the Enraged Muka Muka that had been summoned earlier, and it glared down at Zeffie.

"Looks like I've got you now!" Richington shouted from atop his creature, not noticing Asmodeous climb behind him, "Okay Muka, take out the eagle! Pincer pummeling!"

"Um…you still have to play Ordeal of a Traveler!" Zeffie shouted up to him.

"Of course." Richington smiled, "I guess the card on my far right is…a trap!"

Zeffie frowned, and turned her trap (Spiritual Wind Art Miyabi, which she now regretted leaving in her hand) around. The sphinx lowered its head, and Zeffie braced herself.

The crushing force of the claw on the poor bird was indescribable. Suffice it to say, Zeffie and Sonic Duck were almost smashed along with it. The force sent both of them flying backward, landing against the canyon wall.

Richington: 4500

Zeffie: 2400

Zeffie and Sonic Duck picked themselves up from the ground, both staggering weakly after the assault. Richington laughed like a maniac as he placed one more card into his disk.

"Now to clean up a little. I'll start with Heavy Storm to destroy every spell and trap in play!" He called out.

A rush of wind swept the field, removing Ordeal of a Traveler, Infinite Cards, and Rising Air Currents in one swoop. At the same time, Mr. Richington held up a new card.

"Next, my second Infinite Cards!" Richington continued as the limitless hand spell reappeared and he yet played another card, "And now I'll play my Offerings to the Doomed to get rid of the annoying duck!"

A flash of red light fell from above, and roasted Zeffie's last monster. The poor girl trembled as she looked over her empty field with tears in her eyes.

"And in case you get any smart ideas about trap cards, I'll let you in on a little secret." The mogul said as he laid down one more card, "This last facedown card is my Royal Decree trap, and it negates all other traps. So you see, there's no way you can save yourself now. I'll just end my turn there."

With four cards now drained from his power source, Muka Muka (3900/3600) had weakened considerable. None the less it was still more powerful than anything Zeffie could command.

"Ducky…Eagle…?" Zeffie moaned, looking for her monsters before bowing her head, "All of Zeffie's feathery friends are gone…"

"What am I, chopped liver!" Takuhee's voice shouted from above.

"Takuhee!" Zeffie called out, looking up toward the sky.

The brown bird landed on the ground next to his controller, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Man, am I glad you're okay. Listen, you still have a way out of this." Takuhee instructed, "My deckmaster power remember!"

Zeffie's face brightened, and she nodded. She quickly drew and smiled once she saw the trap in her hand.

"Zeffie ends without making any moves!" She shouted, "So go ahead!"

Richington smiled as he held up the eleven cards in his hand.

"Well, my Offerings to the Doomed keeps me from drawing this turn, but nothing will stop me summoning this." He shouted, switching cards on his disk, "I'll tribute Muka Muka to bring Enraged Muka Muka (4800/4200) back to the field!"

The smaller Muka brother shattered, and both Richington and his deckmaster began to fall to the ground. Before they reached it though, an Enraged Muka Muka that was almost twice the size of the Muka that had been tributed rose from the ground and caught them. It was so immense that the canyon walls squeezed against its sides!

"You've had it now. This duel is mine." Richington said simply, "ENRAGED PINCER PUMMELING!"

The giant crab-frog raised one clawed limb…

"Go Takuhee!" Zeffie shouted as she held a card over her head.

Takuhee grabbed the card in his beak, and swooped higher into the air. Its body began to glow with strange energy as the sky darkened over head.

"What's going on?" Richington asked, staring at the sky.

"Zeffie's deckmaster's power: doom wings!" Zeffie explained, "Zeffie can only use Takuhee's power if you attack directly. Then, Zeffie gives up 1000 life points…"

Richington: 4500

Zeffie: 1400

Takuhee was now singing a strange melody as the card he held expanded.

"And now Zeffie can use a trap from her hand!" Zeffie shouted, "So Zeffie picks her second Compulsory Evacuation Device!"

The domed cannon rose up again, and Richington just laughed in response. He pressed a button on the disk, flipping his facedown card.

"Nice try Zeffie, but my Royal Decree card negates all traps but itself remember?" He challenged as Muka continued.

"Guess again." Takuhee shouted as he landed on the cannon, "My deckmaster power protects whatever trap it's used on from being negated!"

Richington absorbed this as his eyes went wide.

"NO!" He cried out as his monster was sucked into the trap.

Richington and Asmodeous fell to the ground and landed with heavy thumps. Enraged Muka Muka was fired into the air, and his card appeared back in Richington's hand.

"You…" He growled as he stood up, "I'll…"

"You'll what?" Zeffie asked, trying to sound tough, "You're deck is about Muka's right? Well do you have anything other than cards meant to summon him?"

Richington looked at his hand, and realized Zeffie was right. He had eleven cards, but most of them were monsters and traps meant to draw extra cards! He didn't have his Call of the Haunted (still in his deck somehow and useless due to his Royal Decree), he couldn't summon or set any monsters (He'd normal summoned Enraged Muka Muka this turn already), there was Mystic Wok ("Why didn't I chain that!" He wondered), and he had nothing else of any use in his hand!

"_I don't believe it! Eleven cards aside from Muka and none of them do any good!"_ He shouted in his mind, _"How is this possible! I can't even bluff…"_

"I end my turn…" He sighed.

"Then Zeffie draws!" Zeffie declared as she pulled off her card, "Now, your deckmaster doubles life point loss too, right?"

"Yes, from cards like Meteor of Destruction." Richington confirmed.

"What about Premture Burial?" Zeffie asked quickly, holding up the card she had drawn.

Mr. Richington thought, then turned to his only remaining monster.

"Well, do you double costs?" He asked.

"No sir, I don't sir." Asmodeous confirmed with a nod, "I distinguish between costs and damage."

"Then Zeffie wins!" Zeffie shouted as she turned around her Premature Burial card, "Zeffie uses Premature Burial to bring back Roc from the Valley of Haze (2400/1400)!"

Zeffie's life points dipped as she played the card, and from the ground burst the giant bird! Its wings were ruffled, and its skull was dingy, but other than that it was good as new.

"Now Zeffie summons Kurama (800/800) in attack mode!" Zeffie continued, slapping another card to her disk.

From the sky dropped a creature that seemed to be half-man, half-crow. He was covered in blue feathers and had sharp talons and a sharp beak.

"And finally, Zeffie moves her deckmaster to the field!" Zeffie shouted as Takuhee (1450/1000) landed next to her other two creatures.

Mr. Richington braced himself, realizing he faced enough power to be wiped out.

"Everyone, combo attack!" Zeffie shouted, "TRIPLE TERROR TORNADO!"

All three wind monsters began flapping their wings as hard as they could. A huge vortex of wind kicked up before them, and flew over Mr. Richington. He screamed as the combination of winds tore at him, and in just a matter of seconds he'd lost.

Richington: 0

Zeffie: 600

Mr. Richington cried out as the winds knocked him flat onto his back, his deckmaster quickly bending over to help him up.

"You okay boss?" Asmodeus asked frantically.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine." The rich man said as he got back to his feet, and pulled his cane loose from the goblin's jar, "That will be all for now Asmodeus."

The green-skinned creature nodded, and vanished into sparkles of light. Mr. Richington turned to Zeffie, who was jumping up and down excitedly holding her deckmaster.

"We won Takuhee, we won!" Zeffie cheered, hugging the bird close, "Oh, thankyouthankyouthankyou so much for helping Zeffie!"

"It's…no…problem." Takuhee choked out between bounces, "Now please…stop shaking…me!"

Zeffie stopped her bouncing, and the bird squirmed from her grasp. It settled on the ground before her and cleared its throat.

"You did very well Zeffie, but you should keep in mind that every monster in the game has a useful power." Takuhee instructed as he began to vanish, "Choose wisely, and you may find one that works especially well for your strategies."

With a wink and a wave of his wing, the monster vanished. Zeffie smiled, and walked up to Mr. Richington. She made a polite curtsy to the adult.

"That was a lot of fun!" She said happily, "Thank you for the duel!"

"It was no problem. Of course now it seems I owe you two points." Richington sighed as two lights swooped from his disk to Zeffie's.

Her duel disk's readout immediately displayed a four, and the blond girl began to fade away. Seeing this, she smiled and waved a disappearing hand in front of her face.

"Cool!" She cheered, "Zeffie's turning invisible…"

Before she could continue with how impressive she found this, she was gone. Mr. Richington just sighed as he looked at his readout, now back to a paltry two. He turned to move off in a new direction…

And stopped. A giant figure emerged from behind a boulder about three yards away, and began to move toward him.

It was Mr. Gold, in all of his eight-foot, brown-haired, body builder glory.

"Um…'cuse me. Have you seen a little blond girl running around?" Gold asked, "Probably referring to herself in the third-person."

"Actually…" The rich man said.

He turned his gaze to Gold's disk, and smiled. He brushed his own disk off and smiled.

"Actually yes." He said, still smiling, "And you could get a chance to see her if you're lucky…"

_**Hooray! Zeffie won, yippee! It was tough, but Zeffie is closer to the finals, and Yugi.**_

_**But before you see more Zeffie, you get to see Joey. Cool huh? He's going to duel a movie star, who he's met before.**_

_**Zeffie calls the next chapter:**_

_**Way of the Dog.**_

**_Bye bye! ; )_**

---

Original Cards

---

Command Silencer

Quickplay spell

Image of a totem pole with many speakers and amplifiers on it.

When this card is successfully activated, no monsters can attack this turn. You then draw one card.

_This card was first used by Seto Kaiba in the anime saga "Clash in the Coliseum." All creative credit goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

Sixth Sense

Trap

Image of a frightened woman with psychic energy flowing from her head.

Select two numbers between one and six. Roll one six sided die. If the number that comes up is one of the two you selected, draw that many cards. If a number you didn't select comes up, send that many cards from the top of your deck to the graveyard.

_This card is only available in Japan at the moment. It is currently on the Japanese Forbidden list._

---

Ashinigrai

WIND

Winged-beast/effect

500 attack

500 defense

When this monster is flipped face up, your opponent must discard one card from their hand. When this monster is destroyed as a result of battle and sent to the graveyard, special summon another Ashinigrai in face down defense mode.

_This card was first used by Gansley in the anime saga "Isolated in Cyber Space." All creative credit goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Goblin of Greed

EARTH

Fiend

Four stars

1000 attack

1800 defense

Management Material: Double any numbers in card effects that cause either player to draw extra cards, discard cards from their hands, or gain or lose life points. This effect doesn't double costs for cards.

---

Takuhee

WIND

Winged-Beast

Four stars

1450 attack

1000 defense

Doom Wings: You may only use this ability if your opponent declares a direct attack. Pay 1000 life points to activate a trap card in your hand. The trap activated by this effect can not be negated.


	6. Way of the dog

Disclaimer: (Hikari steps up to a microphone with several papers in her hand)

Okay, I know its getting repetitive . We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, even though we wish we did, we only own the Elemental Duelists (Except Mako) and our original cards (unless otherwise noted). Hope you readers enjoy the chapter!

(Hikari steps down, and the curtain lifts)

_**Hey there everyone, I'm Joey Wheeler!**_

_**You know, you'd think that coming in second at Duelist Kingdom and fourth at Battle City, as well as being in Kaiba's little Grand Championship, would have earned me some respect. But it seems like every duelist we come across is only interested in Yugi.**_

_**Don't get me wrong, Yug's a great guy. And I know he doesn't mean to hog the spotlight, but it feels like I'm always stuck with the cheerleaders when the real important duels come up.**_

_**When I agreed to come to this tournament, I was hoping to have a shot get a little more fame by showing up a few of the other big-name duelists.**_

_**Too bad that the only guy I've found so far is a huge attention hog, even when the spotlight isn't on…**_

**Way of the Dog**

Yugi and Joey braced themselves as the light from the teleportation program faded. Joey took his hand from his shorter buddy's shoulder, and clapped it quickly over his mouth.

"Are you feeling okay Joey?" Yugi asked, turning to the blond.

"I've been better." Joey grunted as he removed his hand for a second, "But I'm not sure if I like this teleporting thing…"

Joey moved his hand back into place and fell silent. Yugi looked around the area they were standing in, and his eyes went wide.

"Woah…" He gasped.

The area they stood in was large and open, the ground paved with stone and surrounded by stone walls on almost every side. In front of them (the only side not blocked by a wall) was a huge pagoda-style palace. A path lined with brightly-colored paper lanterns led the way to the front entrance.

The castle itself rose at least seven stories into the air. The roof was red, and the walls pure white with red frames around the windows and the door. In each window, a light from another lantern was visible.

"Looks like the sort of place a shogun would live." Yugi commented.

Joey let out a low whistle as he got up from his nausea induced position and noticed the palace.

"Wow…you think anybody's home?" He asked Yugi.

"We can't really be sure from here." Yugi pointed out, "But it would be rude to just walk in…"

Yugi stopped as Joey walked right past him, toward the entrance to the citadel.

"Joey, what are you doing?" Yugi shouted as he ran to catch up.

"This is a virtual world Yug." Joey pointed out with a solemn look, "I'll bet this castle is some sort of hidin' place for those eliminators."

He smiled as he readied his duel disk.

"Imagine the look on Kaiba's face when I take down one of his little programs in five turns!" He smirked.

"Well…" Yugi started.

Joey raced ahead toward the door. Yugi sighed, and ran after him.

"_He makes a good point." _Yami offered, _"I doubt we would have been sent to a building we were not allowed to enter."_

"_I know. But Joey's always so reckless about this sort of thing."_ Yugi agreed with a nod, _"For all we know this could be a trap."_

"_I doubt Kaiba would go through that much trouble, even for us."_ Yami said with a smile, _"Just enjoy the tournament Yugi, and don't worry about Joey…too much."_

Yugi snickered a little bit as he finally caught up to his taller friend at the door to the estate. Joey pushed against it, and the portal swung open easily. Smiling once more, he stepped inside…

And out of nowhere burst a flurry of arrows! Joey screamed as the projectiles flew right in front of him, lodging themselves into the wall to his left.

"Did you see that!" Joey shouted to Yugi.

"Yeah." Yugi nodded, "Must be some kind of security system. Maybe there is an eliminator in here after all."

Joey nodded, and moved forward again. Yugi stepped in behind him, and they eased the door shut.

The room they now stood in looked typical for most Japanese entrance halls. A small step, at the bottom of which were a few pairs of shoes, was right in front of them. They currently stood in a narrow channel between a pair of paper coated walls, which seemed to cover small rooms separate from the one there were in. The room widened out considerably past the paper walls, but into what they couldn't quite tell.

"Do you see anymore traps?" Yugi asked, noticing Joey had stopped.

"I don't think so." Joey shook his head, "Looks safe to me."

The two moved past the paper-lined entrance and stepped into the wider area. There was nothing that merited much notice, the walls and floor were wood, and only a single door to their right disturbed the otherwise smooth barriers. Shrugging, both boys headed through the door.

The passage beyond the door looked like a usual hallway. One side was bordered by another wooden wall, the left wall was another paper barrier that marked a room on the other side. Though not commonly seen in modern Japanese structure, this wasn't anything unexpected in a traditional looking palace.

"Maybe those arrows were the only trap." Joey said as he and Yugi walked into the hall.

"I don't know, I've got a bad feeling about this." Yugi muttered as he followed.

"Come on Yug, if we were going to hit another trap it would have sprung by…" Joey began.

Suddenly, a cage made of wooden bars fell from above, and crashed around the two duelists!

"…now." Joey grumbled, "You think maybe Kaiba's mad at us or something?"

"Yami doesn't think Kaiba would go through this much trouble for just us." Yugi explained, remembering his earlier conversation, "I'll bet these traps are just to add to the feel of this place."

A creaking noise echoed from above, and Joey looked down. The section of floor they stood on began to rise up toward the ceiling, as if it were an elevator.

"Well I'm pretty sure that this sort of thing wasn't in old castles like this!" Joey shouted as he shook the bars on the cage, "Hey, let me outta here!"

If anyone was listening, they showed it by increasing the speed at which the cage lifted. The wooden rafters of the ceiling moved aside as the caged dais continued upward into a new room. It slowed to a halt, the section of floor from below no taking filling the entrance it had risen into. Joey gave his prison another shake, and the bars tumbled down and scattered across the floor.

This new room they occupied looked to be another sort of hallway. It was exceptionally wide however, with many white-paper screen doors between them and the other side of the room.

"Whoever owns this place should think of adding a little color." Joey commented as he looked around, "There's nothing but white and brown around here."

"With all of the weird and stuff though, I'll bet that someone is here." Yugi said, pointing across the room, "Let's try that door and see where it goes. At least we can have some control over where we go next."

The two started across the room, but hadn't gone ten steps before the door they were walking to opened by itself. From the door emerged a man, who seemed to be in his mid-twenties. He had brown hair, cut short and sitting neatly on his head, and handsome face (the sort of face people see in the movies). His eyes were violet in color, and he wore a pale blue suit with a red rose corsage.

He was busy checking a duel disk that was strapped to his left arm, when he looked up and saw Yugi and Joey.

"Why hello there!" He said with a smile (showing a mouth full of dazzling white teeth), "Fancy seeing a fellow duelist in here. I'm…"

"Jean-Claude Magnum." Joey growled a bit, "I remember you."

Jean seemed a little taken back by Joey's slight hostility, and focused his gaze on the teen.

"Have we met? You look familiar…" He asked, rubbing his chin.

"You don't remember me?" Joey challenged, "Well I remember you. You tried to kidnap Mai at Battle City a couple years back."

"Mai…wait a minute." Jean realized, pointing an accusing finger at Joey, "I remember now! You're that punk kid who ruined my chances with Mai Valentine!"

"_I _ruined 'em?" Joey scoffed, "I'm not the one that had some actor pose as a Duel Monster so he could carry her off!"

"Joey, calm down…." Yugi coached, "That was a long time ago. I'm pretty sure that Mai would be over it by now."

"But I'm not." Jean interrupted, "It's because of you that Mai refused to marry me."

"No, it's because you couldn't beat her in a duel." Joey argued, "And then you tried to go back on your deal and take her anyway. I can't believe I ever liked your stinkin' movies…"

Yugi started to fret a bit. He could recall the event of the first Battle City Tournament. Jean-Claude Magnum, the famous actor, had intercepted their group on the way to the finals. His goal was to collect on an old bet he and Mai Valentine had made: If he could beat her in a duel, they would get married. After a close call, Mai had won the duel and her freedom, but Jean had hired another actor to pose as one of his holographic monsters. When the duel ended, the actor had grabbed Mai and flown off with her.

A tragic fall was averted thanks to Joey stepping in at the right time. Yugi and Yami had just assumed that they would never see Magnum again, accept on the big screen. Apparently though, this wasn't the case, and neither of him nor Joey seemed willing to allow bygones.

Especially considering that Joey had his fists clenched in his "prepare for pain" stance!

"_We'd better stop this."_ Yami suggested.

"_Agreed."_ Yugi nodded, _"I can't believe they both carried this so long."_

Joey and Magnum were now glaring at each other (after something about Mai had come up during Yugi and Yami's chat), and seemed close to blows. Yugi swiftly moved between them and raised his arms, signaling them to stop.

"Alright you two, there's no reason to be arguing like this." Yugi stated, "This all happened back in Battle City, I'm sure Mai wouldn't care about it anymore…"

Joey seemed to relax a bit, but Jean remained wary.

"And besides, this tournament isn't supposed to be about settling grudges." Yugi pointed out.

"_Although that's probably what Kaiba intends."_ Yugi said to himself.

Jean, however, had a smile on his face.

"Actually, I don't see why we can't settle this here." He said to Joey, "We both know that Mai deserves better than you, so why don't prove that I'm better?"

Joey clenched his fists again, and swiftly moved a hand to his disk.

"You know Magnum, there's one thing wrong with that plan." Joey smiled, "I know that I can take you in duel anytime, anyplace."

"How does here and now sound?" Magnum challenged, "I'll even let you go first if you want."

"Works for me! I needed to find a duel anyway." Joey shouted as Magnum turned on his disk.

"This wasn't exactly what I had in mind." Yugi interjected.

"Don't worry Yug, I can handle this." Joey said, "You just enjoy the show."

Yugi sighed, and walked to the side so he'd be off the dueling field. Yami projected next to him with a worried look.

"_I knew Joey cared for Mai, but I never suspected he'd carry a grudge on her behalf."_ Yami said.

"_Well…Jean-Claude Magnum isn't that strong of a duelist. He only picked it up to impress Mai."_ Yugi commented.

"_But if that were true, how would he have been allowed into this tournament?"_ Yami pointed out, _"Even if he was just scouted from card shop tournaments he'd have to show some promise for Kaiba to invite him."_

Yugi and Yami both leaned against the wall, and watched as a floating barrier of cards hovered in front of both Joey and Magnum.

"Deckmaster time then." Magnum said as he looked over his cards, "Oh, and before I forget, how about we both bet two points on this duel?"

"Works for me." Joey smiled, "That's the most I can bet now anyway. And I already know who I want for a deckmaster too…"

Joey pointed at one of his cards, and it vanished in a flash of fire. Behind him rose a column of flames, from which stepped a man in red and orange armor with a blue waistcloth that reached to the floor. He carried a sword that seemed to be carved from a glowing, orange crystal.

"Meet my Flame Swordsman!" Joey called out, his warrior raising his weapon in triumph.

"That's fine." Magnum commented, "I have a fair idea of who I want myself."

He touched one of his cards, and a blur of shadows appeared behind him. It immediately snapped into focus, revealing a dangerous looking ninja wearing a black uniform and a red scarf. His arms, legs, and face were adorned with golden charms. He reached into a pouch by his hip, and pulled loose a sharp dagger which he spun between his fingers.

"I select Strike Ninja." Magnum announced.

The ninja leaned close to his controller, and cupped a hand over his ear. The actor nodded, and smiled.

As that happened, Joey turned to his own deckmaster.

"You ready to go buddy?" He asked.

"Of course." Flame Swordsman nodded, "I trust you remember my deckmaster power?"

"How could I forget? It saved and my friends plenty of times." Joey said, "You can give up your attack points to strengthen any warrior-type monster I control."

"That's right. Looks like you're ready." Flame Swordsman nodded.

Joey and Magnum both prepared drew their first five cards, while their life points ticked up to the starting amounts.

"LET'S DO THIS!" They both shouted.

Joey: 8000

Magnum: 8000

Joey drew his first card.

"I'll open with Little Winguard (1400/1800) in attack mode." He said, placing down his first card.

Flame Swordsman let out a battle cry, and from behind one of the screens swooped a tiny knight in blue armor. His helmet had wings, and he carried a shield and sword which he brandished as menacingly as possible.

"That's my turn. Let's see what you got." Joey said.

"_I'll save my deckmaster for later. No point in powering up my monster until I know what I'm up against."_ Joey reasoned, _"Of course, if I remember right, I can probably guess some of the monster he's got."_

Magnum drew, and swiftly planted a card on his disk.

"Well, time a little call back to my famous ninja movies." He smiled, "I summon Ninja Commander Ikusa (700/700) in attack mode."

Strike Ninja quickly began to make a series of hand signs, and out of his shadow rose a new figure. It flipped forward, over Jean head, and alighted in front of him. It was a ninja in a green body suit, with a crescent moon shape on his hood. He drew a sword from a sheath on his back and brandished it fiercely.

"And now that I've summoned him, I can summon another from my deck." Jean declared as a card slid from the pile on his disk and floated into place, "So let's give a welcome to Ninja Soldier Katana (400/400)."

Ikusa moved his hands in a complex pattern, and a gong sounded from nowhere. Out from behind Ikusa stepped a ninja in a blue outfit. The two warriors bowed to one another, and turned to Joey.

"And now I'll lay a card facedown." Jean continued as a giant card appeared behind his ninja, "That's all."

Joey drew, and looked over the two ninja.

"_Does he really think I'll fall for that?"_ Joey thought, _"I remember what happens if I take out those ninja. He did the same to Mai: As soon as one of each of those monsters was in his grave, he summoned that ninja-shogun-thing and used his freaky kite spell to attack directly."_

"I can tell what you're planning, and I'm not gonna fall for it." Joey said simply.

"Oh really?" Jean challenged, "Well I'm not giving you a choice. I activate Staunch Defender!"

Jean's facedown card lifted, and Ikusa stepped forward. He held his sword out to the side and made a challenging motion with his left hand. Little Winguard pointed his own weapon at the ninja.

"Now you have to attack one monster I select, and I want your monsters to attack Ikusa this turn." Jean explained.

Joey frowned, but placed another card onto his field.

"Okay then, but I get to choose what to attack him with." Joey pointed out, "So I summon my Goblin Attack Force (2300/0)."

Joey put the card down, and a gang of four armored goblins, each bearing a sword of club, jumped forward. They began to pound their weapons together, laugh, and make a general racket.

"Goblins, attack that ninja! Goblin brutality attack!" Joey ordered.

The four green warriors lunged forward, much to Ikusa's horror. The ninja began to make hand signs…

But failed to finish before being clocked on the head by one of the goblins. The four gathered around the fallen monster, and mercilessly beat him into a smear on the wooden floor (which faded into pixels).

Joey: 8000

Magnum: 6400

The goblins, their job complete, moved back to Joey and took a seat on the floor. Three of them started a game of cards, while the fourth produced a large pot from nowhere and began to cook up some sort of soup.

"Now that they attacked, my monster goes to defense mode." Joey explained, turning a card on his disk, "And just because you managed to get one of the monsters you need in your graveyard doesn't mean you'll get the other. I'll move my winguard to defense mode and end my turn."

The tiny knight moved to the goblins, and sat down next to the card players. He was dealt a hand, and began to play with them.

"_Wow, they really pulled out all the stops for this."_ Joey thought as he saw this take place, _"But Winguard has the lousiest poker hand I've ever seen."_

Magnum drew, and a grin crossed his face.

"Okay then, if you won't send my ninjas to the graveyard I'll do it myself." The movie star declared, switching the cards on his disk, "I tribute Katana to summon Saber Beetle (2400/600)!"

The blue ninja dissolved into particles of light, which re-gathered into the form of a giant hercules beetle! Its horn was glowing with white energy, and its carapace was a shiny brown color.

"What the…That ain't no ninja!" Joey shouted, pointing at the creature, "What's that doing in your deck?"

"I normally summon this powerful monster with a special trap card." Magnum explained nonchalantly, "But the normal way works just as well. Saber Beetle, wipe out his goblins with energy ram!"

The beetle scuttled forward at breakneck speed. Seeing its approach, Little Winguard dropped his cards and swooped up to the ceiling. The goblins also saw it coming, and were trampled flat before they could do anything.

"At least they were in defense mode." Joey sighed.

"Ah, yes, about that." Magnum smiled as he stroked his bug's head (it had come back to him after destroying the goblins), "My little bug here has the ability to treat defense mode like attack mode when we calculate damage. In other words…"

"I just lost 2400 life points…" Joey gasped as his counter began to tick down.

Joey: 5600

Magnum: 6400

"Looks like that's all for my turn." Magnum shrugged, "Let's see what you can do about my beetle."

Joey drew, and turned Little Winguard's card back to attack position. The tiny soldier hefted his sword, and pointed it at the beetle.

"I'll show you just what I can do." Joey declared, holding up a new card, "I start by moving winguard back to attack mode."

"Why do that?" Magnum asked, "You'll take less damage if it's in defense mode…"

"I'm not done yet." Joey continued, placing his card down, "I had this card in my opening hand, but wasn't any reason to use it. Until now that is: Go Shield and Sword!"

A blue aura flared around both monsters on the field, then turned red. Little Winguard's (1800/1400) weapon increased in size, and flared with the red light. Saber Beetle (600/2400), in the meantime, growled weakly as his horn was extinguished.

"Now that both of our monster's attack scores have been swapped with their defense scores, I can handle your bug easy." Joey smiled, "Little Winguard, attack his beetle with winged slash!"

The tiny knight flew forward, and sliced his sword across the giant insect's hide. It moaned, and fell to the ground before shattering into bits.

Joey: 5600

Magnum: 5200

"_That was a great move." _Yugi thought with a smile, _"This has been a pretty intense duel."_

"_Indeed. And it looks like Joey is in control for now."_ Yami nodded.

"Keep at it Joey, you've got him on the run!" Yugi cheered.

Joey flashed a victory sign with his fingers toward Yugi. He then slid another card into play.

"I'll end with this card facedown." Joey explained as the card appeared, "Go ahead."

Another card found its way to Jean's hand. He put it down without hesitation.

"I summon a second Ninja Commander Ikusa (700/700)." He declared, sliding a card from his deck, "Which, of course, let's me summon another Ninja Soldier Katana (400/400)."

Another pair of blue and green ninja flipped onto the field. They bowed to Joey, before drawing their swords.

"But I think that I'll sacrifice Katana…" Magnum continued, the blue ninja vanishing in a blur of shadows, "To summon the Ninja Master Shogun (1600/1600)!"

One of the paper screens next to Magnum fell into two halves, and a ninja dressed in a red outfit and a matching mask now stood in its place. It held out one hand, and two paper scrolls fell to the ground before him.

"Ugh…I remember this thing." Joey muttered.

"Then you remember that I can now special summon two ninjas from my deck that have three stars or less." Magnum smiled as two more cards appeared on his disk, "I choose Lady Ninja Yae (1100/200) and Ninja Commando Kabuki (700/700) in attack mode."

The scrolls both vanished in puffs of smoke, out of which emerged two more ninja. The first was a girl with green hair and a purple body suit. She clutched a long dagger in her right hand.

The other ninja wore a white mask, blue pants, and purple vest. He drew a sword from his back. He then lifted his mask a bit, and let out a whistle.

"And since I summoned Kabuki I can summon another ninja with two stars or less." Magnum continued as his final monster zone was filled, "So let's welcome Crimson Ninja (300/300), also in attack mode."

The whistle was answered by yet another ninja, this one wrapped from head to toe in red robes like the shogun. He carried a sharp looking katana, which he held in an offensive stance.

"Next comes Mystical Space Typhoon, to wipe your facedown card." Jean continued, playing the common-place spell.

Joey braced himself as a powerful wind blew through the room and wiped out his facedown Fairy Box trap.

"_That's not good."_ Joey fretted, sweat starting to bead on his forehead.

"Ninja Commander, destroy his last line of defense." Magnum ordered, "_Zankuha, slicing the air!"_

The red-masked ninja moved his hands in a complicated pattern, before pointing the palms at Joey's last monster. A loud blast of sound rushed past Joey, followed by his winguard as it was smashed against the far wall!

"The rest of you, attack directly!" Magnum ordered, "_Art of multiplication!"_

Ikusa moved his hands quickly…

And two more Ikusa jumped from behind the screens behind Joey. Before Yugi could shout a warning, his fiend was stabbed in the back by both of them.

"_Fireball technique!"_ Came the next order.

Crimson Ninja held two fingers in front of his face, and lowered the swath of cloth in front of his mouth. No one could get a clear look at what was underneath though, because a huge gout of flame flew from the assassin's mouth and into Joey's chest.

"_Wind blade jutsu!"_

Yae swung her weapon several times, each slice generating a sharp looking scythe of air. They all flew forward, slicing across Joey's body.

"_And…_You know what, just hit him." Magnum decided.

Kabuki looked insulted, but spun behind another of the screens. Yugi looked around in panic, before gasping as the white-masked ninja fell from above Joey and drove his sword into the blond's spine.

Joey: 2600

Magnum: 5200

Joey groaned, falling to his knees from the pain of the onslaught. Magnum just smiled.

"It's your turn. If you can still move that is." He taunted.

Joey struggled to draw his card, and he placed it onto the dueling tray.

"I summon…Rocket Warrior (1500/1300) in attack mode!" Joey shouted, trying to recover some of his strength.

A strange new creature emerged. It was another mini-soldier dressed in green and yellow armor. He carried a sword and shield, and had an angered look on his face.

"And now I use my deckmaster's power." Joey said, pushing himself up, "I'll give 500 of my Flame Swordsman's attack points to Rocket Warrior (2000/1300)."

The Flame Swordsman was surrounded by a blue aura as his attack fell to 1300 points. Rocket Warrior was surrounded by a similar aura, and pointed his sword at the ninjas before him.

"Oh boy…" Jean gasped.

"Attack the Shogun!" Joey ordered.

Shogun swiftly made several hand signs, and at least a dozen copies of him appeared all around the room. They all drew their swords…

But Rocket Warrior was unimpressed. Its body folded up, and the green and yellow pattern on its body became clear now: It had transformed into an actual rocket. The warrior-turned-projectile began to fly around the room, blasting through each copy of the shogun on its way and tearing up most of the remaining screens.

Each shogun hit vanished in a burst of black powder, until only one was left back on the dueling field. He looked around at the lack of doppelgangers, and then screamed as the Rocket Warrior plowed into his back. He vanished in a blast of smoke, and Rocket Warrior returned to his original shape and position.

Joey: 2600

Magnum: 4800

"And now I'll set these three cards facedown." Joey said, now fully recovered as a hidden cards appeared behind Rocket Warrior, "Your turn."

Magnum drew, and then breathed a sigh of relief. He slapped down another monster, smiling as he did so.

"I summon White Ninja (1500/800) in attack mode." He declared, moving his hand to the rest of his cards, "And then I move Crimson Ninja, Ikusa, and Kabuki all to defense mode."

Another warrior, wrapped in a pure white gi, landed on the field. Unlike his fellows, this one had no weapons.

"What are you up to?" Joey asked suspiciously as the enemy warriors knelt down.

"I'll show you." Magnum smiled, "Yae, attack Rocket Warrior now!"

Yae looked over her shoulder at her master with a shocked expression. She sighed, and lunged forward with her dagger, only for Joey's monster to drive its own weapon through her chest. She screamed, and was blasted into dust.

"What the?" Joey gasped.

"And now that one of my ninja has died in battle, I can activate this quickplay spell." Magnum explained, holding up another card, "It's called Avenging the Fallen!"

A spell with the image of Strike Ninja holding Yae's hand appeared on the field. The Yae on the card was clearly in the same condition as the one that had just attacked (in other words, dead).

"This spell can be used whenever a ninja on my field is destroyed in battle." Magnum explained, "I then choose another ninja monster, and increase its attack by 200 points for every level the destroyed ninja had. I'll choose White Ninja, so he gains 600 points."

The white robed killer glared at Joey with anger in his eyes. White Ninja (2100/800) pointed threateningly at Joey, who frowned.

"And one more thing." Magnum continued with a smile, "If I use this card on my turn, the monster I use it on can attack directly."

"What!" Joey shouted, drawing back.

"White Ninja, avenge Yae!" Magnum ordered, "_Sabakukyu, the coffin of crushing sand!"_

Fine, white grains of sand flowed out of White Ninja's sleeves. They moved swiftly across the floor, and began to cover Joey. He struggled against it, to no avail, and they began to pack themselves tightly around his struggling form.

"JOEY!" Yugi shouted, near panic.

The figure in the sand stopped moving, and held still. After about ten seconds, the sand fell away and Joey collapsed to the floor again.

Joey: 500

Magnum: 3900

Joey coughed as the sand flowed backward into the enemy monster's clothes. The white killer nodded to Magnum, and moved his hands to a meditation position.

"Give up yet?" Magnum asked, looking down at Joey, "Maybe now you can see that I'm the only one that truly deserves Mai…"

"The only thing you deserve is a fat lip." Joey said, getting up again, "You killed one of your monsters just to get at me!"

"So? They're just cards…" Magnum growled.

"You should be ashamed of yourself." Yugi scolded from the sidelines, "You didn't even think twice about that move. You don't care at all about your monsters, even when they give themselves up to protect you."

"Yeah, you only care about yourself." Joey growled, "And now I'm gonna make sure that Yae really gets avenged."

"We'll see about that, I end my turn." Magnum declared.

"Before you do, I activate Scapegoats!" Joey responded, one of his card turning over.

The four sacrificial lambs (pun intended) trotted onto the field. They bleated quietly, and Rocket Warrior gave each one a pat on the head.

"Fine, make your move." Magnum sighed, White Ninja falling back to (1500/800).

"And here it is: Double Magic Arm Bind!" Joey shouted, his second card flipping over, "This let's me sacrifice two monsters to take control of two of yours."

Two of the goats (the red and pink ones) vanished into pools of light. A pair of grabber arms lunged forward, and dragged White Ninja and Ikusa over to Joey's side of the field.

"Hah! Like those two matter." Magnum laughed, "They're some of my weakest monsters. Why would you even want them?"

"So I can tribute them." Joey explained, "Along with my Rocket Warrior that is."

"Huh?" Magnum's face turned to a mask of surprise, "Tribute them?"

"Yep…" Joey smiled.

"But you can't summon in the same turn you use Scapegoats!"

"I did that the end of your turn." Joey pointed out, "So I'm still allowed to summon during mine. Now then, I'll tribute Ikusa, Rocket Warrior, and White Ninja…"

The three monsters faded away, and crackling bolts of lightning filled the room.

"To summon Gilford the Lightning (2800/1400)!" Joey shouted, slamming his only card onto his disk.

A gigantic blast of electricity flooded the area before Joey, and out of it stepped a man, at least six and a half feet tall, wearing silver armor and carrying a huge sword. Bolts of lighting danced over the blade, which he pointed at Jean's side of the field.

"And since I used three monsters to summon him, Gilford destroys what's left of your monsters." Joey said with a smug grin.

"Nice work Joey!" Yugi cheered as two bolts of lightning struck down Kabuki and Crimson Ninja.

Magnum backed up nervously.

"Gilford, attack him directly with thunder sword!" Joey ordered.

The giant man lunged forward, and Magnum shoved his last two cards (Ninjitsu Art of Decoy, and Ninjitsu Art of Transformation) into his graveyard.

"Stop! I activate my deckmaster power!" He shouted frantically, "_Rin Hyou Tou Sha Kai Jin Retsu Zai Zen!"_

Strike Ninja began a series of hand motions, and several fiery kanji appeared in the air over Joey's facedown card.

"By discarding my two cards, I can activate any facedown card on the field as if it were mine." Magnum explained, "So I'll activated your…"

The card lifted, and a pair of grabber arms lunged forward. They grabbed the blue scapegoat, which bleated helplessly as it was cut apart by Gilford.

"…Magic Arm Shield…Uh oh." Magnum winced, "Was the seriously the best you could have set?"

"Looks like it." Joey smiled, "Well, your turn."

Magnum drew, and stared at his card. Another copy of Avenging the Fallen.

"_This isn't even a good bluff…"_ He lamented, _"But at least he can't finish me off this turn."_

"Make your move boy." Magnum sighed.

Joey drew, and smiled as pointed at his deckmaster.

"You remember what he can do?" He asked, the blue aura surrounding Joey's Flame Swordsman.

"Oh no…" Magnum moaned.

"Sounds like a yes." Yugi commented.

"Don't worry, I won't go overboard on this." Joey assured his opponent, "I'll take 1100 points, and give them to Gilford. Just enough to finish you."

Gilford was surrounded by the blue glow, and his attack jumped to 3900. Flame Swordsman's fell all the way to 400, but that was hardly important.

"Let's try this again." Joey commanded, "Attack with thunder sword!"

Gilford swooped forward, and swung his sword horizontally. Magnum screamed as he lit up like a Christmas tree before flying through the wall, and into mid air.

Joey: 500

Magnum: 0

"Oh nooooooooooooooooooo!" He howled as he plummeted straight down.

"Woah, I didn't mean to hit him that hard!" Joey shouted, running to the hole.

He looked out, and breathed a sigh of relief. Magnum had managed to get his jacket caught in the branches of a tree filled with cherry blossoms. Other than the fact that he was covered in pink petals, and obviously unhappy, he was fine.

"You okay?" Joey shouted down.

"I'll be fine!" Magnum snapped back, "Now take your points and leave me alone!"

Two points of light floated into Joey's disk. He shrugged, and turned away from the hole.

"He didn't even ask me to help get him down." Joey said.

"Celebrities, who can figure them out?" Yugi sighed, as Joey began to fade away.

"Ah well, hop on Yug'." Joey smiled.

Yugi grabbed Joey's arm, and the two vanished together.

-------------------------------------------------------------

In the programming room, Sota let out a low whistle.

"That Wheeler kid _is _good." He said, "Bet your glad we didn't bet on this one."

"Actually I would have bet on Joey." Jackson responded, "Magnum was only invited for publicity reasons. When he comes it dueling, he's more-or-less an amateur."

"I thought he was a champion at last year's Celebrity Duel Monsters Tournament." Rei commented.

"Yeah, but apparantely celebrities aren't very good duelists." Jackson explained, "He also attended the Los Angeles Regional Championship, and was taken out in the second round by some valley girl using mermaids."

"Ouch." Rei and Sota winced.

"Ouch is right." Jackson said with a nod, "So what's our next betting pool?"

_**Okay, let's settle a couple things now.**_

**_1. Magnum is a jerk, I'm glad I beat him._**

**_2. You haven't seen the last of people who have it in for me._**

_**And next time, Tim has to take on one of my old rivals. Let's just say, this one is fond of "Keithing it." I call it**_

_**Molotovs and Soda Pop**_

_**Be there!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Avenging the Fallen

Quickplay Spell

Image of Strike Ninja holding the hand of a dead/dying Lady Ninja Yae.

When a monster on your side of the field with the word "ninja" in its name is destroyed in battle, increase the attack of one of your monsters with the word "ninja" in their title by 200 times the destroyed monster's level. If you activate this card on your turn, the target monster can also attack directly.

---

Ninja Commander Ikusa

Warrior

DARK  
Three stars

700 attack

700 defense

When this monster is summoned in anyway, you may special summon one "Ninja Soldier Katana" from your hand or deck.

---

Ninja Soldier Katana

Warrior

DARK

Two stars

300 attack

300 defense

_A devoted ninja warrior, he would follow his commander to his death._

_---_

Ninja Commando Kabuki

Warrior

DARK

Three stars

700 attack

700 defense

When this monster is summoned in any way, you may special summon one level two or lower monster with the word "ninja" in its name from your hand or deck.

---

Ninja Master Shogun

Warrior

DARK

Five stars

1600 attack

1600 defense

This monster can only be summoned when you have at least one copy of both "Ninja Commander Ikusa" and "Ninja Soldier Katana" in your graveyard. When this monster is successfully tribute summoned, you may special summon up to two, level three or lower monsters with the word "ninja" in their name from your hand or deck.

_The above four monsters were used by Jean-Claude Magnum in the anime episode "Lights, Camera, Duel!" All creative credit goes to the writers of that episode._

_---_

Double Magic Arm Bind

Trap

Image of a pair of Magic Arm Shields

Tribute two monsters on your side of the field. Take control of two of your opponent's monsters.

_This card was first used by used by Joey in the anime episode "Fighting for a Friend (Part 5)." All creative credit goes to the writers of that episode._

_---_

Original Deckmaster

---

Flame Swordsman

Warrior/Fusion

FIRE

Five stars

1800 attack

1600 defense

Warrior's Support: Once per turn, you may permanently decrease this monster's original attack score, to permanently increase the original attack of one warrior-type monster you control.

_This monster served as Joey's deckmaster during the Yu-Gi-Oh saga "Enter the Shadow Realm." All creative credit for its effect goes to the writers of that saga._

_---_

Strike Ninja

Warrior

DARK

1700 attack

1200 defense

"Rin Hyou Tou Sha Kai Jin Retsu Zai Zen": You may discard two cards from your hand at any point in the duel, to activated any facedown card on the field as thought it were your own.

_This card served as Duke Devlin's deckmaster during the multipart anime episode "Mechanical Mayhem." All credit for its effect goes to the writers of those episodes. A/N: The name is based on the kanji that appeared when its power was used._


	7. Molotovs and Soda Pop

Disclaimer: We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, but don't tell anyone we want to. We're trying reverse psychology on its real owners.

_**Ugh…**_

_**Tim Hokage, reporting in…with one question.**_

**_Does anybody have any aspirin? I didn't have the best landing here. First I crash head first into the ground, and I don't just stop. I grind to a halt like car with the brake lines cut! Then, I roll over, open my eyes, and see the weirdest sky ever. After that, I blacked out and woke up with this massive headache…and bruised ribs._**

_**But enough about my massive head trauma, now I have to find an opponent. Fortunately, I think that has already been taken care of for me.**_

_**Unfortunately, he's the king of "Keithing it."**_

**Molotovs and Soda Pop**

Tim was mumbling to himself as he limped his way along. It had been quite a rough landing for him, and that had been about forty-five minutes ago.

The landscape he was in seemed reminiscent of the Grand Canyon. Stripes of different rock lined the stone walls around him as he trudged across the barren landscape. Under his breath, he was mumbling the words to a little song (one that he probably wouldn't be singing if he hadn't landed on his head).

"_I get knocked down, but I get up again. You're never gonna keep me down. I get knocked down…"_ He sang quietly as his wits came back to him.

Finally emerging from his concussion-induced daze, the younger Hokage brother looked around at his surroundings. He stopped singing, shook his head to clear it, and then held his sore cranium.

"Ugh…I have bruises on places I didn't even know I had." He grumbled as he checked himself for injuries.

Surprisingly, though he still ached from the rough treatment by the ground, Tim couldn't find a single mark or sign or damage on his body. Scratching his head, he noticed his headache was fading too.

"_Hm…I either have Wolverine's healing power, or I can't really get hurt here."_ Tim realized, _"Seeing as I don't have razor claws or metal bones, I should actually thank Kaiba for this."_

Tim looked around once more at the rocky landscape, and frowned.

"_On the other hand, this isn't exactly Duelist Central. Where is everyone?"_ He wondered.

Looking toward his left, he noticed a rather large boulder. It was about as tall as he was, and roughly five feet in diameter.

"_Maybe I can see farther from the top of this._" He thought as he began to clamber up the stone.

The surface was fairly rough, so Tim didn't have much trouble getting on top. Looking around he smiled a bit.

"Well this is great!" He smiled, "I can see all the way to…the next big rock."

Tim sighed, and scuffed his foot against his platform in frustration.

"Stupid rock." He muttered as he turned to climb down.

Too bad for him that the first craggy foothold he tried to use on it crumbled beneath his weight. The boy gasped, tried to right himself…

And fell backwards. Thankfully, his fall was broken by a fairly soft surface.

"Ooh…Hey, since when are rocks soft?" Tim wondered.

"Since…never." A voice growled, "Get…Off!"

Tim shouted as he was shoved from his landing sight onto the rough stone ground. Looking up, he saw that he had landed on a person. He quickly got to his feet.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to land on…" Tim trailed off.

The person he had landed on was a man with short, messy, blond hair. A bandanna with the same coloring as the American flag was wrapped around his head, and he wore a pair of dark sunglasses that blocked any view of his eyes. He wore a red shirt, black vest, and blue jeans, and stood about three inches taller than Tim.

"Bandit Keith?" Tim said in shock.

"That's my name. If you wear it out I'll make you buy me a new one." The infamous duelist growled, "What's the big idea of landing on me punk?"

"That was an accident." Tim explained, dusting himself off, "Sorry about that. Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Keith smiled, "Better than okay in fact. I happen in a good mood since I had just won my second duel before you landed on me."

Tim blinked in astonishment as Keith tapped his disk. Hovering over the blond's head was glittering number eight, indicating his current point total.

"Eight points. One more win and I'm in the finals." Keith bragged.

"You already have eight points?" Tim shouted, "Oh man…how long was I out?"

"The tournament only started less than an hour ago." Keith explained, "But I got lucky: I landed next to an amateur when we began, and a second one after my first jump. They were just too easy to beat…"

Keith grabbed Tim by the collar of his shirt, and shoved him roughly away from the rock.

"And now it looks I found my third chump." He said with grin, "If you've got two points, I'm in the finals for sure."

"Ever hear the phrase 'Don't count your chickens before they hatch?'" Tim asked, "Well, I'm about to make omelets out of you and your monsters."

Tim turned on his disk, while Keith gave him a confused look.

"Come on…Chickens...hatch…eggs…omelets? That was a joke!" Tim said, throwing his hands up.

"It wasn't very good." Keith commented as he turned on his disk, "Let's just get this over with."

Tim reached for his deck, when a floating array of cards appeared before him. He stopped, and looked over the cards before realizing they were his monsters.

"_That's right, the deckmaster system."_ Tim thought, rubbing his chin, _"Well…I have extra copies of this guy."_

Tim grabbed one of the cards, and it vanished in his grip. Behind him fell a pile of logs, which ignited into a blazing bonfire. The logs rose up, and assembled into a semi-human figure, that was completely covered in red flames.

"Anyone got any marshmallows or hotdogs?" Tim joked, "My deckmaster will be Blazing Inpachi!"

"Good for you, punk." Keith said as he snapped his fingers, "I'll think I'll use a real monster for my deckmaster. I choose Barrel Dragon!"

Out of the ground behind Keith burst a large, reptilian creature covered in black armor. On its head, and in place of its arms, was a glowing pistol barrel. It let out a mechanized roar, and Tim yawned in response.

"When you said 'real' did you mean 'real ugly'?" He asked nonchalantly.

"Joke if you want, its lucky shot power will shut you down permanently!" Keith retorted.

-----------------------------------

In the real world, Rei was monitoring Tim and Keith at her station. She sighed, and got up from her chair.

"_I don't care how tough Kaiba thinks this kid may be."_ She thought, _"He doesn't have a chance against Bandit Keith"_

"I'm going to run to the soda machine real fast." She said to her neighbors, "You two want anything to drink?"

"I'll take an orange pop." Sota requested.

"One of those generic, caramel flavored sodas please." Jackson said.

Rei nodded, and headed out the door. As she did, Sota noticed what was on her screen.

"Hey Jackson, want to go double or nothing?" He asked, typing a few commands.

The main screen lit up with the image of Tim and Keith squaring off.

--------------------------------

With both of their deckmasters standing behind them, Tim and Bandit Keith both drew their first five cards.

"I think I'll go first if you don't mind." Keith said as he reached for his deck.

"How about we flip a coin instead?" Tim suggested.

Keith stopped an inch from his cards, and shrugged.

"Fine by me." He said, "I call heads."

A giant coin suddenly plummeted from above, slamming into the ground between them. It covered the entire area between the two, and had landed heads up.

"Like I said, I'll go first." Keith smiled as he drew.

Keith: 8000

Tim: 8000

It didn't take long for the American champ to select his first card. He placed it onto his disk with a smooth, practiced motion.

"I'll open with Oni Tank T-34 (1400/1700) in attack mode." He declared.

Barrel Dragon pointed its guns into the sky, and fired off three rounds. From above plummeted a green tank with a demonic face depicted on the front. The ground cracked, and dented in under the pressure of having a tank fall on it.

"That's all for now." Keith smiled.

Tim struggled not to laugh as he drew his card.

"_Only 1400 attack, only my Hand of Nephthys is weaker than that."_ Tim thought, _"He must be testing me."_

"_Yes, probably." _Chimed in a deep, crackling voice.

"_Who said that?" _Tim thought, looking around.

"_Look behind you."_ The voice instructed.

Tim looked over his shoulder and saw his deckmaster. The flaming giant turned its gaze to the teen.

"_I must still be suffering from head trauma._" Tim thought, _"It sounded like my monster was talking to me."_

"_I am." _The voice said again.

"_Okay, then I've lost it."_ Tim reasoned.

"_Relax, you're not crazy."_ The Inpachi said, _"I don't have a mouth, so I can communicate telepathically."_

Tim nodded, and the pyro-type continued.

"_I just thought you'd like to know about my deckmaster power: controlled burn." _The crackling voice continued, _"It's too late to use it this turn, but if you want to use it here's what you do. Before you draw, declare spell, trap, or monster. Then, pick up cards until you come to one of the type you declared. That one gets added to your hand, the others are sent to the graveyard. Understand?"_

"_So it's like a Monster Gate for any type of card, not just monsters."_ Tim thought, _"And that takes the place of my draw phase?"_

"_Correct." _The wood golem nodded, _"Now you'd better take your turn before Keith gets impatient."_

"Will you move already!" Keith shouted.

"_Too late."_ Tim thought as he played a card.

"I summon Great Angus (1800/600) in attack mode." Tim declared.

Blazing Inpachi shot a blast of fire at the ground, burning a large hole into it. Out of the hole leapt a vicious looking warthog with red skin and white tusks. Steam curled from its nostrils as it pawed at the ground.

"Attack that tank!" Tim ordered, pointing to emphasize, "Ferocious charge!"

The boar grunted, and charged head-first toward the machine. It slammed right into the vehicle, which went flying backward before shattering into pieces.

Keith: 7600

Tim: 8000

"And now I'll lay these two facedown." Tim said as he placed two more cards into his disk, "Your move."

The two cards appeared behind the boar, which walked back to Tim's field. Keith was unfazed as he drew his next card.

"Wow, a beatstick monster." Keith said sarcastically, "Now let's see, what should I do? Oh I know…"

He slapped down a card.

"I'll summon my Mechanicalchaser (1850/800)!" He shouted.

A yellow orb descended from the sky, and out of it popped a variety of deadly weapons. It spread a pair of wings, and revealed a skull-like face on its front.

"Take down his monster with electro-death prod!" Keith shouted.

The machine raised one of its weapons, a sparking cattle prod, and swooped forward. It jammed the weapon into the boar's ribs, and the poor creature screamed in pain and surprise before shattering.

Keith: 7600

Tim: 7950

"And then I'll set one facedown card." The bandana-wearing bully declared with a shrug, "Your move."

A hidden card appeared behind the robot. Tim moved his hand to his deck, then stopped. A smile crossed his face.

"Woah, I just got a great idea. I choose to use my deckmaster's power of controlled burn." Tim declared.

His deck was immediately ignited, and glowed with orange flames!

"Here's how it works: I call any type of card, and Inpachi will burn away cards until he finds the type I'm looking for." Tim explained, jerking a thumb to his deckmaster, "And I'll call monster."

The top three cards of Tim's deck collapsed into piles of ash, which blew into his discard slot. The now-top card of his deck floated off, and into his hand. Tim smiled wider as he saw the monster.

"Now I'll summon the monster I just drew." He said, slapping the card down, "Hand of Nephthys (600/600)!"

A young woman dressed in green and red robes descended onto the field. Her face was covered by a golden mask that resembled a bird, and she hovered about a foot over the ground.

"So what? She's too weak to be a threat." Keith sneered in response.

"Which is why I'm activating my Call of the Haunted trap." Tim continued, pointing to one of his facedown cards, "I'll use it to revive Great Angus (1800/600)."

The trap lifted, and spewed violet smoke into the air next to Nephthys. She cast a disapproving glance at it, until it cleared away and left behind the wild boar. Keith just sneered again.

"I ask again, so what?" He snickered a bit.

"I'll tell you what!" Tim shouted, pointing to Nephthys, "I'm using Hand of Nephthys's special ability. If I tribute her and one other monster, I can summon a very powerful one to the field, that's what!"

The masked woman raised her hands over her head, and a column of golden fire rained down from above. It absorbed her and Great Angus, and Tim slid a card from his deck onto his tray.

The golden flames were dispersed, and in their place hovered a magnificent golden bird. It began to sing an enchanting melody, and Keith stared at it in awe.

"I give you: The Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys (2400/1600)! Let's give her a round of applause folks." Tim said, as he applauded.

Keith just stared open mouthed at the monster before him, before finally finding his voice.

"No way. That is an incredibly rare monster." He choked out, "How did a punk like you get your hands on it?"

"It was a very special gift, from a very special duelist." Tim explained, crossing his arms, "I should tell you right now…"

Tim struck a dramatic pose, holding his cards (backs to Keith) over his head.

"That I am the younger of the Amazing Dueling Hokage Brothers!" He called out.

"Never heard of 'em!" Keith retorted.

Tim stumbled a bit, his smile wavering.

"You really never heard of us?" He asked in shock, "We're the infamous dueling duo of Chicago! We kept getting kicked out of card shop tournaments because we were too good…"

"Um…are you going to keep ranting or finish your turn?" Keith asked, obviously not caring about what Tim was saying.

Tim just sighed, and looked to the ground.

"Well now I'm depressed, I thought more people knew about us than just our friends…" He sighed, "Oh well, at least I can take out all of my frustration on you…"

The phoenix began to sing again as Tim pointed right at Keith.

"Phoenix, attack with phoenix wing wind blast!" Tim ordered.

The bird swooped higher, and flapped her great wings. A blast of flames flew from her body, and consumed the Mechanicalchaser. The machine let out a series of beeps and whirs before it was atomized by the heat.

Keith: 7050

Tim: 7950

"That will end my turn." Tim declared.

"And it starts mine." Keith said as he drew, "And I'll open it with my facedown Jar of Greed."

Smiling, Bandit Keith drew an additional card along with the one for his turn. Snickering a bit, he slid one card onto his disk in a horizontal position, and plugged another into the slot behind it.

In front of him appeared the two facedown cards, one in the spell and trap zone, the other in the monster zone.

"Those two facedowns are my turn. Let's see what you got." He challenged.

Tim drew, and cast a suspicious glance at the hidden monster. Taking one card from his hand, he set it lightly on his disk.

"I'll summon one of my Flame Rulers (1500/1600)." Tim declared.

In front of his rose a plume of flames, which gathered into the form of a young man dressed in red robes. He laughed as a fireball gathered in each hand.

"And my Phoenix will attack your facedown monster." Tim ordered, "Now!"

The Phoenix cast forth her flames again. They rushed toward the monster, which turned over to reveal a strange looking centipede made of metal beads. The flames washed over it…

And then cleared away. The monster was unharmed, and actually seemed mad!

"What the hell is that thing?" Tim exclaimed, pointing at the monster.

"A nasty little surprise for your phoenix." Keith laughed, "It's called Plasma Eel (500/1200), and when you attacked it you activated its special ability."

"Let me guess, this ability has something to do with destroying my Phoenix." Tim grimaced.

"Close…" Keith taunted, "Plasma Eel, attach to the phoenix with electric mandibles!"

The centipede launched itself into the air, and clamped its metal jaws over the head of Tim's monster. Phoenix shrieked in pain as bolts of lightening coursed over her body. Tim started in horror at what was happening to his monster.

"Surprise! Hope your monster likes her gift." Keith laughed.

"Not really…did you keep the receipt?" Tim joked back.

Keith snarled a bit, but calmed down.

"Joke while you can, but now that Plasma Eel attached to your monster, it'll lose 500 attack points every time you end your turn." He explained, "And just so you know, you can't use it as a tribute for any reason. Something you might want to keep in mind."

The bird shrieked in pain again, and Tim flinched at the sound.

"Of course, since Plasma Eel is stuck to your monster, it can't protect my life points anymore." Keith shrugged.

"Good." Tim smiled, cracking his knuckles, "That means all 1500 of Flame Ruler's attack points are about to go right…up…your…ass."

The fiery man charged forward, but Keith jammed a button on his disk in response.

"Don't think so." He interjected, "Go facedown card: Enemy Controller!"

The card lifted, and an electric cord jabbed into Flame Ruler's forehead. He stopped moving, and a video game controller appeared in Keith's hands. The blond baddie quickly began to press a series of buttons.

"Go! Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, A, B, Start!" Keith shouted as he pressed the controller, "Flame Ruler, go to defense mode!"

Flame Ruler struggled against the spell, but lost control and fell to one knee. The cord and controller both vanished, leaving Keith with a smug smile.

"Huh…And I thought that code was for unlimited ammo." Tim frowned, "Or was that up, up, _up,_ down, down, left, right, left, right, A, B?"

"Do you have a lousy joke for _every_ situation?" Keith shouted in an exasperated voice.

"Yeah…do you think it might be cry for help?" Tim asked, with a laugh.

"I know _you're _going to be crying for help by the time I'm through with you.' Keith threatened, "Just end your turn!"

Tim looked to his facedown card, and frowned.

"I can't do anything else, so I end my turn." He sighed.

As he said that, Phoenix screamed again. Bolts of electricity coursed over her entire body, and her stats fell to (1900/1600)! Seeing this, Keith drew his card.

"Hmm…your giant turkey will be well-done later. I'll think I'll handle Flame Ruler first." Keith said, reaching for his deck, "But there's always your facedown card to consider...So I'll use my deckmaster power of lucky shot!"

Barrel Dragon roared, and lowered its head. The three lasers on it began to glow, each one a different color (green, purple, and yellow). At the same time, Keith took the top card from his deck, holding it so it was facedown.

"Here's how it works: I take top card of my deck and send it to the graveyard." He explained, "And then, I can destroy one of your cards that's the same type as the one I discarded. In other words, if I lose a trap, I destroy a trap. Get it?"

"No, mind if I use one of my life lines?" Tim joked again, bursting into laughter.

Keith began to shake with rage.

"Are you trying to make me look like an idiot!" He shouted.

"Nope, you're doing a fine job of that yourself." Tim said with another laugh.

Keith roared with anger, and held up the card he drawn. He smiled as he saw a purple border.

"Looks like I'm discarding my Rare Metalmorph trap." He said, stuffing it into his grave, "But in return I can destroy your facedown card if it's a trap. So let's take a look…"

The purple cannon of Barrel Dragon began to pulse with energy, and a purple target appeared on the back of Tim's card. It flipped, revealing a Dimension Wall card.

"A trap, just like I thought." Keith smiled, "Barrel Dragon, FIRE!"

The purple laser went off, and wiped out Tim's card. Tim shielded himself from some flying debris, while Keith put down another monster.

"Now I'll summon Kinetic Soldier (1350/1800) in attack mode." Keith continued.

Out of the ground burst what seemed to be a human, covered in blue and purple armor. His eyes shone with red light, and he had a severely hostile expression on his face.

"And then I'll equip it with Machine Conversion Factory." Keith went on, putting another card into his disk, "This spell boosts any machine-type monster by 300 attack and defense points."

The soldier (1650/2100) glowed with a red aura, and a large cannon extended from its chest.

"Attack his Flame Ruler with kinetic energy cannon!" Keith shouted.

The cannon on the monster's chest gathered a shimmering white orb of energy inside it…

And fired it off. The orb blazed toward Tim's pyro-type, which burst on contact with the force.

"And I'll end my turn with another facedown card." Keith declared, sliding another card into play, "It's your move."

Tim drew his card, and looked up at his Phoenix.

"Phoenix, I know that you're hurting…" Tim sighed, "But can you still attack?"

The glorious creature let out a screech, and began to charge up a fireball.

"That's all I needed to hear." Smiled Tim, "Torch his monster!"

The flames flew again, right toward Kinetic Soldier. Keith calmly pointed to his facedown card…

And the flames slammed against an invisible barrier. Tim cursed under his breath as Keith's Negate Attack, having finished its work, vanished from the field.

"I guess you didn't know I had a Negate Attack in my deck." Keith smirked, "Too bad punk, your overgrown canary is toast next turn."

Tim just looked at his cards and thought, _"I should have burned through 'till I found a monster. I may have been able to summon him"._

"I'll lay two cards facedown and end my turn." Tim grumbled, "Looks like my phoenix is doomed…"

Phoenix screamed again as her attack was leeched to (1400/1600).

Keith drew, and began to laugh wickedly!

"You don't know the half of it!" He shouted, plunging a card into his disk, "I activate Cost Down!"

"Wait a minute, I know that card." Tim said, "That lowers every monster in your hand by two star levels, as long as you discard a card. I used to have one before I got Hand of Nephthys."

"Well now it's going to work for me." Keith explained, dropping a card, "I'll just discard this useless Pendulum Machine, and I can summon a six-star monster for free. Say hello to Machine King (2200/2000)!"

Keith put down another card, and a monster appeared. It looked like a giant wind-up robot, with piercing red eyes and oversized arms.

"And the best part? Machine King gets an extra 100 attack points for every machine on the field, himself included." Keith grinned.

Machine King (2400/2000) began to spark, and blades extended from its wrists.

"Attack that bird with jet rocket punch, my king!" Keith shouted.

Machine King raised its arms, and fired its fist off like rockets. They sliced through the air, right toward their target…

But before they reached it, One of Tim's facedown cards lifted. A large purple and pink cylinder appeared and caught both fists inside of it.

"What the…!" Keith shouted.

"Hey, what's big, round, hollow, and isn't your skull?" Tim laughed, "If you guessed Magic Cylinder, then, Machine King, tell him what he's won!"

The tube flipped over, and both fists rocketed back out and pummeled Keith right in the face! His sunglasses flew into the distance, and he fell to the ground.

Tim was laughing quite a bit at this turn of events, when Keith got back up. An angry glare was in his blue eyes as he pointed at the phoenix again.

"Kinetic Soldier, you attack it!" Ordered the maddened duelist.

Kinetic Soldier's cannon charged again, and fired a blast of white energy. Phoenix screamed as she was blasted into particles, along with the Plasma Eel that had been attached to her.

Keith: 4650

Tim: 7700

"Your move!" Keith spat.

Tim pointed to his deckmaster again, and smiled.

"I'm gonna use controlled burn to search for another monster." He declared, his deck alighting itself again.

The fire only burned one card this time, and Tim drew the new top card.

"Hey…I just got another idea." Tim thought with a smile.

"I'll set one monster facedown and end my turn." Tim declared as he set a new creature.

Keith drew now, his face beginning to turn red with frustration. He frowned, and pointed at Tim's monster.

"Machine King, wipe out that monster!" He ordered.

The fists flew once more, and Bandit Keith braced himself for their return trip. It never came. They flew forward unobstructed, and Tim's monster was revealed to be a strange turtle with a metallic shell. It groaned as the fists struck it and reduced it to spare parts.

"For someone that loves machines so much, you sure seemed anxious to destroy that one." Tim commented, as he picked up his deck, "Since you destroyed UFO Turtle (1400/1100) I can search for a fire monster with 1500 attack or less and summon it to the field."

Tim found what he was looking for, and placed it onto his disk. Out of the ground in front of him burst a serpentine creature wreathed in flames. The monster growled at Keith at his machinations.

"I choose Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)." Tim said, "Think you can take him?"

"Oh please, that pathetic reptile can't beat my soldier." Keith smiled, "Kinetic Soldier, wipe out that Solar whatever-he-called-it! Kinetic energy cannon!"

The soldier charged its cannon once more, and fired the beam of white again. As it flew toward its target though, a shimmering wall of crystals rose out of the ground and intercepted the blast. A series of cracks appeared on Kinetic Soldier's body as the laser struck its own reflection.

"Oops, looks like you hit my Mirror Wall trap." Tim taunted as Keith screamed with frustration, "That cuts your monster's attack in half. But since it still attacked my dragon…"

Solar Flare Dragon suddenly burst through the mirror, and clamped its jaws around Kinetic Soldier (825/1800). The machine's eyes dimmed, and it burst into fragments of data and scattered to the wind. Keith let out another shout of frustration, and waved to end his move.

Keith: 3975

Tim: 7700

Tim drew his card the normal way this time, and glanced to his trap card.

"I'm gonna let Mirror Wall go to the graveyard, and not pay the 2000 life points for it." He stated.

The trap shattered, and the crystals disappeared.

"But it doesn't matter because you won't be able to attack me." Tim grinned, laying down another card, "I summon my second Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)."

As Tim played the card, the identical twin of his first serpent burst forth. The two dragons roared in tandem, and glared down at Keith.

"So what? Neither one of them is strong enough to take down Machine King!" Keith retorted.

"Right now, their attack strength is the last thing that matters." Tim explained, as his dragons curled around him, "Solar Flare Dragon's effect states that end of each of my turns, you lose 500 life points. But, it also says that as long as it is on the field with a pyro-type monster, it can't be attacked."

"SO WHAT!" Keith shouted at the top of lungs.

"So this: Solar Flare Dragon _itself_ is a pyro monster!" Tim said, the dragons soaring to the sky, "If I have two on the field, you can't attack either one! And you'll take 1000 points of damage each turn."

Keith drew back, and braced for impact. He could tell what was coming next…

"Solar Flare Dragons, on my mark, unleash Hell!" Tim ordered, "Go!"

The two monsters swooped down and blasted Keith with fireballs. He screamed as his life points were scorched away (along with his eyebrows).

Keith: 2975

Tim: 7700

"My turn." Keith grumbled as he drew, "But I should remind you that I don't necessarily have to attack to destroy your monsters."

"Now what are you…" Tim started to ask.

Then Barrel Dragon's cannons lit up again!

"Damn it, your deckmaster power!" Tim shouted, "I forgot!"

"Well I didn't." Keith grinned as he took a card off his deck, "And with a little luck your dragons will be a thing of the past."

Looking at the card, Keith turned it toward his foe. It was strange, machine monster named "Blowback Dragon."

"Say bye-bye to dragon number one." Keith taunted as Barrel Dragon's yellow cannon fired.

The laser sliced right through one of the serpents, which burst into flaming particles. Keith then slid another card into his disk, while Tim smacked his forehead for making such a dumb mistake.

"Next comes Premature Burial, which I use to revive the monster I just discarded." Keith declared, a circle of red light forming before him, "Come back now, Blowback Dragon (2300/1200)!"

The creature that burst out of the ground was strange. It looked like a laser pistol with a pair of legs attached to the grip. It had no arms, and a small mouth opened just beneath the barrel of the gun.

"And now for his special ability." Keith grinned, "I can flip three coins, and if two heads come up I can destroy one of your cards that's on the field. And not just a monster either…"

Three silvery disks shot out the mouth on Blowback Dragon. They swooped around Keith twice, before falling to the ground. Two came up with the image of the machine's head, the other one was blank.

"That's two heads!" Keith laughed, "Kiss your last dragon goodbye!"

"Umm, can I give it tic-tac first?" Tim joked weakly.

Keith chose to ignore that as his monster shot forth a beam of energy that eradicated Tim's last defense.

"Now then, Blowback is a machine, so Machine King (2400/2000) recovered the points he lost when you blasted Kinetic Soldier." Keith pointed out, "Now, both of you attack directly! Jet rocket fist!"

The mechanical monarch's fists shot off again, and slammed into Tim's stomach. He fell to his knees, gasping in pain.

"Blowback, grenade!" Came the second order.

Blowback Dragon fired a small, black sphere from its mouth, which rolled over to the crouching teen.

"That ain't right!" Tim protested, just before it exploded.

Keith: 2175

Tim: 3000

Keith grinned as Tim struggled back to his feet.

"_I knew that little 'investment' of mine would be worth it in the long run."_ Keith thought as he looked at his deckmaster, _"When I received that invite, all it took was little digging to learn what the new attraction was. Then I just get in contact with one of the programmers, slip him a few greenbacks, and I'm the luckiest duelist alive in here!"_

_--------------------------------------------------------------_

Sota and Jackson both winced as the grenade exploded right in front of Tim.

"Virtual or not, that had to hurt." Jackson commented, "Talk about a lucky draw, huh?"

"And lucky flip." Sota agreed, "That dragon's effect only works if you manage to get two or three heads. What were the odds he'd be able to pull that off?"

"A bit too high if you ask me." A voice said.

Turning around, the two men saw Rei had returned with their drinks.

"You two take these." Rei said, handing over a cola and the orange pop, "I have weird feeling…Plenty of people have used Blowback Dragon successfully before, but something feels off. Keith seems too confident about monsters that rely on luck."

Taking her own grape drink, Rei headed toward another row of computers. Jackson shrugged, and took a sip of his beverage.

"Hey, I didn't ask for diet!" He complained.

"Hey Jackson, take a look at this." Sota whispered, "It's Keith's previous duels."

Jakcson peeked over at Sota's machine, and frowned.

"Keith's been a pretty big risk-taker today." He commented, "But it seems to have paid off…"

"It seems like everytime he's come close to losing, he pulls off a miracle." Sota pointed out, "Reversal Quiz, Barrel Dragon, Roulette Barrel…It's too many coincidences! I'd be shocked if even Joey or Yugi were doing _this _well."

"But he's inside a computer system." Jackson argued, "He has to follow the rules of it, so he can't be cheating."

"And any good hacker can tell you there's a way around every rule." Sota said, turning back to the screen.

----------------------------------------------

Tim finally managed to draw his card after getting to his feet. Looking at it, a plan quickly formed.

Granted, it would be a bust if Keith's luck held out, but it would handle the immediate problem.

"I play my own Premature Burial." Tim declared, "And I'll summon back Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys (2400/1600)."

From the ground rose the golden phoenix once more. It's flames were slightly deadened, and its feathers ruffled, but other than that it was good as new. Tim smiled as he placed another card into his disk.

"Then I equip her with Salamandra!" Tim called out, a plume of red flame flying from his disk and wrapping around his monster, "It gives any fire attribute it's equipped to 700 extra attack points."

Phoenix (3100/1600) began to sing her enchanting melody once more, as her attack was bolstered by the flames.

"Destroy Machine King with slamandra wind blast!" Tim shouted.

The winged-beast flapped her wings hard. A blast of red and gold flame shaped like a dragon flew out of her wings, and reduced Keith's Machine King to a pile of molten metal.

Keith: 2275

Tim: 2200

"And then I'll set this monster facedown." Tim said, placing his final card on the disk, "Your turn."

Keith drew, and looked over his two cards.

"_I could use my deckmaster and Blowback Dragon to open a way to his life points again."_ He reasoned, _"But that might be pushing it. I don't want it to look like I'm pressing my luck to much. If I keep doing it too often, folks might get suspicious."_

Seeing the card he had just drawn however, settled the matter for him.

"Well now, I guess it's time to end this." Keith commented, "I move Barrel Dragon to the field!"

The metallic monster stomped past its controller and stood next to Blowback Dragon.

"Once this combo works, you're finished!" Keith said, holding up another card.

"And if it doesn't you're gonna get toasted." Tim retorted, "So get on with it and let's see who's hot…and who's not!"

"Fine, go Polymerization!" Keith yelled, "Fuse Barrel Dragon with Blowback Dragon!"

A whirling vortex of energy absorbed both monsters, and a new form emerged.

This one rolled around on large, spike wheels. Its chest was similar to the robotic form of Barrel Dragon, but its arms and head had been replaced with three chain guns! The monstrosity pointed all three weapons at Tim, and fired a warning shot over his shoulder.

"Meet one of the best monsters my deck can produce." Keith smiled, "Gatling Dragon (2600/1200)!"

"By best, did you mean ugliest?" Tim taunted, "Because that has more ugly in it than if someone had Dick Cheney's figure and Paris Hilton's personality."

"Hey, machines have feelings to." Keith responded, "Besides, it has a powerful ability. Once per turn I can flip three coins, and for each heads I get I destroy one monster…"

"So you only need two heads to clear my field!" Tim gasped.

"Right!" Keith exclaimed, "Gatling Dragon, use your power!"

The monster fired three black coins into the air. Each one showed a gun on one side, and a blank on the other. The first came down, with the gun facing up.

"There's one…" Keith smiled.

Another gun landed.

"Two!" Keith shouted, the third coin hanging in the air, "You're through!"

Tim hung his head, and waited for the end…

---------------------------------------------------------

"What do you think you're doing?" Rei growled at one of her co-workers.

Another programmer, a fellow nemed Takeda, looked up from his work. Seeing Rei, he quickly turned off his monitor. On the big screen, Keith had just summoned Gatling Dragon.

"Oh, nothing." He chocked out.

Rei shoved him aside, and flicked the monitor back on. She sneered when she saw the data on it.

"These are coin flip and draw programs!" She yelled, "You little…you've been manipulating the duel this whole time, haven't you!"

"It's…it's not my fault!" Takeda gasped, looking up to see Mokuba glaring down from his control chair, "My family needed the money Kieth offered…"

"We all know your single, and an only child." Mokuba responded, "And you mentioned that your parents are quite happily retired. Rei, I've taken control of the programs he corrupted and I'm setting them back to normal now. Looks like he's has a hand in all of Keith's victories today…"

"While you do that…" Rei said, opening her bottle of grape soda.

She closed the luck based programs, and then dumped her entire drink right over Takeda's hard drive. It sparked wildly, and blue-gray smoke poured out of it.

"NO, MY MONEY!" Takeda screeched.

Sota and Jackson had run up, and grabbed Takeda from behind as he turned to run.

"What should we do we do with him?" Asked Sota.

"Hold him till get security gets here." Mokuba ordered, "I'm sure my brother would _love_ to have a word with him, oh and Rei, turning the computer off would have worked just as well."

"Oh, sorry Mr. Kaiba." Rei said sheepishly as the second coin toss landed, "I just hate it when people cheat is all."

"Never the less, you will have to pay us back for that computer." Mokuba frowned.

"Understood sir, but it was worth it." Rei said, pulling the power cord out of the back of the machine.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Keith was laughing as the final coin descended to the ground. At about his eye level, however, it froze in mid air.

Tim and Kieth both noticed this, and stared at the small act against physics. The coin turned pure white for a second, then black again. It then resumed its fall.

"Must have been a glitch." Keith shrugged, "You can go back to cowering."

"_Damn it."_ Tim thought, _"I can't believe I'm being taken out in my first duel!"_

The sound he heard next surprised him.

"No…No…That can't happen!" Keith shouted, staring at the last coin.

Tim looked, and saw it had landed with the gun up. He looked toward Keith, who seemed to be in the midst of a panic attack.

Suddenly, it dawned on Tim.

"Oh, I get it." He smiled, "Your dragon is like my phoenix: The effect isn't optional. When my Phoenix is destroyed by a card effect, she has to come back. And if you flip three heads with your dragon, you have to destroy three monsters…even if one of them is yours!"

Keith squeaked in fear.

"And the only one on your field is your deckmaster!" Tim declared, three mini-guns bursting out of the ground, "Which means I win!"

The guns went off.

"You've been roasted…" Tim shouted.

The first gun fired, and wiped out his facedown UFO Turtle.

"…Toasted…" He continued.

The second gun destroyed the Phoenix, which sang one last dying note before vanishing.

"…And burnt to a crisp!" Tim cheered.

The final gun reduced Keith's deckmaster to a smoldering mass of metal and bullets. Keith screamed in rage and confusion as his life point readout changed.

Keith: DECKMASTER DESTROYED

Tim: 2200

Tim thrust a fist into the air, and began a little celebration dance. This was interrupted as Keith tore his cards out of his disk and dashed them against the ground.

"ARGH! AND AFTER ALL THAT MONEY I GAVE THAT PROGRAMMER!" He screamed.

Tim stopped and stared at Keith, who clapped a hand over his mouth.

"Wait, you did _what?_" Tim gasped.

"Um…forget you heard that." Keith said, stooping to pick his cards.

"But I won't!" Mokuba's voice echoed from above.

Keith and Tim both looked up, and a beam of blue light fell around the cheater.

"Sorry Keith, but cheaters aren't allowed in this tournament." Mokuba declared.

"You were Keithing it the whole time?" Tim growled, "That's low."

"Not just against you, but in every one of his duels today." Mokuba explained, "So we'll be giving those ill-gotten points back to the duelists he took them from, and booting him back to the real world."

"Good, maybe my next opponent will be an honest one." Tim nodded in agreement.

"Of course, you can still have the points he wagered in your duel." Mokuba said, two points of light floating from Keith to Tim, "As for you Keith, I hope you enjoyed your stay in Kaiba Land, because you won't be coming back…ever."

Keith pounded against the column of light he was stuck in, and his mouth moved to the shape of many obscenities. Quite clearly though, the prison was sound proof, and Keith disappeared in flash of light.

Tim smiled, and watched as his points jumped from two up to four. Shutting down his disk, he watched as a column of light descended around him and he began to fade.

"Mokuba, what's going on?" Tim asked as he faded.

"Random jump, remember?" Mokuba asked.

"Duelists don't jump, they just fade away." Tim joked, "Thanks Mokuba."

Tim disappeared without another word.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Does he have to turn everything into a joke?" Mokuba wondered out loud as he leaned back in his chair.

"Guess I won that bet, eh Jackson." Sota smiled.

"I'll get that back soon enough." Jackson responded.

"Hey Rei, about another drink? My treat." Sota offered his coworker.

"Such a gentleman." Rei smiled, "Just grab me a grape soda from the drink machine, will you?"

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Elsewhere in the Virtual World, a white coin fell to the ground.

Five shadowy figures stepped up to the coin, and one of them picked it up.

"Gentlemen, I believe we may have found the key to our salvation." Said the one with the coin, in a southern accent.

The other four nodded, and began to laugh.

_**Crazy duel, huh?**_

**_If you enjoyed this one, then don't miss our next chapter. It's Mako versus an aquatic eliminator, for our first eliminator duel! We're callin' it:_**

_**Kiddie Pool**_

_**See ya there, or else!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Plasma Eel

Machine/Effect

DARK

Four star

500 attack

1200 defense

When this monster is attacked, it turns into an equipment spell and attaches to the monster that attacked it. Decrease the attack of the equipped monster by 500 points during each of your opponent's end phases.

_This card was first used by Marik in the anime episode "The Darkness Returns (Part 3)." All creative credit goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Barrel Dragon

Machine

DARK

Seven star

2600 attack

2200 defense

Lucky Shot: Once per turn, you may send the top card of your deck to the graveyard. You may then destroy one card on your opponent's field that is the same kind (Trap, Spell, or Monster) as the one you discarded. If the target is facedown, turn it face up. If the target is the proper type, destroy it, if not, turn it facedown again.

---

Blazing Inpachi

Pyro

FIRE

Four star

1850 attack

0 defense

Controlled Burn: Before you draw, you may declare one kind of card (Spell, Trap, or Monster). You must then discard cards from the top of your deck until you find a card of the kind you declared. Add that card to your hand.


	8. Kiddie Pool

_**My name is Mako Tsunami.**_

_**A few people remember me from Duelist Kingdom and Battle City. They know that my specialty is water monsters, specifically creatures of the deep.**_

_**But not many know why I duel. I duel so that I may someday win enough money to buy a boat and search the ocean for my long-lost father. There are plenty of folks who think I'm crazy, they believe my dad is gone for good. But I know deep down he's still out there, waiting for me.**_

_**But until I find him, I guess I'll just have to enjoy my career as a duelist. I've faced many interesting opponents in my time, and made some great friends.**_

_**But I've never faced an opponent like this one, and something tells me that I might be in over my head…**_

**Kiddie Pool**

Mako was breathing hard as he wandered through the desert sands. They were no landmarks, no buildings, no shelter. Only mile after mile of sand, sun, and heat. Mako didn't have any creatures in his deck that were adapted to the wasteland…

But it was quite obvious that he wished he did.

"_A Des Lacooda or something like that would probably be useful for crossing this."_ Mako thought as he wearily trudged forward, _"I feel like I'm going to die out here!"_

The heat had beating on the ocean duelist for roughly forty-five minutes. To Mako, every second under the sun was becoming torture. He was so overheated, he couldn't even see what was right in front of him.

So one can only imagine what a welcome relief it was when he collapsed face first and landed with a splash in a pool of fresh, clear water. The sides were steep, like an in ground swimming pool, and the water was about four feet deep where Mako stood.

Mako surfaced, coughing for breath as he looked around. The desert was still there, sure enough, but he seemed to have wandered into an oasis without realizing it. The pool of water was about twenty feet in diameter, and a few small palm trees bearing fruit grew around it. Mako rubbed his eyes and looked around in shock.

"I must be dreaming." He said, shaking his head, "That's all there is to it. I passed out in the heat, and now I'm dreaming that I found an oasis."

Mako dunked his head under the cool, refreshing water. He came back up, and smiled as he swept his hair back.

"Well, if this is a dream, I might as well make the most of it." He sighed as he leaned back against a tree, leaving his feet in the water.

As the duelist soaked his feet though, he felt something brush against his heel. He shifted his foot a little, but it was brushed again. Mako looked down toward his limbs…

And saw a young woman rising out of the water before him! Mako gasped, and drew back as the figure moved closer.

She was a young woman, probably in her twenties, and she wore a simple, blue, Egyptian-style dress. What was most interesting was that her entire body, hair included, appeared to be made of water. Looking at her feet, Mako noticed that they merged into the water.

"Hello." The water maiden said with a pleasant smile, "Welcome to my oasis."

"Now I know I'm dreaming." Mako smiled, "I mean, this couldn't happen in real life."

"You're not dreaming." The girl said, shaking her head, "Both this water and myself are very real. You were fortunate to discover this place in the virtual desert. Many who enter it never manage to find their way out."

"That a fact?" Mako wondered as he stood up, "So what's your name?"

The girl seemed slightly hurt at this question.

"I thought all duelists would recognize me." She sighed, "I'm the Emissary of the Oasis."

"Emissary of the…" Mako gasped, "Wait, you're a Duel Monster!"

"That's right." Emissary confirmed, "But just so you know, friends call me Em."

"Alright…Em." Mako nodded slowly, "So, I'm guessing you're some kind of guide for lost travelers?"

Em frowned and took a step back.

"Well, not really." She sighed, "I'm actually an Eliminator created by Kaiba Corp. for this tournament."

"Eliminator?" Mako mused, "I remember those from our little welcome speech at the start of this."

"It's just like what you were told." Em explained, "You can challenge me to a duel, but if you lose you're out of the tournament…"

"Where as if I win, I get three points and a special gift." Mako interrupted with a smile, "Right?"

Em gave Mako a strange look. She slowly nodded as she floated further backwards.

"You aren't scared?" She asked.

"Nah." Mako smirked, "I have full confidence in myself and my deck."

"Really." Em said quizzically, "Well be careful none the less. If you accept my challenge, my children and I might catch you off guard."

"Children?" Mako asked.

Em raised one hand, and a deck of Duel Monster cards appeared in it.

"I consider the cards in my deck to be like children to me." Em explained, "You can see why if you like."

Mako thought for a minute, and looked toward the desert beyond.

"Can I sit in the water while I duel you?" Mako asked.

Em giggled a bit, and nodded.

"So, are you ready to begin?" Em asked as a duel disk appeared on her arm.

"Of course." Mako declared as he activated his own disk.

Suddenly, a group of cards floated up in front of him. Looking over them, Mako realized that they were the monster cards from his deck!

"Then simply choose your deckmaster." Em requested with a wave of her arm.

"Who are you using?" Mako asked as he looked over the cards.

"Why Mako, didn't you notice that _I'm _a duel monster?" Em giggled, "That means that I'll serve as my own deckmaster."

The shimmering maiden floated backwards, hovering over the surface of the water at the center of the lake. Mako was left on the shore, looking over his cards with a look of concern on his face.

"_I've never played with deckmaster rules."_ He thought as he tentatively reached for a card, _"But if I recall, Emissary of the Oasis's regular ability has something to do with low level monsters."_

Looking at the card he was about to select, he smiled and jabbed it with his finger. The cards all vanished, save the one he had chosen. That one slid into the lake, and a shadowy figure appeared beneath the water.

"Get ready Em, because I've chosen my deckmaster." Mako said as he raised his arm over the lake, "A creature who needs no introduction: Terror King Salmon!"

The shadow leapt from the water, revealing a huge fish, about the size of a dolphin! It had pure white scales, and powerful jaws. It landed back in the water with a splash, and rose back to the surface looking at Mako.

"Climb aboard, son of the ocean." The fish requested in a gurgling voice.

Mako gasped in surprise. The salmon turned around, offering its back to Mako, who carefully climbed on board. He seated himself behind the dorsal fin, and the fish began to bob up and down in the lake.

"I never realized that you could talk." Mako said, staring at his deckmaster in awe.

"It is because you chose me as your deckmaster that I was given the power to." Salmon explained, "And now I may unleash a power that your opponent shall find to be her bane: my deckmaster ability! Listen closely, and I shall tell you of the specifics."

Mako leaned forward, and the fish muttered something to him. Sitting back up, Mako smiled as he drew five cards.

"You know Em, I actually feel bad for you. You have no clue just how great my deckmaster is." Mako smirked, "So how about you go first."

Em: 8000

Mako: 8000

Em blinked in surprise, as she drew her six cards. She looked over her hand, and smiled as she did so.

"A decision you might regret Mako." Em stated as she placed a card on her disk, "I summon Bio-Mage (1150/1000) in attack mode!"

Em held out one hand, and from the water rose a mysterious figure. It looked almost human, except its skin was silver. Behind it spread a pair of orange wings that pulsed with mysterious energy, as it clasped its hands as if in prayer. Em slid another card into her disk.

"And next, I'll lay this card facedown. That's my turn." Em stated as the card appeared behind her mage.

Mako drew, and looked over his hand carefully.

"Well Em, I got some great monsters in my opening hand. But before I can summon them, they'll need more room than this lake can provide." Mako announced as he slid a card into the field zone of his disk, "So I activate A Legendary Ocean!"

"Deep breath everyone!" Salmon shouted as he began to sink beneath the surface of the water.

Mako held his breath, and Em and her monster also sank into the lake. The duelists continued down, deeper and deeper, until they found themselves descending into a beautiful underwater city! Around them were white buildings and majestic pillars, glowing softly in the light that filtered down from above the surface. Looking over his shoulder, Mako smiled as he saw a large, white palace behind him.

"Okay Mako, it's safe to breath now." Salmon declared.

"Really?" Mako gasped.

He stopped in mid-breath. Realizing he was fine, Mako cautiously took a sniff. Then he inhaled deeply.

"This is amazing!" Mako declared as he took another deep breath of water, "Did you do this?"

"Of course, I can't allow my fellow ocean lover to drown." Salmon said with a flick of his tail.

"Um…Is this all you're going to do Mako?" Em asked as she and Bio-mage looked around the city.

"Not yet." Mako stated as he put another card on his disk, "I also summon Great White (1800/1000) in attack mode, and he gains two hundred attack and defense points thanks to my field spell."

Salmon let out a strange, squealing noise. From the palace emerged a creature that looked like a shark, about the same size as Mako. Unlike the average shark though, this one had arms and was standing straight up on its tail. Each of its fingers was tipped with a sharp, yellow talon.

"Great White, attack her Bio-mage with fin slash!" Mako ordered with a dramatic sweep of his arm.

The silver monster gasped in terror as the shark man swam straight toward it! As the creature approached though, Em's facedown card lifted. Immediately, a blue and green barrier sprung up in between the two opponents.

"Sorry Mako, but my Gravity Bind keeps all level four or higher monsters from attacking!" Em said with a smirk, "So you'll need another…"

Em stopped talking as she realized that Mako's monster hadn't stopped! It continued forward, passed through the barrier, and a sharp fin extended from its right arm. The shark man swung his fin forward, and sliced Bio-mage in half. The monster groaned, and vanished.

Em: 7350

Mako: 8000

"What happened?" Em gasped, "My trap should have kept your monster away!"

"Sorry Em, I forgot to mention the second effect of A Legendary Ocean." Mako laughed, "As long as it's on the field, all water monsters gain 200 attack and defense points, and lose one star level. So that means my Great White is only a level three monster, not a level four. You're a duel monster, I thought you'd know this already."

"Hey, I'm a light monster, not water." Em sneered angrily.

Then she smiled. A silvery glow surrounded her body as she raised one hand over her deck.

"You take round one, Mako." She said, "But now my deckmaster ability, Underdog's Representative, activates."

"Underdog's Representative?" Mako muttered as he scratched his head, "What's that?"

"Basically, anytime a level three or lower normal monster is sent from the field to the graveyard, I can summon another copy of it from my deck." Em declared as she waved her hand, "So I call my second Bio-mage!"

"Sorry Em, buy you can't." Mako declared as Great White opened its hand.

Nestled in the palm of the fish's hand was a silvery orb. From that orb, appeared the image of a frightened Bio-mage! Em gasped as Great White held the orb out to Terrorking Salmon, who greedily swallowed it. Immediately, the silvery aura around Em vanished.

"My deckmaster ability, Feast of the Sea King, is going to render your deckmaster ability useless." Mako explained as he patted Salmon's head, "Anytime my monsters destroy a level three or lower monster in battle, that monster's soul is devoured by my deckmaster! In game terms, the monster is removed from play. It never touches the graveyard, so you can't use your deckmaster ability."

Em gasped in horror. She looked over her field, and glared at her useless trap card.

"My turn's over Em. So go ahead." Mako declared as he waved his hand.

"Fine!" Em spat as she drew, "I don't need my powers to beat you!"

Em smiled as she saw what she had drawn. She placed the card down on her disk, and a terrible creature emerged from behind a pillar. It looked like a giant lobster, except on top of its head was a terrifying skull!

"Meet the Mad Lobster (1900/1200)." Em laughed, "And since he's a creature of water, your own field spell benefits him!"

"Uh-oh!" Mako gasped as he drew back.

"Lobster, destroy the shark with crazy claw crush!" Em ordered.

The red giant dashed forward, straight toward Great White. The shark swam for its life, taking an escape route around many of the pillars, but the lobster quickly caught up. It grabbed the shark man in its giant claw, and the shark moaned as it vanished in a burst of bubbles!

Em: 7350

Mako: 7900

Em was snickering as she slid another card into her disk. It materialized behind the lobster, which had already returned to her side.

"I think I'll end my turn with one facedown card." She said with a nonchalant flick of her wrist, "Now just try to beat my monster."

Mako drew, and smiled as he recognized the monster in his hand. He showed it to the Salmon, who nodded in approval.

"I won't just try to beat your lobster, I'll succeed." Mako stated as he put a card on his disk, "I summon Sea Serpent Warrior of Darkness (2000/1500) in attack mode!"

From the palace came a new creature. This one looked human, except he was covered in deep purple and blue scales. He carried a golden trident, which he pointed at the lobster. Mako smiled as he pointed straight at Em.

"And, despite his name, he's a creature of water. So that means my field spell gives him all that he needs to wipe out your overgrown crustacean!" Mako called out, "So attack serpent, and destroy her monster with trident fury!"

The scaly monster readied his weapon, and swam forward. The Mad Lobster drew back in fear…

And then a large mirror popped up in front of it!

"Sorry Mako, but your triggered my Nightmare Mirror Trap card." Em declared as she slid a card from her hand into the grave, "It lets me discard one card from my hand to throw your attack at something else. Now look into the mirror and tell me what you see…"

Looking at the mirror, Mako gasped as he saw…

"Me!" He shouted, "The mirror is reflecting me?"

"That's right!" Em shouted.

The Sea Serpent's trident slammed into Mako's reflection, hitting it right in the chest. At the same time, Mako gasped and clutched at his own chest! He almost fell from Salmon's back, but quickly regained his balance.

"Of course, since you only hit your reflection, my trap only deals you 1000 damage." Em sighed as she stroked her monster, "But at least I protected my poor little lobster."

Em: 7350

Mako: 6900

"You sure seem to like low level monsters." Mako observed.

"Technically, they're my own kind." Em explained as she looked back at Mako, "But it's more than that. There are a few low level monsters that have good attack point like my lobster, but very few of them are so fortunate. In fact, most duelists feel that low level monsters with no special powers are completely useless! So that's why I dedicated myself to them. Forming an oasis in my own heart for those lost in the desert of discarded monsters."

Em sighed and looked over her hand sympathetically. She carefully brushed one of her cards. Mako just stared at her for a minute, then cleared his throat.

"I never really thought of that." He muttered as he looked at his deckmaster, "Now I feel bad that I'm devouring the souls of your creatures…"

"Don't worry." Em sighed, "You know how it works. You can watch your monster get beat up, torn to shreds, or even lose its soul completely, but as long as you respect its sacrifice it will always be back to normal by the next time you duel."

"Yeah." Mako said as he started to smile, "You're right. It's really a great thing you do for those poor monsters Em, but all the same, I don't plan to lose to them. I'll end my turn by placing one card facedown."

Mako slid the card into his disk. It materialized in a cloud of bubbles behind his sea serpent. Em drew and smiled.

"Alright then Mako." She stated as she placed another card onto her disk, "I summon Jerry Beans Man (1750/0) in attack mode."

In front of Em appeared a creature that looked like a large jelly bean with arms and legs. It had a smiling face, and carried a toy sword in one hand.

"Why summon it in attack mode when my monster is stronger?" Mako frowned, "That doesn't make any sense."

"No?" Em asked as she slid another card into her disk, "Maybe this will change your tune. I activate Snatch Steal!"

A card showing a wily thief appeared on the field, and a strange looking bandit jumped out of it. He looked around, then ran forward and jumped at Mako's monster! The sea serpent gasped, and then lashed out with his weapon. The bandit dodged it though, and vanished into the scaly creature's body! Sea serpent's eyes glazed over as he swam over to Em.

"This simple spell lets me control one of your monsters." Em explained as she slid her last card into her disk, "Of course, I'd have to give you 1000 life points each turn to keep your monster…"

"But I bet you only wanted it as a sacrifice for some spell card." Mako guessed as a Jerry Beans Man's sword vanished.

"Very good Mako." Em applauded, "I only needed your monster so I could equip Jerry here with my Sword of the Soul-Eater."

In Jerry's hand appeared an evil looking black sword, with a single eye on the hilt. It began to blaze with black flames, and both the lobster and the sea serpent screamed as they dissolved into black sparks that were absorbed by the sword! Jerry held up his weapon, an evil grin spreading across his face.

"What did you do?" Mako shouted.

"Sorry, I guess you've never seen this card." Em said a she pointed to the weapon, "I can only equip this sword to a level three or lower normal monster. If I do, then I sacrifice all other normal monsters under my control and the monster with the sword gains 1000 attack points for each of them!"

Jerry (3750/0) laughed wickedly as the black flames around the sword spread over his body. At the same time, Em was glowing with a silver aura.

"Of course, since sacrificing my monsters sent them to the graveyard, I'm allowed to summon another copy of Mad Lobster (1900/1200) from my deck." She stated as a card slid out of her deck and settled on her disk, "Too bad that I don't have any Sea Serpent Warriors of Darkness in my own deck, but oh well."

A second lobster swam out of a nearby building, and settled next to Jerry.

"Mad Lobster, attack!" Em called out, pointing at Mako.

The crustacean dashed forward, and grabbed Mako in its claw! Mako screamed in pain as he was squeezed by the massive limb, and finally released. Mako slumped weakly onto his deckmaster, who stared up at him with fear in his eyes.

"Jerry, attack with soul swipe!" Em ordered.

Mako gasped in horror as the jelly bean flew towards him! It swung its weapon right through Mako, who gasped as his life points tumbled.

Em: 7350

Mako: 1250

"What was all that about 'forming an oasis' for those monsters?" Mako gasped as he struggled to remain on Salmon, "You just sacrificed one of them in cold blood!"

"Not true Mako." Em stated, "I'd rather say that my monsters are now working together for the greater good. I'm thankful that my first lobster was willing to give his life to help, and now his brother will also work to help me."

"Maybe, but you actually did more harm than good to yourself with that move." Mako smirked as his facedown card lifted, "I activate Damage Condenser!"

Behind Mako appeared a large machine, which looked like a computer attached to a tank full of glowing energy. The number 3750 was glowing on the computer screen. Mako smiled as he discarded a card from his hand, and a group of cards appeared in front of him.

"Now, this trap is a little complicated, but it's great for summoning my strongest monsters quickly." Mako explained as he selected a card, "I just discard one card from my hand, and this trap will let me special summon a monster from my deck whose attack points are equal to or less then the amount of battle damage I just took. In other words, the more pain I feel, the more damage I can deal!"

"And you just lost almost four-thousand life points…" Em gasped as raised her hand to her mouth.

"So I can summon almost any monster I choose." Mako said as he placed the card he had selected onto his disk, "And I _choose_ Levia Dragon-Daedalus (2800/1700)!"

The energy in the container began to vanish, and a glowing blob of blue light appeared in front of Mako. The light grew, until it was as long as two school busses end to end, and just as big around. It was soon covered in sea blue scales, with a frightening draconic face appearing on the front half! The gigantic sea snake let loose a terrible roar, and stared down at Em's monsters. Em gasped, but then she looked at her trap card.

"You had me scared for a minute Mako." Em sighed with relief, "But if I recall, that's a level seven monster."

"Level six thanks to my ocean." Mako corrected, "Seems you forgot about that."

"And it seems you forgot that I still have Gravity Bind on the field!" Em exclaimed as the blue-green barrier shimmered overhead, "So that means your overgrown sea snake can't attack!"

Daedalus let out a furious roar as the barrier closed in around it. It screeched in anger as it was forced downward by the force of the trap.

"_Shoot!" _Mako thought with a wince, _"Now what? I could use Daedalus's effect, but then she'd just summon more monsters by her own ability."_

"Your turn Mako." Em said with another wave, "But I don't think I'll have to worry about Daedalus after all."

"That's where you're wrong." Mako stated, drawing a card.

"Oh really?" Em asked, raising an eyebrow, "How so?"

"Because I just drew my Mystical Space Typhoon spell card!" Mako shouted, sliding the card into his disk, "And I'm using it to destroy your Gravity Bind."

A gust of wind shot away from Mako's body, and slammed into the green barrier. It shook under the force of the wind, then shattered into fragments! Daedelus rose up again, letting out a terrifying roar as it glared down at the lobster and the jelly bean.

"And I've got one more surprise." Mako declared, placing another card on his disk, "I summon Orca Mega-Fortress of Darkness (2300/1500) in attack mode!"

Off in the distance appeared a large shadow, which began to move toward the two duelists. As it came closer, the figure became clear. It was a large killer whale, with several cannons and turrets built into its back! It continued until it was in front of Mako, and then turned towards the opposing side of the field.

"What the…That's a five star monster!" Em shouted, pointing at the huge creature, "How did you summon it without a sacrifice!"

"My Legendary Ocean is the home of many creatures." Mako explained with a grin, "And they are all eager to come defend it when it is threatened. In other words, the level reduction effect it carries applies to monsters in my hand, as well as on the field. So I can summon five star monsters without having to sacrifice another monster first!"

Em seemed shocked by this, but quickly regained her composure. She smiled as she pointed to Jerry Beans Man.

"Those two can't help you now anyway Mako." She declared with a grin, "Jerry is still much too powerful for them to beat!"

"Maybe so," Mako nodded, "but Mad Lobster will fall to them easily! Daedelus, take out that lobster with rip tide rush!"

The lobster let out a frightened sounding chittering as Daedelus started toward it. The great sea snake picked up speed, and slammed into the lobster as it turned to escape! The lobster screamed and shattered into fragments, a small orb swooping from where it had been standing. The orb landed right in Salmon's mouth, and the creature gulped it down.

Em: 6450

Mako: 1250

Em cringed as her monster was wiped out. Mako just smiled, and slid another card into his disk.

"I'm laying one more card facedown, and ending my turn Em." Mako declared as the new card began to float behind his monsters.

Em drew, and quickly pointed to Daedelus. Her eyes were glowing with a silvery light, and her face was twisted in anger.

"Fine Mako, get ready to lose a lot of life points!" Em shouted, "Jerry, attack Daedelus with bean sword slice!"

The little jelly bean with the large sword swooped forward again. He quickly brought his blade down on the sea snake, which screamed in pain.

"Looks like you're about to go down to 300 life points." Em laughed.

"Guess again!" Mako responded, jabbing a button on his disk, "I activate Tornado Wall!"

Mako's facedown card lifted, and a large whirlpool began to form around him. Surprisingly, neither Mako nor his deckmaster were being pulled by the vortex. On the contrary, they seemed quite content amid the swirling water. Em seemed confused as Daedelus shattered into fragments…

And Mako's lifepoints didn't drop!

"Now what happened?" Em shouted.

Mako smirked as he gestured to the whirlpool he was in.

"Sorry Em, but my Tornado Wall trap card keeps me from taking any battle damage so long as the field can be called 'Umi.'" He explained as his trap glowed in response.

"But this field…" Em started to protest.

"Is the Legendary Ocean." Mako interrupted, "And its final power lets me treat it as though its name was 'Umi.'"

Em scowled again, and looked at the one card in her hand. She sighed, and waved her hand, ending her turn. Mako smiled again as he drew a second card.

"Well look at what I got!" Mako smiled as he turned the card toward Em.

The card showed the image of a large, red clam. The strange thing is, this clam had a large drill coming from it.

"What is that?" Em asked.

"It's a monster known as Cannonball Spear Shellfish (1000/1000)." Mako explained as he put the card on his disk, allowing a larger image of the clam to appear in front of him, "And as long as he's on the field, he's unaffected by any spell cards, even Legendary Ocean."

"Then why summon it?" Em wondered, staring at the strange creature.

"Because of my orca." Mako grinned as the whale suddenly swallowed the Cannonball Spear Shellfish, "I just sacrifice my shellfish to it, and I can destroy any spell or trap on the field that I want! And there's only one I can choose…"

The orca focused one of its turrets on the jelly bean. The little creature drew back in fear, holding up its sword. The turret then fired, and the clam slammed right into the blade! The plant type screamed as his sword and the fish both shattered into digital fragments!

"And now…" Mako continued.

Orca turned all of its weapons toward Jerry Beans Man (1750/0), who cringed in fear.

"Orca mega barrage!" Mako ordered.

Every single cannon on the whale's back suddenly fired! Jerry screamed as hundreds of explosions surrounded him, causing him to burst into pixels, and sending his soul right into Salmon's mouth. At the same time, Em screamed as she was blown backward by the force of the blows!

Em: 5900

Mako: 1250

"I play my last card facedown. Your move Em." Mako stated as he put his final card into his disk.

Mako's card materialized next to the Tornado Wall. Em was grumbling to herself as she drew her next card. As her eyes fell on it, a curious look came over her face.

"Well, this is my best chance." She stated, sliding a card into her disk, "I activate Enchanting Fitting Room."

In front of Em appeared a large, red curtain, waving softly as though there were something behind it.

"This simple spell costs me 800 life points." Em declared as she waved her hand, "But it could summon exactly what I need."

Em: 5100

Mako: 1250

"Now, I take the top four cards from my deck, and we both look at them…" Em continued.

The curtain opened, revealing four cards.

The first was Pot of Greed.

The next one was a one star monster card. The image showed a peasant being struck by a man with a whip.

The third one was also a two star monster card. The image on it was of many people panicking.

The last one was a three star monster. This one showed several men entering a building.

"So now what happens?" Mako asked, looking at the cards.

"Now, I summon any level three or lower normal monsters that I found." Em said as the cards floated onto her disks, "But all the other cards are shuffled back into my deck, so I'll see Pot of Greed later."

The spell card vanished, along with the large curtain, and in front of Em appeared three smaller curtains

"Now then Mako, allow me to present my best combo!" Em declared, "First, Oppressed People (600/2200)!"

The first curtain lifted, revealing a downtrodden man wearing very tattered looking robes and carrying a hoe. He had a sad look on his face as he turned his gaze toward Mako.

"Next, People Running About (600/600)!" Em continued.

The second curtain raised, and a panicky looking man in simple robes now stood on the field. He carried a short sword in one hand, which was shaking so badly it was a wonder he didn't drop it.

"Finally, United Resistance (1000/400)!" Em finished.

The last curtain lifted away, showing a courageous young man in robes like the second. This man was bravely carrying a long sword in one hand, which he brandished toward Mako.

"Now, I lay my last card facedown and end my turn." Em stated, sliding her final card into her disk, "Oh, and just so you know, Oppressed People is a water monster, so it gets the bonus from your field card."

Mako drew, his eyes on Em the whole time.

"Just what are you trying to do Em?" Mako asked, "None of those monsters can stand up to my Orca."

"Not alone." Em nodded, "But these three monsters are very special Mako."

"Really." Mako asked.

"Yes. They live in a horrible country, where the rich are constantly hording their wealth. Those who are born in the lower classes are lucky to see a few coins come their way every year." Em sighed, "But they live on with a single goal: One that was formed from a dream, a promise, and a plan."

The three men in front of Em looked at each other, and nodded.

"The Oppressed People dream that they will be free one day…The People Running About made a promise to strike back…and The United Resistance has the plan to make it happen!" Em declared, waving her arm dramatically, "And now their plans shall come to fruition! I activate: HUGE REVOLUTION!"

The trap card lifted, and all three of the men held their respective weapons up. They crossed the weapons in mid air, and then glared at Mako, who drew back. Suddenly, from the trap card, emerged hundreds of people! They began to swarm all over Mako's side of the field, attacking his orca.

"What's happening?" Mako screamed.

"The revolution has begun." Em explained, "Since Oppressed People, People Running About, and United Resistance are on the field together, my trap will now destroy every card on your side of the field, and force you to discard your hand."

"Not before I activate this: Emergency Provisions!" Mako responded, his facedown card lifting, "This quickplay spell lets me destroy spell and trap cards on my side of the field, and restore 1000 life points for each one. So before your monsters destroy them I'll sacrifice Legendary Ocean and Tornado Wall!"

A large mouth jumped out of the card Mako had turned over, and began to suck up the water. Mako, his deckmaster, and Em all began to ascend to the surface of the water. As they did, Mako could only stare helplessly as the hundreds of peasants killed the Orca Mega-Fortress.

Em: 5100

Mako: 3250

Soon, both duelists were at the surface of the water. The three original peasants also surfaced in front of Em. The Oppressed People (400/2000) seemed to have been slightly weakened, and Em seemed a touch annoyed. Mako just watched as the Premature Burial he had drawn faded away into nothing.

"Well, nice work Mako." Em applauded, "Your little spell saved you from what would have been a painful defeat. But it can't protect you from all the damage I'm about to do! And since you have nothing on the filed or in your hand, it's my move."

"_Here goes."_ Mako fretted as Em drew, _"If she draws a monster with 1250 attack points or more, I'm finished!"_

"Mako." Salmon gurgled.

Mako looked at his deckmaster/mount.

"Do not worry." Salmon continued, "I'm sure your desire to prove yourself in this tournament is greater than her desire to defeat you. Simply believe."

Mako nodded, and looked toward Em…

Who was staring furiously at her card!

"Shoot, looks like you'll last one more turn Mako." Em admitted, "But I'll still have all three of my monsters attack you directly!"

The three revolutionaries jumped forward. The depressed man's hoe was now covered in a crackling layer of ice, the frightened man's sword had an aura of flames around it, and the courageous man's blade was sparking with electricity! They let out a war cry, slicing at Mako with their weapons. Mako screamed as flames, ice, and lightning surrounded his body, depleting his life points. Mako quickly regained composure, although wisps of smoke were now rising from his body.

Em: 5100

Mako: 1250

"Alright, my turn!" Mako announced as he drew.

His eyes widened as he saw the card. He quickly slid it into his disk, and smiled as a large, green jar appeared before him.

"I play Pot of Greed, letting me draw two more cards." Mako declared, snapping the cards from his deck.

"Get anything good?" Em asked as Mako looked over his cards.

"You bet!" Mako cheered, placing another card on his disk, "I summon Mermaid Knight (1500/700) in attack mode!"

From the water in front of Mako emerged a red haired mermaid wearing steel armor and carrying a sword. She smiled at Mako, who slid another card into the field zone of his disk. Immediately, the entire field began to submerge again, until they were back in the underwater city!

"Oh no, you had another Legendary Ocean!" Em moaned.

"That's right." Mako declared, "And since I can treat is as 'Umi' my Mermaid Knight is permitted to attack twice, and she gets a little power boost. So do the Oppressed People (600/2200) come to think of it, but it's nowhere near enough! Mermaid Knight (1700/900), wipe out Oppressed People and People Running About with deep sea slash!"

The Mermaid, now much more at home in the undersea kingdom, swam forward at lightning speed, cutting the nervous man and the depressed man down! The two figures moaned in pain, and fell over, collapsing into particles. The orbs containing their souls quickly went the way of their predecessors, and were eaten by Salmon.

Em: 2900

Mako: 1250

"That's all Em, it's your turn." Mako declared, pointing his thumb straight down.

"Umm…" Em stammered as she drew her second card, and a look of fear crossed her face.

"_Another Sword of the Soul Eater, and my Non-Spellcasting Area cards? These are worthless!"_ She realized.

"Disappointed with your draw?" Mako taunted.

"I move United Resistance to defense mode and end my turn." Em muttered, turning the card on her disk.

The heroic man moved to one knee, holding his sword in a parrying stance. Mako drew, and smiled.

"Time to end this." Mako announced as he placed another card on his tray, "I summon Creeping Doom Manta (1500/1400) in attack mode!"

From the palace behind Mako swam a giant manta ray, about the size of a VW Beetle. On its back was a terrible face that looked as though it had been carved into the creature's skin.

"Oh boy…" Em muttered.

"Manta, take out her last defense with doom sting!" Mako ordered.

The manta swam forward at lightning speed, and stabbed its barbed tail right into the kneeling man. United Resistance groaned, then shattered into a barrage of pixels, his soul orb floating into Salmon's mouth.

"And finally…" Mako continued, pointing at Em, "My Mermaid Knight will use both of her attacks on you!"

Em screamed in terror and pain as the warrior mermaid swam forward, and drew her blade across the duelist twice. Em fell to her back, and the ocean around the two faded. Soon, everyone was back on the surface of the lake, with Em floating on her back on top of it.

Em: 0

Mako: 1250

"Are you okay!" Mako shouted with concern in his voice.

Em moaned, and sank under the surface of the pool. Mako stared in horror at where she had been, but then she arose right in front of him, looking fully refreshed. Mako gasped and drew back at her sudden appearance and his disk deactivated.

"One of the benefits to being intangible, is it doesn't take long to recover from an attack." Em explained as she waved one hand, "Congratulations Mr. Tsunami, you've defeated me and earned two excellent prizes. The first is these three win points."

Three points of light flew from Em's hand to Mako's disk. The counter jumped from two to five as the lights entered it.

"And you are also awarded with this powerful card for your deck." Em continued, a card appearing in front of Mako.

Mako took it, and gasped.

"Ocean Dragon Lord Neo Daedelus." Mako gasped, "I…I've been trying to get this forever!"

"May it serve you well Mako." Em smiled, "And good luck in the rest of the tournament."

Mako seemed confused however.

"But...This card is virtual like everything else in here, isn't it?" He asked.

"True." Em nodded, "But after the tournament, you'll be given a voucher to mail into Kaiba Corp for a _real _copy of it."

Mako's eyes went wide as Em continued.

"Mr. Kaiba has a great deal of rare cards, not all of which he can use. Therefore, he's decided to give up a few of them to the people that defeat his eliminators."

Mako looked at the powerful monster. He quickly shuffled it back into his deck with a grin.

"That sounds unusually generous for the guy that came up with the ante rule." Mako admitted as he began to fade away, "But who am I to judge, right? If he wants to give cards like this away that's his choice."

Mako smiled as he vanished. Em nodded and slowly sank beneath the water again, the surface of it lying quiet and still.

**_I was worried for a minute there, but it looks like I get to keep going in this tournament..._**

**_And with a powerful new card to boot! But I'm not in the next chapter. Next time,you get to see how Mr. Gold's encounter with Mr Richington went. We call it:_**

**_Battle of the Sexes_**

**_If you haven't already guessed, Gold isn't going to be dueling Richington..._**

---

Original Cards

---

Nightmare Mirror

Trap Card

Image of an evil looking mirror.

When your opponent declares an attack, discard one card. Negate the attack of the enemy monster and deal 1000 points of damage to your opponent.

_This card was first used on the show by Marik Ishtar. All creative credit for it goes to the writers that created it._

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Emissary of the Oasis

LIGHT

Spellcaster

Three stars

600 attack

400 defense

Underdog's Representative: Whenever a level three or lower normal monster is sent from your field to the graveyard, special summon another copy of it from your deck.

---

Terrorking Salmon

WATER

Fish

Five stars

2400 attack

1000 defense

Feast of the Sea King: Anytime a level three or lower monster is destroyed in battle, remove it from play without sending it to the graveyard (damage is calculated normally)


	9. Battle of the Sexes

Disclaimer: We still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, but we will one of these days!

_**Hey there everybody, guess it's my turn to open. The name is Julius Cicero Gold.**_

**_Also known in the dueling circuits as "Gold the Fighting Mountain." I babysit for little girl name Zeffie, and she started thinking of me as her uncle, or something like that._**

_**Imagine what her parents are gonna say when they find out I lost her.**_

_**I've been looking around this Virtual World for Zefs, and instead I find a weird duelist with a monocle.**_

_**Somethin' tells me this gonna be a lot like my divorce: it ain't gonna be pretty…**_

**Battle of the Sexes**

It had taken Gold roughly an hour for Gold to get down the mountain. His hand had miraculous healed itself by now (he could only conclude that damage to his body wasn't permanent in here), and he his search for Zeffie had begun.

The search didn't last long however. He had just walked around a boulder when he came across a strange sight for the desolate mountain range.

It was a man dressed in a deep-purple tuxedo with matching top hat and pants. He wore a monocle over one eye, and carried a jewel-topped cane in his right hand. He was currently straightening out his black mustache, which seemed a bit mussed.

Strapped to his right arm was a golden duel disk. This was obviously a fellow who was very well-off financially.

"_Who's the richboy in the purple monkey suit?"_ He wondered to himself.

The other man looked up, and noticed Gold. He stood still, as if waiting for the seven-foot earth duelist to make the first move. Gold cleared his throat, and waved hello.

"Um…'cuse me. Have you seen a little blond girl running around?" Gold asked, "Probably referring to herself in the third-person."

"Actually…" The rich man said.

He turned his gaze to Gold's disk, and smiled. He brushed his own disk off and smiled.

"Actually yes." He said, still smiling, "And you could get a chance to see her if you're lucky…"

Gold frowned, realizing what this probably meant.

"A duel?" He asked, "Wait…did you duel Zeffie?"

"I dueled _a _Zeffie." The man explained, "Allow to me introduce myself. I am Sir Reginald Richington Esquire the Third."

"_Esquire? Oh boy…"_ Gold thought, _"But wait, if he dueled Zef, and she's not here…"_

"What happened to Zeffie?" Gold asked, looking worried, "You have to tell me…"

Gold was cut off however, as something heavy suddenly fell over him. He grunted as he was dragged to the ground by a weighted sack-cloth, easily the size of a pup tent.

"Hey what the…!" Gold shouted, feeling someone lift up the bag.

"I say, release me you brutes!" Mr. Richington's voice called out.

"Silence pathetic men." A clearly female voice ordered, "You are our prisoners now."

Gold felt something strike him across the back of his skull, and everything faded to black…

---------------------------------------

"What the…something happened to Gold!" Jackson exclaimed, noticing the readout.

"Serves him right for what he did to my mountains." Sota grumbled.

Rei and Jackson both glared at Sota.

"What, I'm not saying I had anything to do with this…" He said quickly.

"You're the one that programmed the eliminators on the other side of those mountains." Rei pointed out, "You didn't happen to 'tip them off' about who damage the range, did you?"

"Me? No, never! Why would you suggest that?" Sota said defensively.

Another programmer walked over from his station closer to the front of the room.

"Okay Sota, I sent those eliminators after Gold, you owe me lunch." The programmer said.

He turned walked away, not seeing Rei and Jackson glare at Sota again.

-------------------------------

Gold moaned a bit as he returned to consciousness. He tried to get up from the ground…

But found that he couldn't move. Craning his neck, he saw that he was currently tied to the ground by a multitude of ropes, held in place by wooden stakes. Tied down next to him was Mr. Richington, who was obviously unhappy with his current state of affairs.

"Hey, what's happenin'?" Gold asked.

"I don't know. I was grabbed from behind and knocked out!" The richer man said in a hushed voice, "I believe that we've been taken hostage by this group of ruffians."

"You're close." Said a voice.

Richington gulped as a large sword was pointed at his throat. Looking up, Gold saw a beautifulwoman dressed in a spiky, indigo bikini. She had tan skin, wild red hair, and very large…assets.

She also seemed very angry.

"You two are prisoners of the Amazons." She growled, planting a foot on gold's chest, "I'd advise remaining silent until we tell you otherwise."

"_This girl must have met my ex-wife."_ Gold thought, _"Ruby acted a lot like this…minus the sword…before our break up."_

Mr. Richington obviously had decided to ignore the "remain silent" advice. He began to struggle against his bonds.

"I say, you better let me go or you'll have my lawyer to deal with!" He shouted, "My lawyer is cold, heartless, ruthless, and will take you for every cent you're worth!"

"SILENCE!" A voice called out, "Release their bonds."

The sword wielder scowled, and swung her weapon toward Richington. He gasped, and shut his eyes…

The blade sliced clean through the ropes without touching him. The action was repeated for Gold, who got to his feet.

Now he was able to see his surroundings. No longer was he in a mountainous canyon, but rather he seemed to be in the middle of a rain forest. A canopy of green leaves covered the sky overhead, and all around them were trees and exotic flowers.

Looking up into the trees, Gold let out a low whistle. Nestled in the branches was a network of tree houses and catwalks, and very intricate one at that.

His attention was brought back to Earth, as the sword wielding woman pressed her weapon against his back.

"Eyes forward." She demanded.

Gold looked forward, and saw that two more women stood before him.

One was an older woman, dressed in purple robes. She wore many charms and necklaces, sculpted from what appeared to be teeth and bones.

The other was young, with a perfect figure. She wore a white skirt and top, along with a white hood and cape. In a scabbard on her side was a slim sword.

"So, you are the men who destroyed our sacred mountain temple." The young woman said.

"I did no such thing!" Richington exclaimed.

"I kinda smashed part of a mountain." Gold confessed with a shrug.

"Which no doubt led to the rockslide that destroyed our temple to Artemis." The older woman rasped.

Gold winced, and flashed his best smile.

"Oooh…sorry about that ladies." He said, "Anyway I can make it up to you?"

"You can die painfully." Said the girl behind him.

"Silence Swordswoman, that is not our way." The one in white ordered, "The laws of the Amazons state that he must be given a fair trial."

"And what about me?" Richington asked, trying to slowly move to the side, "Seeing as I had nothing to do with this, I'll just be…LEAVING!"

He turned to run, but stopped and screamed as a large tiger with a golden collar jumped out in front of him. It let out a terrifying roar, causing him to stumble back.

"You shall go no where." Said another voice from above.

From the catwalks above jumped a gray-haired woman wearing a blue bikini. She had swung a chain in her right hand, with a vicious looking barb on the end.

"Paladin, I say these men are liars." The chain wielder stated, "They worked together to destroy our temple, jealous of our strength and beauty! The laws of our tribe state that men are not to be trusted."

The white clothed Amazon (who was obviously Paladin) held up a hand to stop the other female.

"Chain, this one has confessed to the crime." She said, pointing to Gold, "The other may or may not have had something to do with our temple's destruction."

She turned to the older woman next to her.

"What do you say wise one?" She asked.

"I say we go by the old laws." The Amazon crone intoned, "Trial by combat. If he wins, we release him. If he loses, our tiger gets lunch."

The tiger ran a tongue over its whiskers, obviously enjoying the idea of having Gold for lunch.

"And what about me?" Mr. Richington asked nervously.

"You share his fate." The crone cackled.

"Alright." Gold said with a shrug, "Doesn't feel right fighting an old lady though…"

"You be fighting me you dolt! In fact, you won't be fighting at all." The old woman shouted, "Even the youngest of our sisters could easily destroy you in a fist fight. Instead, you shall duel against our battle master."

"A duel? Now you're speakin' my language." Gold smiled, turning on his disk, "Point me to her."

He felt a sharp jab in his back, directing him toward the center of a circle of tree houses.

"Er...how about we try that without the sword." He requested.

"Okay." Swordswoman smirked.

She planted her sword in the ground, grabbed Gold by the back of his shirt, and tossed him through the air toward the area she'd indicated. Gold fell roughly to the ground, his thoughts a whir as he got up.

"_Okay, these women are strong."_ He thought, _"Now I won't feel bad after after I kick this 'Battle Master's' butt."_

Looking up, Gold saw that two more women were watching him. One wore a brown skirt with a brown fur coat. She was notching an arrow into a crude, wooden bow, taking careful aim at the earth duelist.

The other had blue hair and green bikini. He held a blowpipe to her lips, taking aim at Richington.

"What's all this for?" Gold asked, turning to Paladin.

"In case you try to run away." Paladin explained, "Blowpiper and Archer need the target practice."

"Send in the Battle Master!" The older amazon demanded.

A loud battle cry rang out across the tree tops. From one of the huts in the trees leapt another woman, this one much larger than the others.

She was easily as tall as gold, with the build to match. Her body was covered by nothing other than a blue-green bikini top and loin cloth, with a headband holding back her wild, brown hair. Strapped to her left arm was a duel disk, colored to look like it was carved from wood.

"Greetings pathetic man." The woman said in a rough voice, "You now face Amzoness Fighter, Battle Master of the Amazons!"

"O…kay." Gold said, sizing up his competition.

"Don't worry, you can take her!" Richington cheered from the side.

"Then why aren't you duelin' her?" Gold shouted back.

"Are you daft? She'd totally kill me! Good luck with that, though." Richington called back.

"This be fun. Fighter hasn't had a fresh opponent in many moons." Fighter said as she cracked her knuckles.

"I'd be careful against her." The older Amazon warned, "In battle Fighter is cruel, heartless, and doesn't know when to stop beating her opponent."

"_She _must _have met my ex." _Gold thought.

"So, we gotta choose deckmasters first, right?" Gold asked.

"You not as dumb as you look." Fighter nodded, "Fighter will serve as her own deckmaster."

A grid made out cards appeared in front of Gold. He nervously looked over them, realizing he had no clue about what each one was capable of.

"_Okay, we'll leave this to chance. Eeny-meeny-miny…you."_ He thought, pointing at one card.

It vanished into thin air, and a rumbling noise filled the area. From the ground behind him rose a roughly hewn statue made of green stone.

"My deckmaster is Stone Statue of the Aztecs!" Gold announced.

"Me crush your deckmaster just like you crush our temple." Fighter growled, "But laws of Amazon's state you get one last choice: do you go first or second?"

Gold thought for a minute, then drew six cards.

"I'll go first." He announced.

"Then you've chosen for you and your companion to die slow." Fighter declared.

"I'd prefer to not die at all!" Mr. Richington interjected.

"You don't have much of a choice at the moment." The crone explained.

Fighter drew five cards, and the life point counters set.

Gold: 8000

Fighter: 8000

Gold drew, and he heard a low rumble behind him.

"Mr. Gold, listen well." Said a voice in the rumble.

"Huh?" Gold gasped, turning around.

His deckmaster was trembling, and between the rumbles of shifting stone a voice could be heard.

"You've picked an excellent deckmaster by choosing me." The statue announced, "My stone blast power was made for decks like yours."

"How's it work?" Gold asked, looking at his first hand.

"Just discard one card when a rock-type monster damages your opponent's life points in battle. I'll double the damage." The statue explained.

"_Oh yeah, jackpot!"_ Gold cheered to himself, _"And without Final Countdown, I think I'll get plenty of use out of that."_

"I'll set this in defense mode." Gold stated, sliding a card onto his disk, "Then my turn is over."

A facedown monster appeared in front of Gold, and fighter drew.

Looking over her hand, she slid a card into the disk.

"Just one facedown card, end turn." She grunted as a hidden spell or trap appeared in front of her.

"Okay then." Gold said as he drew, "I summon my Grave Ohja (1600/1500) in attack mode!"

He slapped the card down, as the statue behind him began to rumble again. Out of the ground burst a humanoid figure with huge arms. It wore nothing but a gold trimmed kilt, and seemed to be carved from a purple stone.

"You triggered my facedown card." Fighter shouted, "Go Bottomless Traphole!"

The ground beneath the new monster burst open, and foul orange claw reached out and grabbed the creature. It screamed in terror, before being pulled into the ground and out of the game.

"_That ain't good."_ Gold thought, _"Time for my backup plan."_

"I'll set one card facedown," Gold said as he put a card in his disk, and flipped the field slot open, "And then I'll activate the field spell card, Canyon."

Putting another card in place, Gold smiled as the trees around them began to rise up. The circle that he and Fighter were standing in was sinking into the ground, surrounding the both of them with high, craggy walls of solid stone. Soon, they were at least ten feet below where they started, with walls of striped rock surrounding the dueling field. A facedown card also appeared in front of Gold, who waved to end his turn.

"Do not think that this will help you man." Fighter warned as she drew, "I summon the first of the Amazon's servants. Go Cyber Tutu (1000/800)!"

From the edge of the pit above them fell a young girl. She had pink hair, and wore a blue visor along with a red and white leotard. She had a blue skirt attached to this, and wore pink ballet slippers.

She also seemed rather unhappy at the moment. It was clear she wasn't fond of the surroundings.

"Uh…" Gold stared at the girl with a shocked expression, "I was kind of expecting an Amazon…"

"Fool, I would not ask my sisters to dirty their hands on the likes of you." Fighter stated, "You will be ultimately disgraced when you lose to the slaves we Amazons have taken."

"But Cyber Tutu ain't a man." Gold pointed out, "Wouldn't you have made her into an Amazon?"

"We offered, but she decided she no want to be Amazon." Fighter explained, "Said we were dirty, smelly savages. Her loss, now she our slave girl instead of our sister."

Tutu stuck her tongue out at her controller, her shot her an angry sneer.

"Tutu, attack his facedown monster. Pummeling pirouette!" Fighter shouted.

"_And this duel is won."_ Gold thought with a smile.

Cyber Tutu began to spin around, faster and faster until she was covered by a powerful whirlwind. The monster/tornado moved toward Gold's facedown monster, which turned over to reveal Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000).

"That was big mistake, I just won!" Gold declared as he pressed a button on his disk, "I activate the trap Cross Counter!"

The trap he had set lifted, revealing the image of a Des Kangaroo knocking a Behemoth's lights out. The stone soldier drew its sword, and swung it through the tornado approaching it. Cyber Tutu screamed as she was knocked against the wall surrounding the duel.

"Now, since your monster attacked a creature whose defense was higher than her attack, it gets destroyed." Gold explained, dropping a card into his graveyard, "And then, we double the damage. Plus, I just discarded a card for my deckmaster's power, meaning we double the damage again."

"That's only 4000 points." Fighter declared, "I still stand."

"Not thanks to my field card. Canyon doubles any damage dealt to a player that attacks a rock-type monster in defense mode." Gold smiled, "So you just lost 8000 life points in one attack. Game over."

Cyber Tutu groaned as she slid down the wall. She shattered into a million pieces…

And Fighter just laughed.

"It not that easy." She declared, holding up her disk.

Gold: 8000

Fighter: 8000

"What! But how?" Gold shouted, seeing the lack of damage he had dealt, "You should be rubble by now, how can you still be standing?"

"Because of my deckmaster power." Fighter explained, flexing her arm, "Total resistance. I take no damage from a battle involving one of my monsters with 1500 attack or less. You just wasted that card you discarded."

Gold cursed under his breath at this turn of events. In any other situation, that would have been his easiest win ever.

"_Well this sucks. I basically have to clear her field before I can do any damage!"_ He realized, clenching his fist.

"Now I set two cards facedown, and end my turn." Fighter declared, sliding two cards into her disk.

They appeared in front of her, and Gold drew in response. He placed down another monster as fast as he could.

"I summon Mine Golem (1000/1900)." He said, pointing at the ground before him.

Out of the earth rose another humanoid figure. It was carved from yellow stone, with a single, red eye. On its back were two spikes, directed towards its head.

"And I'll move Giant Soldier of Stone to attack mode." He continued, turning a card on his disk.

The stone guardian got its feet, drawing a large sword from the sheath on its back.

"Get her boys." Gold smirked, pointing at his foe.

The two statues charged forward…

"Foolish man, you didn't notice my facedown cards did you?" Fighter laughed.

"What's the worst that can happen?" Gold retorted.

"This: Regulation of Tribe!" Fighter responded as her first card lifted, "It stops one type of monster from attacking, and I choose rock-types!"

Thick, black chains shot out of the ground, wrapping themselves around Gold's monsters. The two stone giants stopped in their tracks as the chains held them in place. Gold swore once more for running into a trap.

"And now I also use Scapegoat." Fighter continued, her other card lifting, "It make four goat tokens (0/0) to protect me."

Four little sheep floated out of the card, bleating peacefully. The hovered at about chest level, seemingly asleep.

"If you plan on stallin' for time then don't worry, I have plenty." Gold said, "I'll set one card facedown and end my turn."

He slid a card into his disk, and it appeared behind his two monsters. Fighter drew, and her trap began to fade away.

"I must tribute one monster each turn to keep my trap card." She explained, pointing at the blue goat token, "I tribute one Scapegoat to pay for its effects."

The blue goat faded into a blob of light, which was absorbed by the trap. It ceased to fade, and became solid again.

"Now I summon Kojikocy (15001200) in attack mode." Fighter said, placing down another card.

A powerfully built warrior with a white beard and green armor appeared, wielding a heavy blade. He seemed fairly angered at being called out, like he couldn't wait to crush something.

"Kojikocy lose fight to Swordswoman long time ago." Fighter chuckled, "He supposed to be strong enough to crush rock, but he not do anything but laundry since then. We think he need exercise…Destroy Mine Golem!"

The warrior didn't need another order. He lunged forward, swinging his blade across the yellow golem.

"You're gonna regret that…" Gold warned.

The yellow rock beeped loudly, just before exploding into a blast of red-hot shards. Fighter staggered backward as she was peppered with blazing stones.

"What in Hera's name did you do?" She growled.

"I didn't do nothin', it was you this time." Gold smiled, "When you destroy Mine Golem in battle, he self destructs and takes off 500 of your life points."

Gold: 7500

Fighter: 7500

"Very well, your move." Fighter admitted.

Gold drew, looking over his two cards.

"_This is no good."_ Gold thought, turning the only monster on his disk.

"I switch Giant Soldier of Stone back to defense mode and end my turn." He announced.

The granite statue fell to one knee, sheathing its sword as it did so. Fighter just hmphed and drew her card.

"I tribute another goat to my trap." She declared, the red goat vanishing into her Regulation of Tribe card, "and now I'll summon Sasuke Samurai #4 (1200/1200)!"

In front of Amazoness Fighter appeared a small, orange skinned man in samurai armor with a long, thin mustache. He looked like he was what an anime fan would call, "Chibi" and he held a large pike. Despite how much samurai supposedly loved battle, this little warrior looked miserable under the command of his effeminate conqueror.

"Now samurai, attack his stone soldier!" Fighter ordered.

The little warrior pointed his spear at the golem, and lunged forward. As it did, a coin fell into his commander's hand.

"What's that for?" Gold asked, pointing at the coin.

"Samurai's ability. I flip one coin and call it. If I'm right, your monster dies without a fight." Fighter explained, tossing the coin up, "Tails!"

The coin flew into the air, hovered above the top of the canyon for a split second, and fell again.

"Just out of curiousity, what if you're wrong?" Gold asked.

"The fight goes as normal." Fighter explained, "But with my deckmaster power it won't matter, I don't take damage either way."

The coin landed, showing the samurai's mustached visage. The little soldier jammed his weapon against Gold's monster, only for it to harmlessly glance off. Dejected, he wondered back to his master.

"You'll get him next time, if you know what's good for you." Fighter growled at her monster.

The samurai cringed in fear, and Gold frowned.

"Hey, give the guy a break." Gold said, "He just attacked a cement wall."

"Your move." Fighter demanded.

Gold drew, and looked at the monster he held. Smiling he set it onto his disk.

"This monster will go facedown for now." He declared as it appeared before him, "And now, I end my turn."

Fighter drew, and pointed at her yellow goat.

"I give up my third goat to my trap." She announced, the token disappearing, "And now I summon Etoile Cyber (1200/1600)."

A young woman with reddish-brown hair appeared. She wore a red dancing uniform with a white skirt, both of which were smeared with dirt. She seemed just as miserable as the Cyber Tutu before her, if not more so.

"Now then, Sasuke Samurai #4, attack the stone soldier again! Naginata strike!" Fighter shouted.

The coin reappeared as the mini-samurai lunged forward. He swung his weapon against the sculpture while Fighter tossed the coin into the air.

"I call Heads this time!" She shouted, catching the coin as it fell.

She held it up, showing the face of her warrior had landed on top. Sasuke Samurai's weapon fell harder upon the Giant Soldier of Stone, which groaned as it was blasted into pebbles.

"Kojkocy, attack the facedown monster!" Fighter commanded.

The large armed warrior charged forward, swinging his weapon at the back of the card. It flipped over…

Revealing a gray pot, from which emerged a black specter. The specter laughed as it was cut down, and shattered into pieces.

"A Morphing Jar (700/600)!" Fighter gasped as her remaining cards vanished, "Where did man get that!"

"'Man' got this by paying three bucks for a booster pack and getting very lucky." Gold smiled, "You know the rules, we discard our hands and draw five new cards."

Both players drew their new cards, and Fighter frowned a bit.

"Etoile Cyber, prove yourself useful. Attack directly with collier coupe!" She shouted.

The female warrior sighed, and jumped forward. She planted her foot right against Gold's throat, and he stumbled backward coughing wildly.

"Oh, and Etoile Cyber gains 500 attack when she's attacking directly. So you lost 1700 life points." Fighter smirked.

"That hurt…a lot more…than I thought it would." Gold choked out between coughs.

Gold: 5800

Fighter: 7500

"Your turn." Fighter declared, "Not that you can do much…"

"Don't listen to her, I have absolute confidence in you!" Mr. Richington shouted from above.

Gold looked up, to see that the remaining Amazons and their captive were standing around the edge of the hole that had resulted from his field card. Richington didn't seem too badly off, though he was obviously nervous. Gold drew his card, and tried to come up with a plan.

"Well, the first one wasn't too popular." Gold said as he slapped down a card, "But let's try this again. I summon my second Grave Ohja (1600/1500)."

From the floor burst another one of the kilt-wearing rockmen. It slammed its oversized arms together, and glared at the army before it.

"And next, I use Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your Regulation of Tribe." Gold declared, holding up the spell.

A blast of wind shot from the card, and shattered the trap in front of Fighter into millions of pixels.

"I no need that anymore." Fighter shrugged.

"It wouldn't have stopped this anyhow, I activate my facedown Rock Bombardment!" Gold shouted, his near-forgotten facedown card lifting.

"Rock Bombardment?" Fighter asked.

"Yeah, all I do is send one rock monster from my deck to my graveyard." Gold said as he slid a Legendary Jujitsu Master from his deck and put it into his cemetery, "And then you get blasted for 500 damage."

A giant rock fell from nowhere, landing right on top of the Amazon. Richington cheered, until she lifted the rock up on her shoulders, and slammed it into the wall behind her. The rock was ground into fine powder from the force of the blow.

Gold: 5800

Fighter: 7000

"Okay then." Gold said, his eyes going wide, "Grave Ohja, you're up. Destroy Sasuke Samurai!"

The purple rock monster lunged forward, raising a hand to smash the smaller monster. Fighter produced her coin again, tossing it skyward.

"Heads." She said simply.

The coin fell to the ground, showing a picture of the samurai's weapon.

"Looks like tails to me." Gold smirked as Grave Ohja crushed the life out of the tiny fighter, "But your deckmaster power still protects you. I'll end my turn here."

Fighter drew, and smiled wickedly. She placed a card into her disk, and a blue book hovered in the air before her.

"I use Book of the Moon. It turns one monster to facedown defense mode." Fighter announced, pointing at her target, "I choose your Grave Ohja."

Blue energy floated from the book to Gold's lone monster. The purple-skinned creature struggled against the magic, but failed as it transformed into a brown card.

"So what? Neither of your monsters is strong enough to beat it." Gold pointed out, "And 'cause I destroyed your samurai, you'll have to out muscle it."

"Not quite." Fighter argued as she put a monster down, "I summon Mystic Swordsman Lv 2 (900/0)!"

"WHAT?" Gold shouted

A young boy wearing white robes over purple armor jumped forth. He carried a glowing, white blade, which he pointed at Gold.

"I'm not up to date on level monsters." Richington said, turning to Paladin, "Care to tell me what that thing does?"

"That monster signals the death of any facedown monster." Paladin responded, "Anytime it attacks a facedown, defense position monster, it will instantly obliterate it."

"And that means you shall face doom!" Fighter declared, sliding another card into her disk, "I use Premature Burial to summon back Sasuke Samurai # 4 (1200/1200), and it only costs me 800 life points."

A ring of red light appeared on the ground, and the orange chibi monster pulled himself from the dirt. His armor was scuffed and dirt covered, and his weapon was cracked, but other than that he seemed okay.

"Mystic Swordsman, destroy his facedown monster with magic slash!" Fighter ordered.

The sword bearing child dashed forward at lightning speed, the facedown card in front of Gold breaking in half in the blink of an eye! Grave Ohja reappeared for a second before it shattered, leaving him defenseless.

"Everyone else, attack directly!" Fighter shouted.

Kojikocy and Sasuke lunged forward and slashed Gold with their weapons. Etoile Cyber (1700/1600) leapt forth again, slamming her foot against Gold's chest. He fell backward, sprawling on the ground from the attacks. His body was sore all over.

Gold: 1400

Fighter 6200

"You should just stay down, no man can ever defeat an Amazon." Fighter laughed.

Gold groaned from his position on the ground. He closed his eyes…

"Gold, you must get up or you forfeit." Stone Statue of the Aztec's rumbling voice said.

Gold opened his eyes, and struggled into a sitting position, he turned around to his deckmaster.

"You have any ideas on how I can get out of this?" He asked.

"I can't give advice." The statue explained, "But remember, that monster of hers is just a monster. It can be destroyed…"

At the top of the hole, Mr. Richington let out an excited whistle.

"Oh yeah, you go girl!" He cheered, "I knew that big meat head couldn't beat the Amazons!"

Paladin and the elder glared at him. Mr. Richington noticed this, and turned toward them.

"What?" He asked.

"We don't like men." The elder amazon growled, "But we like suck-ups even less."

Mr. Richington fell silent, and went back to observing. Down in the hole, Gold got back to his feet.

"Still going to fight huh? You are either brave or stupid, either way, I respect your fighting spirit." Fighter smiled.

"You sure you girls haven't met my ex wife?" Gold asked as he shrugged off the pain.

"We don't meet many outsiders." Fighter declared, "Your move."

Gold reached for his deck, closing his eyes.

"_Well, this works for Yugi."_ He thought as he drew, _"Heart of the cards, whatever you do, start doing it."_

Gold drew, and looked at the card he now held. He smiled as he placed it into his disk.

"I play Premture Burial." He announced, "I'll spend 800 of my own life points to bring back my Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000)."

A ring of light formed in front of him, and the stone warrior arose. It was covered in chips and cracks, but none the worse for wear.

Gold: 600

Fighter: 6200

"Ha, he's not strong enough to save you." Fighter laughed.

"He's not the one you have to worry about." Gold smirked, removing the card from his disk, "I tribute Giant Soldier of Stone for Hieracosphinx (2400/1200)!"

The soldier shattered into pixels, and reformed into a new creature. It had the body of a lion, with the head and wings of a hawk. It was covered in yellow fur, with colorful feathers on its head and wings.

"Attack Mystic Swordsman with riddle rush!" Gold ordered.

The creature roared, and lunged forward. It slammed against the young swordsman, and he screamed as he was obliterated.

"That all you got?" Fighter growled.

"After I set two cards facedown, sure." Gold said, sliding two cards into his disk.

They appeared behind the sphinx, which growled in acknowledgement. Fighter drew, and thought for a minute.

"_One of those must be a trap…"_ She thought, _"But this should help me get what I need."_

"I play Card Destruction." Fighter announced, throwing the spell into her disk, "Now we both discard our hands and draw new ones."

Gold's eyes went wide with shock as his two cards disappeared. A smile spread across his face as two shimmering figures appeared next to him.

"Gee, thanks." Gold smiled, "You just made me discard two of the most conditional cards in my deck."

On Gold's left appeared a statue of a blue elephant, spraying water into the air.

On his right appeared another statue of a red elephant, looking ready to trample something.

"What are those?" Fighter asked, staring at the creatures.

"This, is Elephant Statue of Blessing (1500/0)." Gold explained, gesturing to the blue elephant, "The red guy is the Elephant Statue of Disaster (1500/0). And when you make me discard them by a card effect, their powers activate."

"What powers could they possibly have?" Richington muttered, "I doubt even they could save him from such a precarious situation…"

"You know what, we're gonna remove your tongue if you talk again before the duel is over." The elder growled.

"What _do _those monsters do?" Fighter asked nervously.

"Well first, Elephant Statue of Blessing will restore 2000 of my life points." Gold explained.

The blue statue came to life, and playfully sprayed Gold with a silver beam of light.

"And then, the Elephant Statue of Disaster will smash 2000 of your life points away!" Gold shouted, "And your deckmaster ability doesn't stop effect damage!"

The red statue sprang to life, and shot a fireball across the field! Fighter howled in pain as the flames struck her in the chest, knocking her flat onto her back.

Gold: 2600

Fighter: 4200

Fighter picked herself up, and drew the four new cards that Card Destruction let her have. Gold just snickered a bit as he drew two cards.

"This doesn't matter, I play Heavy Storm!" Fighter shouted, tossing down another card.

A huge blast of wind flew around them, lifting both duelists into the air. The ground that had sunk to make up the Canyon card lifted back to its proper level, carrying the monsters with it. Gold's two facedown cards began to shake…

"I think I'll chain one of those cards." Gold said, pointing at the first one as the two competitors touched back on the ground, "Activate, Threatening Roar!"

The card lifted, and out of the trees jumped a ferocious beast. It let out a huge roar, causing Fighter's monsters to cringe in fear.

"Now Fighter must skip her battle phase." Chain noted, "Not that she probably wanted to attack…"

Fighter was glaring at her second copy of Sasuke Samurai #4, while the first one she had played vanished along with Premature Burial. All her effort had only managed to really destroy a field card that was otherwise useless and her opponent's other facedown card (which turned out to be Narrow Pass).

"I'll end my turn by setting this monster facedown." She growled, setting the Sasuke Samurai.

"_If he attacks it, there's a 50/50 chance the monster will be destroyed."_ Fighter reasoned, _"Then I just need to hold out until I draw another Cyber Tutu. If his monsters are stronger, she can attack directly."_

Gold drew, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Just like my marriage, this duel is over." He said, "But first, I've got a Pot of Greed to play."

Gold set the card into his disk, and the vile pottery appeared next to him. He drew two cards, and the pot shattered.

"Next, I'll play Fissure, wiping out your last goat token." He continued, holding the spell.

A crack opened in the ground beneath the last of the floating sheep. Fighter had almost forgotten it was there, not that it mattered any more. A hideous claw shot from the crack, and dragged the doomed beast down.

"And next comes Brain Control." Gold announced, sliding another card into his disk, "I'll just pay 800 life points to borrow…Hmm…Etoile Cyber will do."

A ghastly brain floated down from the trees, pulsing with blue energy. It extended a misty hand over to the dancer, who twirled over to Gold with a smile on her face. She gracefully swooned into his arms, and gave him an appreciative kiss on the cheek.

"Oh…Now I'm sorry that I'm gonna sacrifice her." He said, blushing a bit.

Etoile Cyber just smiled, and stroked his face to reassure him. Fighter glared angrily at this, but was ignored by the monster.

"Well, if you're okay with it." Gold said as he put a new monster on his disk, "I'll tribute Etoile Cyber for my favorite monster: Granmarg the Rock Monarch (2400/1000)."

The dancing girl disappeared into the ground, and fromabove descended another form. This one was an eight-foot tall giant, covered in armor made from gold and bronze. It slammed its fists together, and a huge boulder tore loose from the ground.

"_Come and get it pathetic giant."_ Fighter thought.

Then the boulder fell, and crushed the facedown samurai. Fighter gasped, and reached for her coin…

Only to discover there was none.

"You know that facedown monster you had? Fuggedaboutit." Gold smiled, "When I tribute summon Granmarg, I destroy one facedown card on your side of the field. Guess what I picked."

Fighter drew back, realizing she was in for a painful end to this duel.

"Hieracosphinx, put Kojikocy out of his misery!" Gold ordered, "I'm sure he'll thank us later."

Kojikocy had a smile on his face, even as he was torn apart by the sphinx monster. Fighter braced herself for a direct attack.

"Granmarg, attack directly with rock smash!" Gold shouted.

The giant swung a huge fist toward Fighter. As this happened, Gold put a card into his graveyard, causing his deckmaster to glow with golden light.

"And I'll discard this card to activate my deckmaster power, doubling all the damage you take from my rock-type Granmarg." He announced.

Granmarg's fist suddenly doubled in size, and slammed into Fighter. She screamed as she was sent flying backward into a tree, and slammed against it.

"Like I said before, game over." Gold said, turning his thumb down.

Gold: 1800

Fighter: 0

"But…no man…defeats…the Amazons." Fighter groaned as she tried to get up.

"I'm not just a man, I'm the Fighting Mountain." Gold smirked, walking over to his opponent.

He extended a hand to her, and she looked at it in a confused manner.

"But I'm also not a creep. You want a hand up?" He offered.

Fighter smacked his hand away, and got up herself. She gave Gold an angered glare, and stomped back to the remaining Amazons.

"An Amazon doesn't need help from a man." She growled as she passed the rest of the group.

"Ahem…It seems you've won." Paladin said, stepping forward.

"Which means I'm not going to die!" Richington cheered.

"What did I say about your tongue?" Elder reminded him.

Swordswoman was reaching for her blade, and Richington fell silent with a squeak. Gold just chuckled a bit, and the elder walked up to him.

"I suppose we should tell you now that we couldn't have really killed you, seeing as we're digital." She said.

"I kinda figured." Gold nodded, "Hey, was Fighter one of those eliminators?"

"Very perceptive." Elder nodded, closing her eyes, "You're correct, Fighter was an eliminator. So you receive three win points for your victory."

The aged woman began to chant, and three points of light came from her charms. They floated into Gold's disk, boosting the number in it from two to five.

"And, you receive a special prize." Paladin stated, walking over to Gold with a card, "We found this in the remains of the temple, it had been hidden in a statue. Obviously, none of us can use it, but perhaps you can."

Gold took the card, and looked at the golden statue depicted on it. He read the name of the monster out loud.

"Exxod, Master of the Guard…Holy…" Gold's eyes went wide as he read the effect, "This has to be the strongest rock monster I've ever seen!"

"How much would you want for it?" Richington asked, rushing to Gold's side.

"I ain't selling it!" Gold shouted, pulling away.

He then began to fade, turning transparent as the teleport program kicked in.

"What the…" Gold gasped.

"Farewell Gold, the Amazons wish you luck." The elder said, waving goodbye.

"But I haven't found Zef…" Gold began.

He was cut off as he vanished completely. The Amazons turned to Mr. Richington, who nervously backed away.

"Um…I believe I hear my stockbroker calling me so…toodles!" He shouted, running away as quickly as he could.

"We're letting him go?" Archer asked from up in the tree.

"We did say he'd share his friend's fate." Paladin reminded them, "But if he comes back, he's fair game."

---------------------------------

Sota pounded his head against his computer desk.

"No…I don't believe this." He groaned, "I never thought he'd beat the Amazoness Fighter, she was one of our better eliminators!"

"Ahem, Sota." Jackson cleared his throat, "I believe we were going 'double or nothing' on my previous bet with that match."

Sota moaned, and scratched off the amount that Jackson owed him.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll make that back." Rei smirked as she leaned back, "For now, let's enjoy the rest of the tournament."

_**That was long, painful, and unpleasant, just like working for Needlez.**_

**_Well, it looks like I came out on top in that match. But I'm getting worried about some of my buddies. Speaking of which, Yugi and Joey have made a new one._**

_**Get ready to meet our newest fan character, with a wild strategy in a chapter called:**_

_**Jungle Japes**_

_**Now where did Zeffie get to? Here Zeffie, come here girl…**_

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Stone Statue of the Aztecs

Rock

EARTH

Four stars

300 attack

2000 defense

Stone Blast: Once per turn you may discard one card from your hand to double any battle damage dealt to your opponent by a rock-type monster.

---

Amazoness Fighter

Warrior

EARTH

Four stars

1500 attack

1300 defense

Total Resistance: You take no damage from a battle involving a monster you control with 1500 attack or less.


	10. Jungle Japes

Disclaimer: We still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. Feel free to fell sorry for us.

_**A while back in Duelist Kingdom, I had to stop an eliminator called Panik from using underhanded and dangerous scare tactics.**_

_**He was absolutely ruthless. He'd cover the field in shadows, and attack from the dark to scare his opponents. Using those methods, he was able to take away several duelists' star chips.**_

_**Yami and I put a stop to that, but it looks like Kaiba has decided to base one of his own eliminator programs off of Panik's technique. This monster is pretty frightening…**_

_**It would be more so if I was actually the one dueling it.**_

Jungle Japes

Much deeper in the jungle, far from the place where Gold had just finished dueling with Amazoness Fighter, two rings of light struck the ground.

From those rings emerged Yugi and Joey, the latter of which seemed close to being ill.

"Ugh…I don't think I'm gonna get used to this." Joey groaned, clutching his stomach.

"Well, just a few more wins and we won't have to do that again." Yugi pointed out, looking around the territory.

It could be described with one word: Trees. Joey and Yugi could literally see nothing but trees and each other.

"_Looks like some sort of jungle." _Yami commented, _"Better not let Joey run off on his own. There could be an eliminator here."_

"_I don't Joey is going to run anywhere at the moment." _Yugi pointed out as his friend leaned against one of the trees.

"Are you okay Joey?" Yugi asked.

"Just give me a minute." Joey said, taking a couple deep breaths.

After just a few breaths, Joey did start to seem a bit better…he at least wasn't clutching his stomach anymore.

"Alright then," He said, straightening up, "Come on Yug, let's find us a challenge!"

Yugi nodded, and the two buddies began to march through the jungle.

----------------------------------------------------

Sota was scanning over his screen, looking over Joey and Yugi's dueling stats.

"Well, both of these guys are as good as we heard." He commented, "Wonder where they are right now…"

Typing in a command, the stats were replaced by the image of Yugi and Joey walking through the jungle. A small map appeared in the corner of the screen, indicating their position in the virtual world.

Sota looked at the map, and smiled. He tapped Jackson on the shoulder to get his attention.

Jackson (who had been observing one of Mai Valentine's duels) looked up from the screen, just before Mai's harpies landed a killing blow on her unlucky opponent.

"What is it Sota?" Jackson asked.

"Joey and Yugi are approaching an eliminator." Explained an excited Sota, "Want to see which of them duels it?"

"Sure!" Jackson responded, quickly putting in another command.

Yugi and Joey appeared on Jackson's screen as well, still marching through the jungle…

--------------------------------------------

Yugi and Joey weren't walking long, before they came across a strange sight.

Well, _two _strange sights.

The first was a man in a purple business suit, running past them while screaming his head off. He stopped, glanced over his shoulder the way he came, and then started running again without paying any attention to the boys. Yugi and Joey nervously looked down the direction he had come from.

"Maybe we should go that way." Yugi suggested, pointing in a direction that crossed the path the screaming man had taken.

"Good idea." Joey nodded.

The second strange sight came soon after. They emerged into a large clearing, and set right in the center of it was a stone building of some kind.

It looked like some sort of temple, with demonic figures etched across the outside of it. The walls were cold, gray granite with a single set of blood-red doors on one side.

Joey gulped nervously.

"Alright." He said, taking a deep breath, "We gonna take a look inside Yug?"

Yugi looked at the structure and frowned. This sure didn't look like a friendly place…

But then again, it wasn't like he could really be hurt, right?

"I guess so." Yugi nodded.

No further words passed between them as they wandered up to the door. They pushed in open to yet another odd sight…

Standing just a few feet in front of them was a young man. He couldn't have been any older than fifteen, and wore a blue shirt and tan shorts. He had a golden stud in his right ear, and a duel disk strapped to his arm.

Standing right next to him was another young man. This one had short, blond hair and purple robes. He held a green staff set with a purple orb.

And both of them seemed nervous at the moment, and rightly so. Standing across from them was a truly frightening figure. He had ashen colored skin with steel colored hair. His arms were much longer than a regular human's, and he wore nothing but a blue robe draped over his shoulders, and underwear that seemed to be made from bone.

What made this sight even odder was the fact that this beast was wearing a duel disk on his arm!

Their eyes adjusting to the dim light in the temple, Yugi and Joey could now see that the boy had another monster in front of him. It was a figure in glossy, green and yellow armor.

In front of the boy's foe were two facedown cards

The life points were currently set with the boy at 4300, and the monster at 1700.

The boy nervously drew, bringing his hand up to two cards, and placed a card into his disk.

"I don't t-trust those facedown cards." He stuttered out, "So I'll get rid of them with Heavy Storm!"

A powerful wind began to pick up around the field…

The monster laughed as one of the cards lifted.

"You're getting sloppy, Randy old boy!" He taunted in a sing-song voice, "I activate my facedown trap: Dark Deal!"

A frightening demon shrouded in a black cloak rose behind the monster, and the boy (who must have been Randy) gasped as the wind died down.

"Not that again!" He shouted.

"Yes, again! And again, and again, and again!" The monster laughed, "I just give up 1000 of my own life points to negate the effect of your storm…"

A black flame surrounded Randy's foe, who just giggled madly as his score dropped.

Randy: 4300

Monster: 700

"…And also, your card's effect has changed!" He continued, "Now choose a card for me to discard!"

Randy nervously looked at the three cards his foe held. He closed his eyes and pointed at random.

"I choose…the…center one?" He said in a hushed voice.

"What's he so scared for?" Joey whispered to Yugi, "I can think of worse things to happen."

"There must be something more to this duel." Yugi pointed out, "I mean, this kid still has the lead but he's scared out of his wits."

"_I sense that something is amiss Yugi."_ Yami commented, _"This monster may well be using a new type of card."_

"_I'll bet you're right."_ Yugi thought with a nod, as Randy's selected card glowed black.

"Oh dear, that was the wrong choice." The maddened monster said, turning the card around, "You remember this monster, don't you?"

"NO! NOT HIM!" Randy shouted, stumbling back.

"That's right, come forth: GOLDD, WU-LORD OF DARK WORLD (2300/1400)!" The laughing monster shouted.

A blast of golden fog shout from the ground, and out of it emerged a hulking demon, covered in golden armor. It carried and immense ax, and its eyes were glowing with golden light.

"And since you made me discard him…" The monster stopped to laugh, "Not only do I special summon him to the field; he'll also destroy two of your cards!"

A beam of gold shot from the fiend's eyes, and obliterated the green and yellow sorcerer. Randy was panting in fear as the purple wizard next to him began to glow.

"N-n-not so fast, now my deckmaster's power activates." Randy stammered, "I lost a Spellcaster due to your card, so I can special summon one from my deck with half of its level. And Chaos Command Magician had six stars."

A card appeared before him, and he set it on his disk. In front of him appeared a girl wearing blue robes, carrying a staff tipped with a crescent moon.

"And I choose my Magician of Faith (300/400) to protect me, in defense mode." He gulped.

"Like she can." The monster duelist sighed, a shimmering green flame surrounding him, "I'm sure you remember that, due to my deckmaster power, whenever I discard a card I may choose to draw another one from my deck. I think I'll do so now."

He swiftly plucked a card from his disk. Randy stared at the last card in his hand and sighed.

"I…end my turn." He admitted.

The monster picked up another card, now holding four. He smiled wickedly as he turned the card in he had drawn to Randy.

"No…" Randy moaned, seeing the image of a Card Destruction spell as it was played.

"Yes." The monster grinned, "And since it's my card that's dropping him, I can now summon my third copy of Goldd!"

Another golden fiend rose next to the first. Both of them nodded to each other as the duelists refreshed their hands.

"And then I'll activate my other facedown: Call of the Haunted to bring back my first Goldd!" He continued, a third copy of the demonic creature bursting from the ground next his fellows.

Randy fell to his knees in fear…

"Finish this little fool with triple-golden slash!" The order came.

The first Goldd lunged forward and cut down Magician of Faith. The other two then slammed their weapons to the ground, generating a shockwave that sent Randy skidding to the feet of Yugi and Joey, both of whom were staring in shock at what had happened.

Randy: 0

Monster: 700

"So close, yet so far." The monster laughed, six dots of light flying from Randy's disk, "Ah well, guess that you'll just have to get used to watching the tournament!"

"That's no fair Bronn!" Randy protested as he tried to get up, "You were intentionally trying to scare me during that whole duel! I could barely think straight…"

"Don't blame me for your weakness." Scolded the monster (who must have been Bronn), "If you have a problem, take it up with the guy that programmed me."

Dejected, Randy turned around. He stopped as he realized just who was standing behind him however. His eyes went wide as he obviously recognized the two teens.

"I don't believe it…" He gasped, "You're Yugi Mutou!"

The boy grabbed Yugi's hand and began to shake it quickly. Yugi became occupied attempting to keep his arm attached to his body.

"I don't believe it!" The boy started sputtering very fast, "My name is Randy and I'm a huge fan of yours! I even run a spellcaster deck in honor of your Dark Magician, and I'm actually getting the chance to shake your hand…"

"Okay, calm down there buddy." Joey said, placing a hand on Randy's shoulder.

Randy just went wide eyed again.

"Joey Wheeler…" He started.

"So, what happened here exactly?" Yugi asked, trying to keep Randy from flying into another state of ecstatic hero worship.

It worked. Randy looked crest fallen as he jerked a thumb toward Bronn.

"You can just ask him." Randy sighed, "He's the one that beat me."

"Bronn, the Mad King of Dark World, at your service." Said the maniacal creature, "And I have to say that I too am honored by the presence of Yugi Mutou and Joey Wheeler in my humble abode."

He bowed deeply, the sleeves of his robes brushing the ground.

"So what are you exactly?" Joey asked, looking Bronn over, "Some kind of dueling fanatic?"

"Oh dear me, no." Bronn shook his head, "I'm an eliminator, created by Kaiba Corp to weed out the filth of this tournament. Like Randy here…"

"But you didn't play fair Bronn!" Randy retorted, "I had the advantage for a bit, but then you started with all the creepy theatrics and monsters and stuff…"

"Like I said, that's your problem not mine." Bronn yawned, "I specialize in striking terror into the hearts of humans like you, and I have to admit its fun."

He slid forward, and gave Yugi an eerie grin. Yugi braced himself, and stared Bronn right in the eyes.

"What do you say Yugi?" He asked in a hissing voice, "Think you can beat your worst nightmares?"

"I've done it before." Yugi said bravely, "I'm not afraid of bullies like you…"

"And neither am I." A new voice interrupted.

Turning around, Yugi and Joey saw a new figure enter.

He looked to be in his mid to late twenties. He wore khaki slacks and yellow polo shirt with a small lion stitched near the collar. Strapped to his left arm was a regular duel disk. His hair was brown, and cut long, fanning behind his head and looking reminiscent of a lion's mane. His eyes were colored green with a slightly golden tinge around the edges.

"Who the heck are you?" Bronn asked as the man stepped forward.

"Sorry, allow me to introduce myself." The man declared, "Victor Greenstone is my name. And I just happen to be a concern citizen trying to take care of a minor injustice."

Bronn and Yugi both looked confused at this statement, while Joey and Randy both shrugged, equally lost.

"You see, I checked with a few of the programmers before entering, and I was informed that nothing in this world would go out of its way to frighten or hurt anybody." Victor continued, "But I happened to be nearby, watching Randy here duel. It looked to me like Bronn was going very far out of his way to frighten this boy."

"He's right you know." A voice echoed from up above.

Yugi and Joey looked up, and realized the voice belonged to one of the programmers. Bronn glared at Victor as he stepped backward.

"Aren't you the nasty tattle-tale? Ratting me out before I've had my fun." He growled.

Victor just smiled in response. He didn't seem worried or frightened in the least.

"Sorry about that Randy, it looks like Bronn has somehow overridden his inhibition programs." The programmer's voice continued

"Inhibition programs?" Joey asked, "Why do those sound important?"

"Because, they were all that kept me tethered to the rules of this world." Bronn explained with a laugh, "If they're no longer holding me back then I can do what I want."

He flipped backwards and landed near the back of the temple.

"Including run amok in this tournament and take everybody out!" He shouted, "And Sota, I know that you're trying to reinstate those programs. I've already taken precautions so they won't work."

"…Drat, he's right." The voice said.

"But we can't let this guy get loose!" Randy exclaimed.

"Well I _am_ a sporting fellow." Bronn said, rocking back and forth on his heels, "Tell you what I'll do: If one of you can beat me in a duel, I'll let my inhibition programs come back online. If you can't…"

He shrugged, and began to cackle manically.

"Then my plans reach fruition." He stated, "Deal?"

"Deal." Yugi nodded, "But you also have to give Randy back his points."

"Fine." Bronn nodded, "Now let's see…"

Yugi was about to turn on his disk, when Bronn raised a hand to stop him.

"Hold it Yugi, I'm going to choose my opponent." He said, "And if you think I'm going to duel the world champion, you're crazier than me! Maybe I'll take on Randy…"

"You can't." Sota said quickly, "Once all their points are lost, a duelist's disk shuts down for the rest of the tournament. It was fail-safe to keep cheaters from infiltrating the finals."

Bronn scowled, and pointed at Victor.

"Fine, then I'll take out the loudmouth that blabbed on me." He declared, "Step right up and get ready for a ride!"

Victor nodded, and switched on his duel disk.

"Well…Alright." He said with a smile, "I needed to start earning points anyway. I haven't had a single duel since I landed!"

"Seriously?" Joey asked, his widening in shock.

"I landed in this jungle with nobody else around." Shrugged Victor, "I'm not the sort get worked up over a tournament, but I was starting to get bored."

"Trust me, _bored_ is the last thing you'll be once I'm done with you!" Bronn laughed.

Bronn turned on his disk as a grid of cards appeared in front of his opponent.

"I'll be my own deckmaster, so feel free to choose yours." Bronn laughed, "I'll even let you go first."

Victor nodded, and carefully looked over his cards.

"You know Bronn; I think my choice of deckmaster will be fitting." Victor declared as he selected a card, "This monster led to the fall of one of the greatest cities in history, and it will lead to yours also."

The ground behind Victor split apart, and out of it emerged an eight-foot tall, wooden statue of a horse.

"Trojan Horse shall be my deckmaster." He announced, drawing six cards, "Now let me show you what happens to law breakers on my beat."

Bronn drew five cards with a smile.

"Law breakers? What are you, a cop?" He laughed.

"I am in law enforcement." Victor nodded, "In fact, I'm one of the few duelist in my precinct out in Washington."

"Washington?" Yugi gasped, "As in the capitol of the United States?"

"No, Washington State." Victor explained, "Opposite side of the country."

"Well, in the words of a famous gangster…" Bronn said, "'You'll never take me alive, copper!'"

Victor: 8000

Bronn: 8000

Stopping, Victor closed his eyes. He looked back to his deckmaster and smiled before turning back to his hand. Looking over his cards, Victor selected one of them and placed it onto his disk.

"I'll open with Nin-Ken Dog (1800/1000) in attack mode." He stated.

Trojan Horse opened a small hatch in its belly, and out of it came a red blur. It stopped in front of Victor, revealing a brown-furred dog standing on its hind legs. It was dressed up in a red ninja gi, with a sword strapped to its back.

"A ninja…dog?" Bronn muttered, tilting his head.

"Hey, canine ninjas…or caninjas for short…are serious business." Victor warned, "Besides, with 1800 attack points, you shouldn't take him lightly. Oh, and it's your move."

"1800 attack? Bah." Bronn scoffed as he drew, "I'll show you a real monster. I summon Zure, Knight of Dark World (1800/1500)!"

Bronn raised a hand over his head, and fired an orb of black energy at the ground. It burst on contact, releasing a demon dressed in steel armor. He had a skull-like face, crested with blue hair, and wearing a blue cape. He carried a sword made of blue crystal, which he brandished with wicked fury.

"That monster ties with mine." Victor pointed out, "Looks like we're evenly matched."

"For now." Bronn nodded, "Your turn."

Victor drew, and smiled.

"Everybody knows that a K-9 unit is a boon to any police force." He stated as he slapped down a card, "And this guy is no exception! I summon Mad Dog of Darkness (1900/1400)."

A howl echoed from outside the temple, and a huge dog ran inside. It stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Victor (about five and half feet from shoulder to floor), had bright orange fur, and angered, red eyes. It let out a rabid howl, and began to stalk toward Zure.

"Sic 'em." Victor ordered in a hushed voice, like a hunter giving an order to his hound dog.

The huge dog lunged forward, and grabbed Zure between his jaws. The fiend screamed in pain before bursting into blobs of blue liquid that seeped into the ground.

"Nin-Ken Dog, you're up!" Victor commanded, "Canine assassination technique!"

The red clothed canine vanished in another blur, and reappeared behind Bronn. The demonic king gasped as he suddenly felt a sword fly across his body, and fell to his knees.

Victor: 8000

Bronn: 6100

"Ouch…ow…oooh…ouch." Bronn muttered as he got to his feet.

He took a deep breath, and clutched his side.

"Ow." He said again, "Done yet?'

"Go ahead." Victor nodded, "But your chances of escape are slipping."

Bronn drew again, and smiled as he placed a card into his disk.

"I'll play Cheerful Coffin, letting me discard up to three monsters from my hand." Bronn declared, a large coffin appearing before him.

Randy let out a groan as he saw it. Yugi and Joey both turned to him.

"What's wrong?" Joey asked.

"That card…" Randy groaned, "It's a key part of his deck."

"How so?" Yugi asked, looking worried.

"You saw what happened when his monster got discarded during my duel, right?" Randy asked.

Yugi and Joey both nodded as Randy continued.

"Bronn is part of a set called the 'Dark World Fiends.'" Randy explained, "They're pretty new, but very powerful. Most have some special power that involves coming to the field if they're discarded…A few tournaments were close to banning cards like Graceful Charity so they could avoid them."

"So if he can discard any monsters he wants…" Joey realized.

"And I have two." Bronn explained placing two cards into the coffin, "I discard Broww, Huntsman of Dark World; and Silva, Warlord of Dark World."

The coffin shrank in size, and placed itself into Bronn's discard slot. He smiled as his disk shook for a minute, and then a card flew out of it.

"And now their powers activate!" Bronn declared, "When Silva is discarded, I can summon him to the field immediately. So welcome, Silva (2300/1400)!"

A cloud of silver dust filled part of the field, and out of it stepped a new demon. He was covered in silver armor, and carried a silver knife in his hand. His face looked like a skull, just like Zure, and he seemed more…aristocratic than the knight.

"And when I discard Broww, I get to draw an extra card." Bronn explained as his aura flared up again, "But before I do I think I'll use my own deckmaster power of dark regeneration."

His deck glowed with a similar light, and Bronn drew not one, but _three _cards!

"What!" Victor shouted, "Why did you get to draw three cards?"

"It's his deckmaster power." Sota's voice explained, "We designed it to work with a Dark World deck. Every time he sends cards from his hand to the graveyard for any reason, he can choose to draw one card for each one he lost."

"And since it's a choice, he won't worry about running out of cards." Victor realized, "A ruthlessly efficient power."

"Isn't it?" Bronn laughed, "Now it's time to get really crazy! Destroy his dog of darkness with black silver blade!"

Silva flew forward, and jammed his weapon into the giant beast's throat. The dog let out one last gasp before it collapsed to the ground in a crumpled heap. The heap then burst into particles as Victor's life points dipped.

"What do you think of that?" Bronn laughed, "You scared yet, mortal?"

Victor: 7600

Bronn: 6100

Victor just frowned as he looked over his cards.

"Well, I'll admit that monster is stronger than anything I'm holding." He said, turning a calm look to Bronn, "But I'm far from scared at the moment."

"He's braver than I am." Randy cringed, "When I saw Bronn do that I was shaking in my boots!"

"Don't worry. Bronn can't be that tough if he has to rely on scaring people." Yugi said.

Bronn glared at Yugi, and looked over his remaining hand.

"Well, I do have all these cards to use." He smiled as he took two of them out of his hand, "I think I'll set these two facedown and end my turn."

The two cards appeared behind Bronn, while Victor drew his card. He looked a bit worried as he set another card down.

"I'll set this monster in defense mode." He declared, the facedown card appearing, "And I'll switch Nin-Ken Dog to defense as well."

The ninja pooch fell to one knee, and moved its hands to a defensive position. As it did, Victor slid another card into his disk, and it materialized behind the dog.

"I'll also set this facedown." He declared, "And that will end my turn."

Bronn drew, and began to laugh as he slammed the card he held into his disk.

"Looks like we about to have an 'ice' time!" He chortled, "I activate the magic of Cold Wave!"

A chilling breeze flew through the room, and everybody began to shiver (human and monster alike). Snowflakes settled on top of all three facedown cards, which were immediately coated in thin layers of ice!

"What the…!" Victor gasped, "What happened?"

"My little spell just put your facedown card in cold storage." Bronn laughed through chattering teeth, "Now neither of us can set nor activate any spells or traps until my next turn."

Victor looked at his facedown card with a frown, while Bronn slapped down another card.

"In the meantime, I'll keep Silva company by summoning Beiige, Vanguard of Dark World (1600/1300)!" He chortled.

Another blob of shadows rose up, this one dispensing a skeletal fiend wearing armor made of bone. A black strap covered his bony face, and he held up a bone spear with both hands.

"Now Beiige put that puppy to sleep!" Bronn shouted, "Dark World spear!"

The skeletal fiend shuffled forward, waving its spear haphazardly. It somehow managed to slice Nin-Ken Dog across its chest, and the 'caninja' fell over with a whimper and vanished.

"Silva, attack his facedown monster!" Bronn commanded.

The silver demon flashed forward, and jammed his dagger into the back of the card. A brown koala with white fur over its stomach suddenly sprung out of the card however, and gave Bronn an angered look.

"What the expletive deleted is that thing?" Asked Bronn, staring at the creature.

Victor smiled as the koala landed next to him, showing of a sharp set of claws on each of its forepaws.

"This is my Des Koala (1100/1800)." Victor explained, "And you just made it mad…"

The creature suddenly charged forward, and slashed at Bronn wildly with its claws! Bronn screamed in pain as he was sliced all over his body, before the koala burst into shards.

"That…had to hurt." Joey commented.

"Well that's what happens when you flip over a Des Koala." Yugi said with a smile, "It takes off 400 of your opponent's life points for every card in their hand. And since Bronn had three, that's 1200 damage."

"Right." Victor smiled as Bronn's life points began to drop, "Bet you regret using your deckmaster power now."

Victor: 7600

Bronn: 4900

"Oooh…You really know how to get a guy mad, don't ya?" Bronn growled, "I guess it's your move now…"

Victor drew, and smiled as he saw what he had now.

"Seeing as I can't use any spells or traps right now, I'll set another monster in defense mode." Victor stated, placing another monster onto his disk, "That's all."

A new card materialized in front of Victor. Bronn just shrugged, and drew his card. As he did, the ice that had formed over their magic and trap zones melted away.

"Well look here! I just drew my Graceful Charity card." Bronn laughed, "So let's take it out for a spin."

He placed the spell into his disk, and an angel in white robes flew into the temple. She gave Bronn a dirty look, before bathing his deck in holy light. Bronn drew three cards, and smiled as he jammed two more into his disk's graveyard…

Only for them to pop back out. At the same time, Bronn began to glow again, and one of his facedown cards lifted. The now face up card depicted a woman, screaming as a soldier walked away with a treasure chest.

"Since I still discarded two cards, I'll use my deckmaster power to draw two new ones." He declared, pulling the cards off his disk, "Plus, my new card here is called Forced Requisition, but you'll have to wait to find out what it does. And now, the two cards I discarded were…Drum roll please!"

Two orbs of dark energy flew out of the floor, and formed into horrifying shapes. One was another copy of Beiige. But the second was the golden demon that had defeated Randy, Goldd the Wu Lord of Dark World! The teen cowered as the demon brandished his fearsome axe and growled in Victor's direction, before lunging forward and swinging his axe right at him!

Victor braced himself, but the weapon passed about an inch over his head. Bronn laughed maniacally as Goldd returned to him.

"GOTCHA!" He laughed, "Oh you guys are fun to scare!"

Bronn began laughing again, while Victor shot him a dirty look.

"You might frighten most duelists out of a victory Bronn, but not me." Victor declared, crossing his arms, "Personally, I've been to scarier birthday parties."

"That so…" Bronn muttered, "In that case, HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Goldd, destroy the facedown monster!"

Goldd leapt high into the air, and brought his axe down on top of the hidden creature. It flipped over to reveal a cloud of blue flames shaped like some manner of big cat. The creature roared before dispelling all over the room.

"I guess Soul Tiger (0/2100) wasn't strong enough to stand up to your nightmares." Victor sighed.

"No…You think?" Bronn laughed, "Silva, your turn! Black silver dagger!"

The silver demon moved into an aggressive position, and dashed forward in a blur of light.

"I activate my facedown card!" Victor called out.

Silva's dagger stopped short of its target as a large shield sprang up in front of Victor. A clear, bell-like tone echoed around the area, and Victor was bathed in blue and silver light.

"Wha…" Bronn gasped, his jaw dropping.

"My Draining Shield stops your attack, and adds the monster's attack points to my life points." Explained Victor, "Pretty handy card, eh?"

"Not handy enough." Responded Bronn, "Beiiges, attack!"

Once more, the two blindfolded demons stumbled forward and (by skill or luck) each of them slashed Victor across his chest. He stumbled back as the blows landed, his life points dropping again.

Victor: 6700

Bronn: 4900

"Your turn." Bronn said with a laugh.

"And I'll gladly take it." Nodded Victor as he drew, "I'll start with this spell card: Brain Control!"

A hideous mutant brain formed in the air next to Victor. He smiled as a pulse of energy flew from his body into the brain.

"Now by giving 800 life points, I can control one of your monsters." Victor stated, "I think Goldd will do."

The brain reached forward with misty arms, and grabbed hold of Goldd. The demon moaned, and stumbled to his new controller.

"And now, I'll use my deckmaster's power of summoning earth." Victor declared, placing a new card on his disk, "It lets me summon creatures of earth from my hand for one less sacrifice then I'd normally need."

"Wait, how does he know that?" Joey asked, scratching his head.

"His deckmaster must have told him telepathically." Yugi shrugged, "Like Dark Magician did for me."

"Seems reasonable, since his deckmaster is a wooden horse." Randy nodded.

As they were speaking, Goldd had vanished in a sparkle of metallic dust, and a large shape was starting to form near Ronald.

It started as a shadow, reminiscent of a buffalo that was at least fifteen feet tall. The shadow was quickly covered in purple fur, with a mane of blue springing forth along its back. Its muzzle spilt open to reveal two rows of sharp, white teeth. It had a pair of long, yellow horns, and let out a terrible roar causing Bronn's monsters to fall backward.

"Meet my favorite monster." Victor called out, waving an arm in a dramatic fashion, "Behemoth, the King of All Animals (2700/1500)!"

Bronn's eyes went wide for a moment as he stared up at the ferocious monster.

"And before I forget, I can use his special ability right now." Victor smiled as Behemoth let out a howl, "For every monster I tribute to summon him, I can take one beast-type from my graveyard and add it to my hand."

A card slid out of his grave, and Victor held up his Mad Dog of Darkness. He then smiled as he pointed right at Bronn's side of the field.

"Behemoth, tear apart one of his Beiiges." Victor ordered, "Rampage attack!"

"NO!" Randy called out, "His facedown card…"

Behemoth charged, and snapped up one of the spear wielders in its massive jaws. It screamed before being swallowed whole by the beast, and Bronn grimaced as his life points decreased.

Victor: 5900

Bronn: 3800

"…Is apparently just a bluff." Randy said, sliding to the ground, "Man, I was worried for a minute there."

"It looks like you made a mistake taking on this guy, eh Bronn?" Sota's voice taunted from above.

"Shut up." Bronn growled.

"If you're interested, I just pulled up his file." Sota continued, "It says here that Victor…"

"I can tell them my self, thank you." Victor interrupted.

"By all means." Sota said in an inviting tone.

Victor smiled as he brushed off his shirt a bit, before looking Bronn square in the eye.

"The truth of the matter is, I'm no amateur duelist." He declared, "I'm the State Champion of Washington."

"A state champion?" Bronn scoffed, "Is that all?"

"In case you haven' noticed, my beast deck here has been doing a number on you." Victor pointed out.

"Beast deck eh?" Joey muttered, "So the entire theme of his deck is those beast-type monster he's been using?"

"Looks like it." Yugi nodded, "I guess there's something to say for choosing power over subtlety sometimes."

"I'll then set one card facedown." Victor declared, placing the card in his disk and watching as it appeared behind Behemoth, "Go ahead."

"If you think I'm scared by that overgrown flea bag, you've got another thing coming." Bronn declared as he drew, "And as for that attack, It doesn't matter thanks to my other facedown card…"

The second of his cards flipped over, and a pedestal rose out of the floor. Bronn laughed as he pointed to Silva.

"It's called Altar for Tribute, and it lets me send one of my monsters to the graveyard." Bronn explained, "In exchange, their original attack is added to my life points. So Silva, come on down! You're the next contestant on 'You Bet Your Life!'"

Silva stepped onto the pedestal, and then screamed as a bolt of black energy shot out of it! He shattered into globules of silver paint, which were absorbed into Bronn's body.

Victor: 5900

Bronn: 6100

"And thank you for playing." Bronn laughed as his life points finished climbing, "In the meantime, I'll set another card facedown, and another monster in defense mode."

The two cards appeared right where Bronn indicated, and the remaining Beiige dropped to one knee.

"And I'll also move Beiige to defense mode." Finished the demon, "Now do as you will."

Victor drew, and slapped down another card with a smile.

"I choose to re-summon my Mad Dog of Darkness (1900/1400)." He announced, "So come here boy!"

With an angered bark, the red-eyed canine bounded back into play. It growled threateningly toward Bronn, who stuck out his tongue (which was slimy and black) in response. Yugi and the other spectators cringed at the sight.

"Ugh…I hope he doesn't do that again." Yugi muttered.

"Mad Dog; destroy his last line of defense!" Victor ordered.

The dog ran right at Beiige, and once more chomped into the fiend's chest. It howled in pain before breaking into orbs of brown and vanishing into the floor.

"Behemoth, you get his facedown monster!" Victor continued.

The purple beast stomped forward, and raised a giant paw over the back of the card. It turned over to reveal some sort of demonic monkey, covered in red armor and carrying a small dagger. The creature hooted and hollered out a terrified cry before being crushed under the animal king's foot.

Bronn just smiled in response though as he picked up his deck.

"That last monster you destroyed was called Scarr, the Scout of Dark World (500/500)." Explained the demon as he picked a card, "So now I can add any level four or lower monster with 'Dark World' in its title to my hand. Thanks a lot sucker!"

Victor just nodded, and waved to end his turn. Bronn drew, and grinned again as he played his new card.

"I play Dark World Lightning!" He called out, electricity gathering in the air overhead, "Get ready for a shocking experience…"

A blast of electricity shot down, and obliterated Victor's facedown card (which was now revealed to be a Negate Attack). Bronn laughed as he dropped a card from his hand, and his Forced Requisition trap began to glow.

"Too bad about your trap. Dark World Lightning allows me to destroy any facedown card I choose." Bronn taunted, "And then I get to discard one card from my hand, which activates the effect of Forced Requisition."

"And that does…" Victor asked.

"Well, I can only activate it after I discard a card for any reason. But then…" Bronn chuckled again as Victor's hand of cards began to glow, "Anytime I discard while this card is on the field, you have to drop an equal number of cards from your hand. I lost one, so now you do too."

Victor frowned, and dropped a card of his own. In the meantime, Bronn was giggling like a madman as the card he had dropped emitted a shadow from his disk, and his green flames appeared again, letting him draw two more cards.

"Now then, the card I dropped was another copy of Broww. Add that to my deckmaster power and I just got a Pot of Greed and Mystical Space Typhoon rolled into one!" Bronn explained as he looked at the cards, and turned one of them around, "Well speak of the devil, I just drew my Pot of Greed!"

Playing the common-place spell, Bronn laughed along with the jar as he took his free draws. He pointed to his facedown card, and it flipped over to reveal a shadowy orb with odd shapes shifting about inside it.

"And now I activate my facedown trap, The Forces of Darkness." Bronn continued, two cards sliding from his graveyard, "This trap lets me add two of my Dark World monster from my graveyard back to my hand, so I'll choose the Goldd and Silva that are in there."

He picked up the cards, bringing his hand up to seven cards. Victor just gave Bronn a worried look.

"I think I can guess what happens now." He said, "You're going to use another copy of Cheerful Coffin, aren't you?"

"Not even close." Bronn responded, "I'm using the card that spelled Randy's doom: Card Destruction!"

Immediately, both players' hands burst into flames, consuming their cards. Bronn drew six new cards, while four of the cards he had discarded spat back out of his disk!

At the same time, Victor drew four new cards, only for all of them to vanish into his graveyard immediately. Bronn laughed at this sight with malicious glee.

"Did you forget about my Forced Requisition card already?" He taunted, "I just discarded six cards, meaning that you have to discard the same amount! That leaves you with no hand, and me with an army ready to stop you. I call forth: My third copy of Beiige (1600/1300),"

Another one of the skeletal spearman rose out of the floor.

"The Silva (2300/1400) that I returned to my hand," He moved on.

A cloud of silver dust rose from the cracks in the floor, and formed into the silver demon and his dagger.

"And not one, but _two _copies of Goldd, Wu-Lord of Dark World (2300/1400)!" Bronn finished!

Two clouds of gold dust floated out of the floor, and gathered into the metal demons. Both of them let out frightful roars as they glared at Victor and his monsters.

"None of them can destroy Behemoth." Victor pointed out.

"True, but Behemoth won't be a problem anymore." Bronn shouted as he tossed another card into his disk, "I attach my Flint spell card to Behemoth."

Several lengths of brown and gold chain shot up from the ground, and tied themselves around the beast's legs and muzzle. Behemoth (2400/1500) let out a strangled roar as it was quickly hog-tied by the chains, and fell to the ground with a whimper. Victor gasped in horror at what had happened to his favorite monster.

"Now your overgrown mongrel can't attack, can't change its battle position, and loses 300 attack points." Bronn stated, "So since he's all tied up for the moment, I'll have Goldd deal with his little servant. Golden ax slammer!"

One of the vile, golden monsters swooped forward, and swung his weapon right into the poor dog's side. It howled in pain again, before collapsing once more in a crumpled heap and vanishing to the winds.

Victor: 5500

Bronn: 6100

"But since I can't get past Behemoth yet, I guess it's your turn." Bronn sighed, "So take it away."

Victor drew his lone card, and grimaced a bit. He placed it facedown onto his disk, and a hidden monster appeared next to Behemoth. The giant beast struggled against its bindings, as Victor waved to end his turn.

"What's the matter? Not feeling very talkative anymore?" Bronn taunted, starting to laugh again.

"You just keep on laughing Bronn." Victor responded, "Keep going until the men in white coats show up to drag you off. I'm not scared of you, and you aren't going to win this duel."

"Survey says…" Bronn said, cupping a hand around his ear, "WRONG! I play Gift of the Martyr!"

Yugi's eyes went wide upon hearing the name of the card.

"Uh oh, Celeste used that spell on me in our first duel." Yugi gulped, as Bronn gestured to Beiige.

"All I have to do now is select a monster on my side of the field…" Bronn declared as Beiige shattered into dust, "And its attack will be added to the attack of any other monster I want for the rest of the turn. And I want to add the attack points to Silva (3900/1400)!"

The dust flew right at the silver warlord, who gave a hollow laugh as his attack points sky-rocketed. Bronn cackled as he placed another card onto his disk, and another Zure (1800/1500) rose out of the floor. The Knight of Dark World waved his blue sword, and pointed it right at Victor.

"Silva, obliterate Behemoth!" Bronn shouted.

The super-charged Silva flashed forward in an instant, his dagger slicing across the animal king's hide. The tied up creature groaned in pain before vanishing…

But Victor began to laugh in response. Bronn looked at him in confusion.

"What's so funny?" Bronn asked.

"It looks like you need to work on your strategies Bronn." Victor explained, still chuckling, "You forgot the second effect of Flint. When the monster it's attached to is destroyed, it equips to a new monster on the field."

"But your only monster is facedown…" Bronn gasped, "It has to attach to my monster!"

The chains that once restrained Behemoth retreated into the ground, only to emerge on Bronn's side of the field. He growled at them, and pointed to Zure. The knight screamed as he was suddenly wrapped in a cocoon of chains, and fell over.

"Fine then, I crippled my own plans." Bronn admitted, "Or did I? I chain my facedown Emergency Provisions!"

The facedown card lifted, and a huge mouth emerged from it. Laughing, Bronn pointed to the other two cards in his spell and trap slots.

"By destroying these two cards, I'll gain 1000 life points for each one." Bronn declared, "You'll never beat me now!"

The mouth took a hugged chomp out of the Forced Requisition card, and then slurped up the Flint chains like spaghetti. It then belched before fading away into whatever strange world it had come from.

Victor: 4300

Bronn: 8100

"And my battle phase didn't end yet." Bronn laughed, "Don't you love quick-play spell? Goldd number one, destroy his facedown monster!"

The first of the golden demons flew forward once more, and slammed its axe into the back of the card before it. It flipped over, and a young girl in blue and purple robes appeared on the card. She released a pulse of light before vanishing, and Victor placed a hand next to his graveyard.

"Just because this is a beast deck doesn't mean I can't use other monsters." He declared, "Like Magician of Faith (300/400), who just allowed me to fetch a spell from my graveyard."

"Like it will matter. Goldd number two and Zure, attack together!" Bronn commanded.

The two fiend-types crossed their weapons, and a blast of gold and blue energy flew from them! It slammed into Victor's chest, sending him sprawling to the floor.

Victor: 200

Bronn: 8100

"My turn is over…And so is this duel." Bronn smirked, allowing Silva to fall back to his regular attack level, "Guess I'll be getting out of here soon."

"Don't…bet…on it." Victor said as he pulled himself to his feet and drew his card, "You didn't…even see what…Magician of Faith gave me."

He held up the spell, and a flash of golden light filled the room. Bronn and his monsters all screamed and covered their eyes against it; While Victor spread his arms out wide.

"Card of Sanctity!" He called out, "Now we each draw until we have six cards in our hands!"

Victor drew five cards, while Bronn picked up two. Yugi and Joey smiled as they noticed the thin stack of cards left one Bronn's disk.

"Look's like Bronn is going to run out of cards soon." Yugi commented, "Unless I missed something, he's should only have about nine cards left because of all the extra draws he's made."

Bronn noticed this also, and he glared at Victor's deck. It was starting to get low, but there were obviously more cards left in it than Bronn's. Victor held up another card, and smiled as he placed it into his disk.

"Now, I'll activate Cost Down." He announced, a pair of swords appearing in the air above him, "I just have to discard one card like so…"

He dropped a spell called Big March of Animals into his graveyard, and a pair of stars appeared in the air. The swords sliced through the stars, which then vanished.

"And now every monster in my hand drops by two star levels for this turn." Victor explained as slapped down another card, "So I can summon this monster with no sacrifice. My fire-attribute Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000)!"

A column of flames pushed its way out of the ground. Another roar echoed out of the fire, and a lion's head emerged from the flames…

As well as a pair of black, feathery wings, and a red scorpion tail. The fire fell away, reveal that the monster was a bi-pedal, heavily muscled lion, with the wings growing from its back, and the scorpion tail in place of its regular one. Bronn gulped as he stared at the monster.

"Next, I play my Forest field-spell card." Victor explained, "So let's air this place out a little."

A creaking noise began to build up in the temple, and suddenly one of the walls bust open as a tree branches busted through it! The same thing happened on the other walls, except for the one with a door. Starting from the door, grass began to spring up from the floor like a green carpet. It soon covered the entire floor, while vines and leaves from the tree branches spread over the walls and ceiling. The entire temple looked as though it was now an exhibit from the local zoo.

"While this field is in play, all creatures that are aligned with nature get a field power bonus." Victor explained, "That would be beasts, plants, insects, and beast-warriors like my Manticore (2500/1200)."

Indeed, the lion creature was now cajoling about the forest. A patch of flowers sprung up next to its feet, and it gave them a growl of approval. Bronn and his fiend in the meantime looked quite out of place in the natural setting.

"Manticore, destroy Silva with Hell breath of death!" Came Victor's order.

The creature roared, and unleashed a blast of fire from its maw. Silva screamed as he was consumed by the flames, and vanished in a blast of silver dust.

Victor: 200

Bronn: 7900

"Then I'll lay these cards facedown." Victor declared, leaving himself with no cards in his hand, "Your turn."

Bronn drew, and began to laugh.

"I activate Pot of Avarice." He shouted, throwing the card into his disk, "An upgrade from the regular old Pot of Greed, this one takes five monsters out of my graveyard, shuffles them into my deck, and then lets me draw two cards."

Five cards (his three Beiiges, Silva, and the first Zure) flew from his disk, and rejoined with the deck, taking it up to thirteen cards. Bronn then drew two, dropping it back down to eleven. Upon seeing his cards though, he started to laugh again.

He was laughing much harder than before. In fact, he seemed like he had lost his mind! He started rolling on the floor, hooting and hollering like a wild beast.

"Okay, I think he's officially lost it." Joey said, "This guy has gone nuts."

"You say I'm nuts…You say I've gone crackers." Bronn laughed from his position on the floor as he held up the card he had drawn, "Well maybe I am a little…batty."

He jumped to his feet and slammed the card he had drawn into his disk. A loud bell tolled through out the chamber…

And the image of a spooky looking tower suddenly rose from the floor behind Bronn. He laughed again as the bell chimed louder.

"Just blame it on the bats in my _belfry!"_ He shouted, "I play Dark World Steeple!"

Yugi, Joey, Randy, and Victor all looked confused at this. Bronn just smiled as his deck began to glow once more.

"Now I can draw one card for every monster in my graveyard that has the word 'Dark World' in the title." Bronn explained, "I have three left: two copies of Broww, and one of Scarr."

Three more fiends appeared behind him. One was the red monkey demon, but the other two were dressed in brown fur and carrying bow and arrow sets. Bronn laughed like a maniac again as he drew three cards (leaving eight in his deck).

"But now, I have two costs to pay." He declared, "First, I lose 1000 life points for each card I drew…"

The fiends behind Bronn all began to glow, leeching energy from their controller.

Victor: 200

Bronn: 4900

"And then, I have to discard a number of cards equal to the amount I drew." He continued, dropping three cards, "So I'll drop the Beiige, Silva, and my last copy of Broww!"

The three cards fell into his graveyard, and Beiige and Silva appeared on Bronn's field. At the same time, he was glowing with green fire again, and still laughing as he drew four cards (three for his deckmaster power and one for Broww's). His deck was dwindling at a scant four cards, while his hand had skyrocketed to ten.

"And now I'll end this in the most painful way possible, without risking your facedown cards." Bronn shouted, slamming another card into its proper slot, "I play Thunder Crash, destroying every monster I control to deal you 300 damage for each one!"

The fiends on Bronn's field looked shocked at this declaration, prior to actually being shocked by a bolt of lightning. The electricity arched toward Victor, who tapped a button on his disk.

"I chain Emergency Provisions to your cowardly assault!" He shouted, "And I'll give up my field card and my facedown to give myself 2000 life points!"

A demonic mouth appeared on Victor's field, and it quickly gobbled down the forest around it like a salad, then the facedown card like an after-dinner mint. Victor's life points jumped, just before the lightning slammed into his chest.

Victor: 700

Bronn: 4900

"NO!" Bronn screeched at the top of his lungs.

"Anything else?" Victor challenged.

"I…I set one monster in defense mode." Bronn said weakly, sliding a card onto his disk, "And set one card facedown. And since I end my turn here, I need to discard one card…"

Bronn slid his seventh card into his disk, and it popped out again.

"I discard Silva, and summon him back in attack mode." Bronn announced.

The silver demon made yet another appearance, and Bronn watched as Victor drew.

"I summon my Enrage Battle Ox (1700/1000)." He declared, sliding the card into his disk, "And from the way you're acting, I'll bet that facedown card is a bluff."

Next to the Manticore (2300/1000) appeared a minotaur wearing red armor. It carried a battle ax in one hand, and was snorting with an almost ridiculous amount of anger.

"Now all of my beasts and beast-warriors get trampling effect." Victor explained, "So the facedown monster won't protect you anymore. Battle Ox, destroy it with enraged ax slam!"

The minotaur tossed its weapon at the facedown card, which flipped to reveal another Scarr (500/500). The demon monkey screeched in pain as the x cut it to ribbons before returning to its master's hand.

Victor: 700

Bronn: 3700

"Manticore, attack Silva!" Victor explained.

"But they tie for attack points!" Bronn protested as his demon clashed with Victor's beast.

Manticore unleashed its fiery breath, while Silva fired a beam of silver dust from his dagger. The attacks collided in mid-air, and exploded, destroying both monsters.

"True, but watch what happens when I end my turn." Victor smiled, "Battle Ox, I offer you to activate my Manitcore's power! Return now Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000)!"

A blast of fire surrounded the minotaur, which was immolated by the heat. Out of the flames emerged the Manticore, good as new, but growling with anger once again.

"What just happened?" Randy asked, confused, "That monster was just destroyed, wasn't it?"

"Yes, but by tributing a beast, beast-warrior, or winged beast from my field, or by discarding from my hand…" Victor said, turning to his audience, "I can resurrect my Manticore at the end of any turn in which he goes to the graveyard."

Bronn gulped as he drew his card. He placed one into his disk, and a black portal opened in front of him.

"I activate Gateway to Dark World." He announced, "If I use this card, I'm not allowed to normal, flip or special summon anything else this turn. In exchange, I can summon any Dark World Monster I choose."

Out of the ground emerged the frightening form of Goldd (2300/1400) once again. The golden fiend hefted his weapon, and shot the manticore an ugly look.

"And while I could send him on a suicide charge to get rid of that accursed beast, that would leave me just as defenseless as you." Bronn growled, "So I'll just end my turn instead."

"_And when you activate some lousy spell to destroy Goldd, I'll use my facedown Dark Deal!" _Bronn thought with glee, _"The minute it goes off, you'll lose if you select my final Goldd in my hand!"_

Victor drew, and looked at the spell he held. He thought for a minute, and then looked at Bronn.

"Bronn, I have a question about that Dark Deal card you used against Randy." Victor stated, "Can you use it against any type of spell?"

Bronn looked confused, and thought for a minute.

"No." He answered, "I can only use it against normal spells. Why do you ask?"

"Because I have a game ending spell right here." Victor answered, sliding his card into his disk, "It's called Snatch Steal, and it will let me control Goldd!"

A thief jumped onto Victor's field, and looked back and forth. He smiled, and ran toward Goldd, leaping right into the fiend's body!

"_NO! I can't counter equipment spells with my trap!"_ Bronn realized in terror.

Goldd looked confused, and moved to Victor's field. The demon hefted his ax once more, and glared at Bronn now.

"Now my monsters…" Victor called out, "Attack him directly and end this duel!"

Goldd unleashed a wave of golden energy, while the manticore fired his f breath weapon once more. Bronn screamed as the attack collided with him, knocking him right into the wall at the back of the temple.

Victor: 700

Bronn: 0

"That's game." Victor said as his disk shut down.

"Nice work!" Sota congratulated, "Now to take care of you Bronn…"

"Did you really expect me to keep my word?" Bronn shouted, looking up, "I'm not gonna be controlled by you!"

"Oh yes you are." Sota announced, "During that duel, I found a way around the firewalls you put around your programming. Reactivating inhibition programs now!"

Bronn let out a highly displeased howl, and then collapsed to the ground. Four points of light soared out of his disk, and fell back into Randy's, while three more points emerged from the temple walls and were placed into Victor's. Victor looked a touch confused, and Sota chuckled.

"Well you did beat an eliminator." Victor explained, "That entitles you to three win points, and this rare card for your deck. You may already have this, but there's no rule against having two."

From the temple ceiling descended a card. Victor caught it, and smiled as he showed everybody it was another Manticore of Darkness.

"With this card's effect, you can set up a pretty deadly combination to get both on the field." Sota explained, "Good luck in the rest of the tournament. I need to find out what made Bronn freak out like he did."

The demonic king faded into nothing, and Randy was looking at his disk.

"Thank you for helping me." He said to Victor.

"Think nothing of it." Victor assured him, "I was just doing the right thing."

"Yeah…Randy said, tapping a button on his disk, "But I don't deserve all of these points. You earned them so…"

Two points of light floated out of Randy's disk and settle into Vic's! He watched as his score jumped up to seven, while Randy's dropped back to two.

"You didn't have to do that." Victor protested.

"I didn't know he could do that." Yugi said, eyes wide, "How did you do that?"

"My first opponent showed me how." Randy explained, "He said that he was 'privy to some of the secrets of the tournament.' He showed me how to give points to my friends if they needed them."

"What'd this guy look like?" Joey asked.

"He…um…kinda kept his face hidden." Randy said, a touch embarrassed, "I wonder if he was some sort of hacker now...Well, just keep the points, please. They're my way of thanking you for getting me back in the tournament."

Victor was going to protest again, but could see Randy was serious about this matter. He chuckled, and shook the boy's hand.

"Fine then. I'll take them." He sighed, turning back to Yugi and Joey, "And Mr. Wheeler, Mr. Mutou, it was pleasure seeing you, and an honor to have you watch my duel."

Yugi shook Victor's hand…

And suddenly they both began to fade away! Yugi gasped, he had forgotten about the random jump. Victor seemed confused, and Joey grabbed Yugi's shoulders just in time: All three of them vanished.

Randy looked around confused, and then shrugged.

"I didn't you could jump with other people." He muttered as he left the temple, and blundered right into a man, dressed in a purple business suit, who looked out of breath.

"Oh, sorry." Randy said, stumbling back a bit.

The business man looked at the boy, and adjusted his monocle.

"Think nothing of it." He said with smile…

------------------------------------------------

Sota was hard at work, adjusting the programming for the eliminator Bronn. Rei and Jackson in the meantime were watching as Randy and Mr. Richington started a duel of their own.

"Hey Sota, what do you say to another wager?" Jackson asked.

"Sorry, I'm a little busy." Sota sighed as he punched some more commands, "Now what went wrong here?"

---------------------------------------------------

Elsewhere, in a dark corner of the Virtual World, the five figures gathered again. One was dressed in a large trench coat, obscuring any view of his face or body. On his hand, he spun the white coin from earlier.

"It would seem my plan didn't go as I thought it might." He admitted, "The boy didn't give any points to Yugi."

"He would have if a certain _someone_ had stuck to the plan." Growled another, turning to the shortest member of the group.

"Your target was supposed to be Yugi. Yu-gi." The trench coated one stated, slamming the coin down, "What were you thinking!"

"Yeah, I'm gonna get myself almost killed so you can have some hero worshipping kid get Yugi to our little scheme." The threatened shadow responded sarcastically.

"It doesn't matter." Said one in a monotonous voice, "Yugi's good enough to get to the finals on his own…"

"We need to focus on other matters."

_**You all probably know who these shadowy figures are by now. But as for their plans…**_

_**Well those in the dark for now.**_

_**Next time, I'm up to duel again. Surprisingly against one of Joey's old opponents. This reformed cheater is now an honest duelist, with the key to breaking into my strategies. It's called**_

_**Psychic Friends.**_

_**Look forward to seeing you there!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Dark World Steeple

Spell

Image of a dark church steeple, with a black bell in it.

Draw one card for every monster in your graveyard with the word 'Dark World' in its title. Take 1000 points of damage for each card you draw in this manner. You must then discard a number of cards equal to the number you drew by this card's effect.

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Bronn, Mad King of Dark World

Fiend

DARK

Four stars

1800 attack

400 defense

Dark Regeneration: If you discard cards for any reason, you may choose to draw a number of cards equal to the number you discarded.

---

Trojan Horse

Beast

EARTH

1600 attack

1200 defense

Summon Earth: All EARTH monsters in your hand can be summoned for one less tribute than is normally required.

_The effect of this deckmaster was inspired by the power of Kaiser Seahorse, who served as Kaiba's deckmaster in the anime. Most of the credit for its effect goes to the creators and writers of the show._

A/N: The term "caninja" belongs to the fine actors of the "Ask a Ninja" online podcast. Thanks for coming up with such an awesome term guys.


	11. Psychic Friends

Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to Yu-Gi-Oh. We do, however, own all of our original stuff. We are perfectly willing to trade though…

-Signed, Younger Hokage

_**Back in Battle City, one of Joey's opponents was a kid name Espa Roba.**_

_**He told everybody that he was psychic, and could see what cards his foe held during the duel. Joey didn't believe him though: He'd seen Mai use similar tricks in Duelist Kingdom. He agreed to duel against Espa.**_

_**Things started off bad at first for Joey, but eventually the secret to Espa's powers was discovered: His brothers were hiding nearby, and using a radio to tell him what cards his opponent had. Thankfully, Mokuba put a stop to that, and Joey was able to win.**_

**_Espa reformed after that, and we haven't heard much from him since. But now it looks like he's back…_**

_**And He has a new way to predict his opponent's moves…**_

Psychic Friends

Joey, Yugi, and Victor all let out a yell as they rematerialized in the Virtual World…This time about five feet above the ground. The three hit the ground with resounding 'thumps' and began to get up again.

"Okay, I'm _really_ starting to think Kaiba has it in for us." Joey moaned as he detangled his arm from Yugi's leg.

"I'm sure it's just a coincidence." Yugi said, as Joey then helped him to his feet, "So where are we this time?"

The scenery around them was unmistakable: Thrill rides rose up in the distance, and the smell of popcorn and fresh pretzels wafted in the air. Around the trio were several booths, each one housing a classic carnival game such as the strength tester and milk bottle toss.

"Looks like Kaiba Land to me." Victor commented, scratching his head, "But we didn't leave the Virtual World…Did we? And what happened just now anyway?"

"To take your questions in order: No, I don't think we left the Virtual World." Yugi said, gesturing around them, "There's no other people here, see? My guess is Kaiba made a virtual copy of his park."

"That sounds like Kaiba alright." Joey nodded, quickly overcoming the queasiness he'd begun to associate with the random jump.

"And second, we just went through the tournament's random jump." Yugi said, "And since you had my hand and Joey grabbed me before we vanished, we all transported together."

"Okay, so we all got sent to a virtual Kaiba Land…" Victor nodded

"And I'll bet Kaiba hid an eliminator around here…" Joey smiled.

"Then let's start searching!" Victor suggested, "We aren't going to get any further in this tourney by just standing around."

The three were about to start down the midway, when a voice caught their attention.

"Hah, they call this a fortune teller? I can predict the future better when I'm faking it!" The voice said.

Looking around, Yugi pointed to a nearby tent. It was red, and covered with yellow stars. A sign over it read "Paths of Destiny," with a picture of a hooded figure looking into a crystal ball.

Going inside, the three duelists saw that there wasn't much inside the tent. Just a large, old fashioned fortune teller machine. The mechanical gypsy inside the glass case was pointing to a single tarot card in front of her.

Victor moved closer, and looked at the card.

"Which one is it?" Joey asked.

"The death card." Victor sighed, "Looks like someone is trying to intimidate us."

"I wouldn't dream of such a thing." Said a voice from the machine.

Victor stumbled back as a boy stepped from behind the fortune teller. He wore a pink shirt and brown pants, with green hair that went down to his shoulders. A disk was strapped to his arm, and he had a smile on his face.

"Well hi there Joey, long time no see!" The boy smiled, waving to the blond teen.

"Espa Roba! No way." Joey laughed, "What are you doing here?"

"I was invited of course." Roba explained, holding up his disk, "Hence the reason I have my Duel Disk. And I've been doing pretty well too."

He turned to Yugi and smiled.

"Yugi Mutou, I must say that it's an honor to finally meet you." Espa said as he extended his hand.

"Nice to meet you to." Yugi said, accepting the handshake.

"_At least he doesn't seem sore about losing to Joey in Battle City."_ Yami's voice commented.

"_Yami?"_ Yugi thought, _"You've been so quiet lately, what have you been doing?"_

"_Actually I was taking a nap."_ Yami explained, _"I don't really have to sleep while I'm in your mind, but it's remarkably refreshing."_

"Um…you've been shaking my hand for like, thirty seconds now." Espa said, trying to sound polite, "Is something wrong?"

Yugi snapped out of his conversation quickly, and broke the shake.

"Sorry, I zoned out for a second." He apologized.

"No problem." Espa said, turning to Victor, "And you are…?"

"Victor Greenstone, Washington State Duel Monsters Champion." Said Victor, "Nice to make your acquaintance."

"Ditto." Espa said as they shook hands as well.

"So what have you been up to since Battle City?" Joey asked.

"Dueling of course." Espa said, turning to his former opponent, "After I lost at Battle City, my brothers and I reworked my deck. It's stronger than ever, and I've been supporting my whole family with the prize money from tournaments. You wouldn't believe how much you can earn, especially in underground tourneys."

"No fooling?" Victor asked.

"Yep, and since Battle City I have an undefeated record." Espa continued, "And without cheating too."

"Glad to hear it." Yugi said with a smile, when Espa pointed to him suddenly.

"You won't be so happy in a minute." He declared, "I challenge you to a duel Yugi!"

Yugi gasped, and Joey looked at Espa like he was crazy.

"Um…why are you challenging Yugi?" Joey asked.

"Well, why not?" Espa asked, "He's the official King of Games, he's known around the world for his dueling skill, and I have four points to wager. What do ya say Yugi?"

"Well…" Yugi said, thinking for a minute, "I only have three points myself…but…"

Yugi nodded, and flicked his disk into a starting position.

"Alright, challenge accepted." Yugi nodded, "I need to start earning more points somehow, so let's each put up two."

"Come on Yugi, be risk taker." Espa encouraged, "Let's each bet all of our points. If you win, I'll use a trick I learned to give my last point to you."

"Um…did you perchance learn this trick from a guy in a trench coat?" Yugi asked.

"No." Espa responded, shaking his head, "I learned it from an eliminator I beat: Robotic Knight. I had already lost one point in a duel, but I beat him for three points and special card. Then he threw in some info on how to transfer points to other duelists."

Yugi looked suspicious.

"_Robotic Knight, and a man in a trench coat? Why does this sound painfully familiar?"_ Yugi realized, _"It sounds like the Big…"_

"_Yugi, Mokuba said that they check every hour for problems."_ Yami assured his partner, _"Noah might been able to avoid deletion by the security programs, but I doubt the Big Five would. Besides, they had no way to make extra copies like Noah did. They never escaped back to real world, even after taking Trystan."_

"_What if they did copy themselves into Trystan though?" _Yugi thought.

"_They'd have no way to get in here. Trystan hasn't been in the Virtual World since then."_ Yami pointed out.

Yugi nodded. Maybe it was just a coincidence.

"Okay then Espa, let's take it outside where there's more room." Yugi said.

---------------------------------------

"Ten-thousand on Yugi." Jackson said very quickly.

"Darn it, I wanted to bet on Yugi." Sota grumbled, "Fine, but you can only break even if you win."

"After betting against Mai on her last duel, that's all I want." Jackson responded, switching Yugi and Espa's duel to the big screen, "Oh, did you finish fixing Bronn?"

"No, I had to replace him with a back-up version." Sota sighed, "His data was completely trashed. It was wonder he didn't fall apart!"

"Shh…They're starting." Rei hissed.

---------------------------------------------

Yugi and Espa had gone back out onto the midway, while Joey and Victor elected to watch from the shade of the tent. Yugi was looking at his cards, sorely tempted to choose Dark Magician once again, to serve as his deckmaster.

"Okay Yugi, for my deckmaster I'll choose the card I won from Robotic Knight." Espa stated, jabbing the card, "I choose Jinzo!"

"What!" Joey and Yugi both shouted.

The card shattered, and a cyborg in green robes landed on the ground next to Espa Roba. It focused its soulless, red eyes on Yugi, who shuddered a bit.

"Okay…" Yugi said, taking a deep breath as he moved his finger, "I choose…Dark Magician…Girl!"

A happy giggle filled the air, and a flurry of hearts flew from one of the booths (a kissing booth). The hearts swirled for a second, before gathering into the form of the gorgeous young sorceress.

"Show off." Espa grumbled.

"Thank for choosing me Yugi." Dark Magician Girl said happily, "I promise I won't let you down."

"Don't worry about that Dark Magician Girl." Yugi smiled, "So what's your power?"

"I call it the soul circle." She whispered into his ear, "Once per duel, I'll let you draw card for every monster in your graveyard. But you can only do it once, remember that."

Yugi nodded, and turned to Espa Roba. The green-haired youth was also receiving some coaching from his deckmaster.

"Yugi, I'm just gonna warn you right now about something." Espa smiled, "As long as Jinzo is my deckmaster, you can't use any trap cards!"

"Oh boy…" Yugi winced, "What about you?"

"I still can." Espa shrugged, "The downside, I guess, is that Jinzo has to stay off the field, or he loses his power."

"Well then." Yugi smiled.

Both duelists raised their disks.

"TIME TO DUEL!" Yugi shouted.

"GET YOUR GAME ON!" Espa responded.

Joey gave him a funny look.

"Excuse me?" He asked.

"It's my new battle cry." Espa explained, "What do you think?"

"…It will never catch on." Joey shrugged.

Yugi: 8000

Espa: 8000

Both boys drew five cards apiece, and looked them over.

"Eh…You can go first Yugi." Espa offered.

"Thanks." Yugi said as he drew, "Now let's see…"

Yugi plucked a card from his hand, and placed it onto the field. Dark Magician Girl began to chant in a strange language, and an orb of pink light appeared on the field.

"I'll start with Queen's Knight (1500/1600)." He decided.

From the orb, a blond woman in ruby-red armor leapt forward onto the field. She held a broadsword with a red hilt, and carried a red shield as well.

"That's all for now." Yugi said.

"My move then." Espa said as he drew, "And I'll lay one card facedown, and then set one monster in defense mode."

The two cards appeared, and Espa smiled as he nodded to Yugi.

"Your turn." He stated.

Yugi drew, and Espa's trap suddenly flipped over!

"I activate Respect Play!" He shouted, as the cards in both player's hands began to glow, "Now we both have to show our hands to each other."

Yugi gasped as his entire hand of cards appeared over his head. King's Knight, Mirror Force, Skilled Dark Magician, Premature Burial, and Draining Shield were all revealed.

At the same time, Espa smiled as his hand appeared overhead. It revealed a Cyber Raider, Brain Control, Fiend Mega Cyber, and…some trap Yugi wasn't familiar with. It showed a glowing deck of cards, and was labeled 'Miracle Draw.'

"Interesting cards you have there." Espa commented, "And thanks to my trap I'll be able to prepare for them."

"But now I can do the same." Yugi pointed out, "And while I originally planned to summon King's Knight, I can see that's a bad idea now. If I did, you could special summon your Fiend Mega Cyber."

"Hmm…Good point." Espa nodded.

"Instead, I'll just have Queen's Knight attack your facedown monster." Yugi declared, "Sovereign slash!"

The blond warrior lunged forward, and swiped her sword at the facedown monster…

Only for it to bounce off with a loud _clang_. The card flipped over, revealing a squat machine covered in bronze armor. Its arms were lined with sharp spikes, and it took a swipe at Queen's Knight, forcing her away.

"That is Gear Golem the Moving Fortress (800/2200)." Espa smiled, "Looks like he's a bit too tough for your monster to get past."

Yugi: 7300

Espa: 8000

Yugi sighed in response.

"It's your turn Espa." He stated.

"Thanks." Espa said as he drew, "Now let's see."

A new card appeared over his head. It was a spell called Senri Eye.

"Well lucky me." Espa smiled as he played the spell, "I think I'll play this right now."

The spell rematerialized in front of Espa, and Yugi gave it a look.

"What does this one do?" He asked.

"Nothing until my next turn." Espa explained, "But for now, I'll give you something else to worry about: I tribute Gear Golem for Fiend Megacyber (2200/1200)!"

The mechanical fortress vanished into the ground, and Jinzo let out a series of loud beeps. A shimmering door appeared in the air, and out of it stepped a warrior in yellow and black armor, covered with spikes.

"You worried a bit too much about my monster's effect." Espa smiled, "You forgot I could summon it with one sacrifice. And now your queen is about to be knocked off her throne!"

The warrior dashed forward, and slammed its fist against Queen's Knight's stomach. She howled, before bursting apart.

Yugi: 6600

Espa: 8000

"It's your turn." Espa smiled.

Yugi drew, and smiled as his Graceful Charity appeared over head.

"Since you can see what I drew, I won't bother trying to bluff you." Yugi declared, "But first I'm going to summon my Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700) to the field!"

The card vanished from above Yugi's head as he put it on his disk. In front of him appeared a teenager, dressed in a black robe. He had three stones on his robe, one on either shoulder and one on his chest, and he carried an iron rod.

"Now I'll activate Graceful Charity." Yugi declared, the angle from the card soaring overhead.

She smiled at Yugi as one of her feathers fell off and landed on his deck. Yugi drew three cards, (Mystical Space Typhoon, Gamma the Magnet Warrior, and Emblem of Dragon Destroyer) and grinned as he discarded Mirror Force and Draining Shield.

"I discarded my traps, since I can't use them anyway." Yugi explained, "And now I'll use Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your Respect Play card!"

A howl of wind echoed across the midway, and a tornado suddenly fell on top of the card. Espa gasped as his trap was pulled apart and blown all over the area. The holographic cards over each player's head faded away.

"_He must think I have a lousy memory." _Espa thought, _"But I can easily recall what's left in his hand."_

"And now I'll play Emblem of Dragon Destroyer." Yugi declared, sliding the card into his disk.

A glowing sigil, depicting a sword passing through the head of a dragon, appeared over Yugi. Dark Magician Girl gave it a look, and shrugged. She obviously wasn't impressed by the image.

"Now I can bring my Buster Blader from my deck to my hand." Yugi explained as a card slid out of his deck, "But more importantly, I just played three spell cards. So take a look at my Skill Dark Magician."

Espa looked at it, and saw the three stones were now glowing golden.

"Umm….What are those lights?" He asked.

"They're spell counters." Yugi explained, "Every time a spell card is played, my Skilled Dark Magician gains one spell counter. And when he has three, I can tribute him…"

The spellcaster vanished into an orb of black energy.

"And summon my original Dark Magician (2500/2100)!" Yugi shouted.

Espa gasped as the orb vanished, leaving Yugi's signature monster. The purple-robed sorcerer smiled, and Dark Magician Girl swooned at the sight of him.

"Okay, that was pretty good." Espa Roba admitted.

"I'm just getting started too." Yugi smiled, "Dark Magician, dark magic attack! Obliterate his Fiend Megacyber!"

The ultimate spellcaster pointed his weapon straight at the warrior across from him. Espa braced himself as the world went photo-negative for a second, and his monster shattered like cheap glass.

Yugi: 6600

Espa: 7700

"That's my turn." Yugi nodded.

"Then my turn starts." Espa declared as he drew, "And now the effect of my Senri Eye goes off. By paying 100 life points, I can see the top card of your deck."

A glowing eye appeared on Espa's forehead, and the top card of Yugi's deck began to glow as well. Espa closed his eyes, and an image appeared in his mind.

"_So…he's about to draw his Polymerization card. Can't have that."_ Espa thought as he opened his eyes.

The glowing eye vanished, as did the glow around Yugi's deck. Looking at the card in his hand, Espa smiled.

Yugi: 6600

Espa: 7600

"_This won't solve the problem of Dark Magician, but at least I won't have to worry about his Dark Paladin."_ He thought, playing the card.

"I activate D.D. Designator." Espa declared, a howling portal of white energy appearing next to him, "Now I get to name one card, and if it's in your hand we remove it from the game."

"_Uh oh."_ Yugi realized, _"He was just looking at my entire hand. And he saw the top of my deck. He must want to get rid of something, so whatever I draw can't help me!"_

"And I'll name Buster Blader." Espa smiled, "I didn't need Respect Play to tell me you had that. You told me when you played that spell of yours."

The portal howled louder, and the Buster Blader card was roughly yanked out of Yugi's hand. He winced as it soared through the portal, which slammed shut.

"And now I'll set one monster in defense mode." Espa declared, "Let's see how good _your _memory is."

Yugi drew, and thought for a second.

"_Well, I was right."_ He thought, looking at Polymerization, _"He didn't want me to summon my Dark Paladin. But I still remember what's in his hand…"_

"I summon Gamma the Magnet Warrior (1500/1800) in attack mode." Yugi declared.

A short, pink, rocky creature fell from the sky and floated out onto the field. It had a pair of large wings, and a large 'S' on its front.

"Let's see, Cyber Raider should only have 1000 defense points." Yugi recalled, "Gamma, attack his facedown monster with magnet fist!"

The magnetic monster swooped forward on its wings, and slammed its fist into the hidden creature. Espa gasped as his Cyber Raider was reduced to a mass of broken gears.

"Oh…crud." Espa said, as Yugi pointed at him.

"Dark magic attack!" Yugi called out.

The powerful magician swung his staff, and Espa screamed as every cell in his body suddenly felt as though it was on fire! His vision was photo-negative for a minute, before the attack ended.

"That…was not…a fun experience." Espa groaned as he struggled to keep standing.

Yugi: 6600

Espa: 5100

"I tell you, that looks like it hurts." Joey commented, "Ever since Battle City, when monsters could start attackin' directly I've been worried about the day Yugi might sic Dark Magician on me."

"It definitely looks like a situation to avoid." Victor nodded, "I don't think Espa enjoyed it at all."

"It's your turn Espa." Yugi said as his opponent shook his head, "Are you feeling alright?"

"Give me a minute…" Espa said, holding his head, "Ugh…"

Espa finally drew, and his Senri Eye began to glow again. Closing his eyes, the image of a Pot of Greed appeared.

"_I can't stop that."_ Espa realized, looking over his hand, _"And the two cards he draws could be anything."_

Looking at the card he just drew, he tried to think of a plan.

"I'll set this card facedown." Espa declared, the trap/spell materializing next to his Senri Eye, "Your turn Yugi."

Yugi drew, and held up his Pot of Greed, just Espa had predicted. The greedy ornament chuckled inside the card, while Yugi made his extra draws.

"_I don't want to risk one of the only monsters in my hand on his facedown card." _Yugi thought, _"Better attack first."_

"Dark Magician, go!" Yugi shouted.

"I activate Draining Shield!" Espa Roba responded.

The familiar shield burst up in front of Espa and caught the incoming blast of magic. Rather then the usual musical bell tone, this one let out a clear ring like the nearby strength testing machine. Yugi and Espa both gave the shield a strange look.

"Did you know the sound effect would change here?" Yugi asked, as Espa's life points rose.

"To be honest, no." Espa responded.

Yugi: 6600

Espa: 7500

Yugi looked to Joey and Victor, both of whom just shrugged in response.

"Ah well." Yugi sighed, "Gamma, it's your turn! Magnetic fist attack!"

The pink rock swooped forward, and drove its fist into the false-prophet's stomach. Espa groaned as more life points slipped away.

Yugi: 6600

Espa: 6000

"And that's my turn." Yugi said, casting a forlorn look at his Magic Cylinders trap.

"_I'd normally set this facedown, but Espa's deckmaster removed that option."_ Yugi thought, _"I can't let my guard down, without my traps I've lost one of the most effective ways to defend my monsters."_

Espa drew his card, and allowed Senri Eye to do its work. The image of Jack's Knight filled his mind, and he smiled.

"Well Yugi, I know for a fact that your next card won't help you." Espa said as he held up the card he had drawn, "So I'll let you draw it early with my Card of Sanctity!"

Yugi frowned, and drew his single card (Jack's Knight, of course). Espa smiled as he drew four cards, and quickly placed one in his disk.

"Now then, I'm not going to need Senri Eye anymore." Espa declared, "So I'll get rid of it with Emergency Provisions."

The hungry mouth appeared, and Espa's spell turned into big piece of funnel cake. The mouth devoured it, and licked its lips before vanishing.

Yugi: 6600

Espa: 6900

"Now I'll activate another spell in its place." Espa declared, placing a new card into his disk, "Convulsion of Nature, go!"

A howl began to echo across the fair again. Yuig looked up, and saw storm clouds gathering. Lightning streaked across the sky, and the earth trembled. In the distance, tornados began to fall to the ground and tear the landscape apart.

"Does this have a game effect, or is it just supposed to destroy stuff?" Joey asked, getting a touch worried.

"Don't worry Joey, those disasters will never touch us." Espa smiled, "But my spell here does have a powerful effect. If you would look at your deck Yugi…"

Yugi looked to his cards, and gasped. Sitting face up in his deck slot was Giant Soldier of Stone!

"Huh?" Yugi gasped, "What's happening?"

"My spell changed the rules a bit." Espa explained, showing another Cyber Raider sitting on top of his deck, "As long it's on the field, we both have to turn our decks upside-down, and continue playing like that. Now we can each see what the other is about to draw."

"Why would you use a card like that?" Victor asked.

"You'll see." Espa responded, "Now I'll two more cards facedown, and then play my Brain Control spell card!"

A hideous brain appeared next to Espa, followed by a pair of brown cards. The brain siphoned glowing energy from Espa Roba's body, and he smiled as a pair of misty formed.

"I'm sure you know what this does Yugi." Espa declared.

"It lets you brainwash one of my monsters by paying 800 life points." Yugi gulped.

"And judging by your face, you already know which one I want." Espa smiled, "Come to me Dark Magician!"

The hands latched on to the sorcerer-supreme's head, and he screamed as his mind went blank. The brainwashed magician floated over to Espa, who smiled once more.

"Time for a little payback." Espa announced, pointing at Gamma, "Obliterate that annoying magnet! Dark Magic Attack!"

The spellcaster raised his staff, and blasted Gamma into magnetic dust. Yugi cringed as his life points fell.

Yugi: 5600

Espa: 6100

"And since I don't plan on letting you have him back, Yugi, I'll sacrifice him right now." Espa declared.

"Wait a second." Joey protested, "Espa, I've dueled you before. The only cards in your deck that need a sacrifice are Fiend Megacyber, and Jinzo."

"That was my old deck." Espa explained, "My new deck has a third monster that needs a sacrifice. So goodbye, Dark Magician…"

Yugi gasped as his favorite monster faded away.

"And hello, Mind on Air (1000/1600)!"

The new monster that appeared was…disturbing, to say the least. She seemed female, with blue skin and green hair. Extending from her navel was a thick, electrical cord, and sitting on top of her head was a clear dome through which her brain was visible. She focused a single, glowing eye on Yugi, and then did something truly strange.

The cord on her stomach lashed out, and wrapped around Yugi's waist! He drew back, trying to struggle free, but stopped.

Mind on Air was mimicking his every movement now, and was also holding a hand full of Duel Monster cards. Espa glanced at them and smiled.

"Well, I already knew about King's Knight, Jack's Knight, Polymerization, and Premature Burial." Espa said, "But you also had Magic Cylinder and Beta the Magnet Warrior? Glad I got rid of Gamma then, otherwise I'd probably have your Valkeryon to put up with."

"What the…Your monster lets you see my hand?" Yugi realized.

"A six-star monster with only 1000 attack points needs to have a powerful ability." Espa pointed out, "Otherwise it's not worth playing."

"Good point…" Yugi said, a bit uneasy with the idea of Espa's monster holding onto him, "But what's the point to all this?"

"You'll see soon enough, until then I have one more card to play." Espa stated, sliding his last card into place, "And let me tell you, I couldn't believe my luck when I drew both of my best combos. I equip Heart of Clear Water to Mind on Air."

A blood-red stone with a skull visible inside it hovered down carefully from the lightning filled sky. It settled itself onto the brain case of Espa's monster, and a blue aura appeared around her.

"Since Mind on Air has less than 1300 attack points, Heart of Clear Water keeps her from being destroyed in battle." Espa explained, "Your move Yugi."

Yugi picked his Giant Soldier of Stone, revealing his Meteorain trap card. Yugi winced, knowing the trap would be useless, but never the less placed another monster onto his field.

"I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior (1700/1600) in attack mode." Yugi declared.

A new monster, this one made of smooth, yellow rock with magnets on its hands and head, emerged onto the field. It looked at Espa's monster, and let out a worried sounding beep.

"I know, she's creepy." Yugi agreed with the little magnet, "But she's still in attack mode. Attack her with magnet pulse!"

The magnet warrior charged up a blast of energy between its hands, and fired it at the monstrosity across from it. Mind on Air stumbled backward as the blast struck her, but remained standing.

Yugi: 5600

Espa: 5400

"That all you got?" Espa challenged.

"_Actually, yes."_ Yugi grimaced, waving to end his turn.

"Fine, before your turn ends I activate my two facedown cards." Espa declared, both of his cards lifting, "Go: Ominous Fortune-Telling and Miracle Draw!"

Espa's deck started to glow with strange energy, and the storm around the field seemed to worsen. The lightning now crackled overhead with unnerving frequency. At the same time, a crystal ball hovered over Espa's head, surrounded by a purple smoke.

"And before you ask, I'll tell you what both of these do." Espa said, cutting off a flood of questions, "Miracle Draw activates at the start of each of my turns. I have to guess what the next card I draw will be, before I actually draw. If I'm right, you lose 1000 life points, and if I'm wrong then I lose those points instead."

"But Convulsion of Nature lets you see what's on top of your deck." Yugi realized, "You can't be wrong!"

"The rules don't say I can't have help." Espa responded, "Now then, Ominous Fortune-Telling activates during my standby phase. I pick a random card from your hand, and try to guess whether it's a spell, trap, or monster card. If I'm right, you lose 700 life points."

"And Mind on Air let's you look at my hand." Yugi nodded, "I have to admit, that's a great combo. And Heart of Clear Water makes sure that she stays on the field."

"That's right, you've got it!" Espa cheered, "So let's start. I predict my next card will be my second Cyber Raider, and I'm right of course."

Espa drew, and his deck fired a bolt of magical energy at Yugi. The spiky-headed teen screamed as his life points dropped.

"Now, Ominous Fortune-Telling goes to work." Espa said, as one of Yugi's cards began to glow. The matching card in Mind on Air's hand started glowing as well.

"I guess my trap picked a monster, Jack's Knight to be precise." Espa announced, "So prepare for 700 more damage!"

Another bolt of energy, this one purple, shot from the crystal ball and slammed into Yugi. He gasped, and fell over as his life points dropped again.

Yugi: 3900

Espa: 5400

"Are you okay Yugi?" Victor shouted.

"I've been better." Yugi muttered as he got to his feet, "But I have to admit, Espa has an impressive combo. Where did you come up with it?"

Espa leaned back a little, and crossed his arms.

"I'll give you the condensed version, okay?" Espa explained, "After Battle City, Joey over there tracked me down to try and return my Jinzo card, like he had done for Mako Tsunami. I turned him down however, because I wanted him to keep it. Besides, after my phony psychic act I didn't really feel like I deserved such a great card."

Victor and Yugi both looked at Joey, who nodded.

"It didn't feel right keeping those cards." He explained, "Mako took Legendary Fisherman back without an argument, but Espa here insisted I keep Jinzo."

"What about Insect Queen you got from Weevil Underwood?" Yugi asked.

"Gave it to your gramps to sell at his shop." Joey shrugged, "I didn't need, sure, but I sure as heck gonna give it back to a slimy cheater."

"Anyway…" Espa interrupted, "I decided that if I couldn't use a fake psychic in my duels, I'd use cards that would let me act like a real psychic, and really see what my opponents were holding. Imagine my surprise when it actually worked. It was all just a matter of protecting my traps here, and I'm good at doing that."

"So, when you use this combo, I'm guaranteed to lose 1700 life points each turn." Yugi nodded, "Very impressive Espa, you've come a long way."

"Wow…That means a lot coming from the King of Games." Espa smiled, reaching for his disk, "But I'm not going easy on you. I switch Mind on Air to defense mode, so now my life points are untouchable."

The creepy monster fell to one knee, and crossed her arms. Espa smiled as he perused Yugi's hand some more.

"Nothing more I want to do." Espa declared, "Make your move Yugi."

Yugi drew, and looked over his cards. A plan began to come to mind…But it would require him to get rid of Mind on Air first. Nothing in his hand was capable of doing that at the moment, and the Mystical Elf on top of his deck wasn't going to help either.

"I'll end my turn without a move." Yugi said, placing one of his cards into his disk's graveyard, "So I'll discard Magic Cylinder to keep my hand at six cards."

The card vanished into the discard slot, while Espa's traps began to glow.

"Time for Miracle Draw to go to work, and this time I know it's going to be my Amplifier spell." Espa declared, reaching for his deck.

Espa drew the card, and showed it to Yugi.

"Right." Yugi said, bracing for impact as another blast of magic hit him.

Another card in Yugi's hand started to glow, and Espa looked to Mind on Air for the answer.

"And now my trap has picked one of your traps." Espa declared, "It's the Meteorain trap card you drew last turn."

The crystal unleashed another wave of magic, knocking Yugi off his feet.

Yugi: 2200

Espa: 5400

"Ouch…" Yugi groaned as he got up, "It's a good combo…But I don't think I can take much more of this."

"Don't lose heart Yugi." Dark Magician encouraged from behind him, "You can beat him!"

Yugi looked to the young witch, who had a determined look on her face. She nodded to Yugi, who nodded back.

"He's found a way to hurt you without touching your monsters." The apprentice declared, "But if all I can do is encourage, then I will."

"That's touching, but unless you draw a way to get rid of this combo, I'll win in two more of my turns." Espa declared, "So make your move."

Yugi drew (Mystical Elf) and smiled as he saw what sat on top of his deck. Espa went pale when he saw it too.

"Oh no…" Espa squeaked.

Sitting on top of Yugi's deck was his Heavy Storm card.

Espa looked at the top of his own deck, and almost screamed. Another Gear Golem sat there, completely useless at the moment.

"Let's see…" Yugi said, "I think I'll use Dark Magician Girl's deckmaster power. Since I have four monsters in my graveyard, I can draw four cards."

Dark Magician Girl floated into the air over Yugi's head, and waved her staff. Ghostly images of Dark Magician, Queen's Knight, Gamma the Magnet Warrior, and Skilled Dark Magician appeared around her.

"Soul circle!" She cried out, a blast of pink light empowering Yugi's deck.

Four cards slid into Yugi's hand, and he snapped one of them into his disk. Espa's monster still showed what each one was: Heavy Storm, Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts, Card of Sanctity, and Dark Magician of Chaos.

"This duel is still on Espa Roba." Yugi declared, "I activate Heavy Storm!"

The storm around the field began to worsen, before a howling wind tore over everybody. Espa and Yugi braced themselves to keep their cards from flying away, while all of Espa's spells and traps were demolished! His deck stopped glowing, the crystal ball shattered against the ground, and the blue aura around his only monster faded away. Finally, the wind died out, and the sun emerged. With the disappearance of the storm, Yugi and Espa's decks both faded away, and then returned to their disks, facedown this time.

"Now I'll activate Premature Burial." Yugi declared, putting the spell into place, "And I'll pay the 800 life points to return Queen's Knight (1500/1600) to the field!"

Out of a circle of red light, rose the ruby soldier. Her armor was tarnished, and her sword rusty, but she was glaring at Espa Roba with a good deal of anger…

Yugi: 1400

Espa: 5400

"Next, I'll summon King's Knight (1600/1400)!" Yugi declared, slapping down another card, "But I can't summon Jack's Knight from my hand by his effect, so that will have to wait for now."

A knight with a blond beard, wearing golden armor and carrying a steel sword with a golden hilt, appeared next to Queen's Knight. Both monsters nodded to each other, and crossed their swords.

"_I don't want to fuse these three, in case he draws Snatch Steal, but I can still do a fair bit of damage."_ Yugi smiled.

"Beta, wipe out Mind on Air!" Yugi ordered.

The magnetic monster unleashed another blast of magnetic energy, and this time the freaky monster didn't survive. She burst into green shards, and Espa's vision of Yugi's hand was cut off. Yugi sighed as the cord around his waist vanished, and he then looked to Espa.

"King's Knight, Queen's Knight…" Yuig said, pointing at his foe, "Attack directly!"

Both royal monsters leapt forward, and Espa yelled in pain as the warriors plastered him to the ground with their weapons.

Yugi: 1400

Espa: 2300

"_Darn it!"_ Espa shouted in his head, _"I didn't have a chance to draw my Spell Reflector or Spell Canceller cards…Those could have saved me, and now Yugi's side is stacked!"_

"That's all for my turn." Yugi invited as he discarded Polymerization and Meteorain to keep his hand at six cards, "Go ahead."

Espa drew, and smiled. He place the card into his disk, and the image of a hand full of cards, one of which was glowing, appeared on his field.

"I activate Hand Control!" Espa shouted, Yugi's hand glowing once again, "Now I guess the identity of one of your cards, and if I'm right you have to activate it. And since I just saw it in your hand, I'll name Card of Sanctity!"

The card in Yugi's hand shimmered, and flew into his disk. A golden flash lit up the area once more, allowing Yugi to draw one card (to make for the spell he had just cast), and Espa drew four.

"_Very little here, I only have one chance…"_ Espa realized.

"I summon my deckmaster to the field!" Espa called out, "Come forth my mighty Jinzo (2400/1500)!"

The mechanical monster stomped forward, and settled in front of his controller. Jinzo's eyes focused on its targets, while Espa pointed at Queen's Knight.

"Crown that queen now!" Espa shouted, "Cyber shock energy attack!"

Jinzo cupped his hands, and an orb of black energy appeared in them. He launched it forward, and Queen's Knight screamed as she was once again wiped from the field.

Yugi: 500

Espa: 2300

"Next, I'll equip Jinzo with my Amplifier spell card." Expa declared, sliding another card into his disk.

A strange helmet filled with circuits and blinking lights appeared on Jinzo's skull. The machine-typed whirred for a bit, before settling down again.

"Now Jinzo's special ability only applies to your field." Espa explained, sliding into his disk, "So since I'm free to use my traps, you can probably guess what this is."

A facedown card appeared behind Jinzo, and Espa took a deep breath.

"Your turn." He said.

"_Please let him fall for it."_ Espa prayed in his head, _"That card is no better than a bluff if he summons that monster I saw…"_

Yugi drew, and gave Espa's facedown card a good, long look.

"_If that card is meant to negate my summons, I'm finished." _He thought, _"Otherwise, I've won."_

"I'll tribute King's Knight and Beta the Magnet Warrior…" Yugi declared, sliding another card into his disk.

The two monsters vanished, and a black void appeared in their place.

"And I'll summon my Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!" Yugi shouted.

Out of the void leapt a wiry spellcaster, wielding a black staff. He wore a black body suit, streaked with purple and blue, and a large headdress of similar coloring.

"And through his effect, I can take one spell from my graveyard and put it in my hand." Yugi declared, a card coming out of his disk, "And I choose Heavy Storm, which I play now!"

The wind picked once more, and Espa bowed his head.

"You win Yugi." Espa admitted.

The winds shattered Espa's facedown Sakuretsu Armor, as well as Jinzo's Amplifier card. The android screamed, and burst into data fragments.

Yugi: 500

Espa: DECKMASTER DESTROYED

----------------------------------------

"Ooooh, so close." Jackson smiled, "Looks like we're even now."

"We'll see if that remains true at the end of the day." Sota retorted, watching as Yugi and Espa shut down their disks.

-------------------------------------

"Great duel Yugi, it was a real honor." Espa said, shaking his opponent's hand.

"You put up great fight." Yugi nodded, "Sorry for spoiling your perfect record."

"It was bound to happen sooner or later." Espa shrugged, "In the meantime, I believe I owe you four points…"

"You don't have to give me all of your points." Yugi protested.

"If any around here deserves them, it's you." Espa said, tapping his disk.

The four points of light wandered into Yugi's disk, and a holographic seven emerged from it. With that complete, Yugi began to fade again.

"Guess I'll see you around." Yugi shrugged, as Joey grabbed his shoulder.

"Guess so." Espa nodded.

"Hey Yugi, mind if I come along?" Victor asked, clapping a hand on Joey's shoulder.

"What the…" Joey gasped.

"After a duel like that, I want to what else he can do!" Victor exclaimed, with a big smile.

"I guess it's too late to say no…" Yugi sighed, just before he and his companions vanished completely.

Espa sighed, and began to walk away.

"I wonder if the virtual copy of the 'Burst Stream of Destruction' works." He muttered, starting toward the roller coaster.

Just across the midway, one the other side of the booths that had served as Espa's arena, a ring of light descended to the ground…

And Celeste Hikari emerged from it.

**_I was honestly impressed with that strategy. Looks like Espa had learned some new tricks._**

_**Anyway, time for another of my old opponent's to step up. Just for a change of pace thought, Celeste is dueling him!**_

_**If you think carefully, you might be able to figure this one out…**_

_**The next chapter is **_

_**ACME Attack**_

_**See ya next time!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Miracle Draw

Continuous Trap

Image of a glowing deck of cards

At the start of each turn, before your draw phase, you must guess the name of the card you will draw. If you are correct, your opponent takes 1000 points of direct damage. If you are wrong, you take 1000 points of direct damage.

_This card was first used by Taizen in the Yu-Gi-Oh GX episode "Nature of the Draw." All credit for it goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Hand Control

Spell Card

Image of a hand of cards, one of which is glowing.

Name one card, and look at your opponent's hand. If the card you named is in your opponent's hand, they must activate it.

_This card was first used by Yami in the anime episode "Fate of the Pharaoh (Part 3)." All credit for it goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Jinzo

Machine

DARK

Six star

2400 attack

1500 defense

Trap Block: As long as this monster remains in the deckmaster position, all of your opponent's trap cards are negated. You may use traps normally, unless Jinzo comes to the field.

_This monster first served as a deckmaster for Lector of the Big Five in the two part saga "Settling the Score." All credit for its power goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

Dark Magician Girl

Spellcaster

DARK

Six star

2000 attack

1700 defense

Soul Circle: Once per duel, you may draw one card for each monster in your graveyard.

_This monster first served as Tea's deckmaster in the two part saga "Freeze Play." All credit for its power goes to the writers of those episodes._

A/N: The phrase "Get your game on!" was first used by Jaden Yuki in Yu-Gi-Oh GX. All credit for this phrase goes to whoever thought it up and (in Older Hokage's humble opinion) they can keep all the rights to it


	12. ACME Attack

_**When I was growing up in Los Angeles there was a local celebrity that was often seen by the kids around the city. He was a very nice gentleman, who often donated to schools (especially their art programs).**_

**_Maximillian Pegasus, the father of Duel Monsters. Easily identified by his white hair and red suit. But about four years ago he just…disappeared. No body knew where he went or what had happened to him after Duelist Kingdom._**

**_But now he seems to be making a comeback. Industrial Illusions has been releasing all new cards and games, indicating that Pegasus must have returned.   
_**

_**And now he's making his latest public appearance very shortly…**_

**ACME Attack**

Celeste let took a deep breath as the teleportation ring faded from around her. She checked herself over to make sure that she was in one piece and, upon confirming she was, proceeded to check her new surroundings.

She gasped upon realizing that she was in a very familiar locale…

"But…how could I be back in Kaiba Land?" She wondered out loud, scanning over the park around her.

The statues of Duel Monsters were all around, along with any roller coasters and a giant Ferris wheel rising overhead. Concession stands and midway games lined the path before her and spewed out happy music akin to her Fairy Box card. Turning around, Celeste found she was next to the path to the Dueling Arena at the center of the park.

Celeste took a deep breath as she attempted to make sense of the situation. She had just been in the Virtual World and now she was back out among the crowds in Kaiba…

Celeste opened her eyes, realizing something was amiss. Looking around confirmed her suspicions. It was mid day judging by the sun high in the sky, but she was the only person around. Celeste began to chuckle as the answer slowly dawned on her.

"_Of course Kaiba would be egotistical enough to create a virtual replica of his own park!"_ She thought, doubling over with laughter.

Once that was out of her system she decided to take the path to the arena. It was a well paved sidewalk surrounded by flower boxes and grassy patches, with a few trees casting shade down on it. The minute she steeped toward it though, a shrill buzz rang out from nowhere!

Celeste gasped and stumbled backward as a large door erected itself in front of the path. It was made of stone with arms and legs extending from it. At the top of the frame sat a tiny face with an angered look.

"None shall pass." The door said in surprisingly loud and deep voice.

"Umm…Hello there." Celeste said politely as she regained her composure, "Does this path lead to the arena?"

"Yes, but you shall not pass." The door declared in its stony voice.

"Well why not?" Celeste asked, "Is there a duel in progress that way or…"

"The arena is off limits until the finals." The door explained, "So I, the Golem Sentry, have been trusted with guarding the path. That is why none shall pass."

"Okay then…" Celeste said, backing away, "I'm just gonna check the midway then. Have fun…making sure none pass."

Celeste turned around and walked off, leaving Golem Sentry standing there.

----------------------------

"Why didn't she challenge the sentry?" Sota asked, looking at the screen.

"She can't, it's not an eliminator." Jackson explained, typing in a few commands, "Unlike most of the autonomous Duel Monsters running the Virtual World, Golem Sentry was only assigned to keep competitors away from the arena. He's sort of our firewall program."

"Why wasn't I told?" Sota asked indignantly.

"We didn't want you messing with it." Rei scolded, "Now be quiet. There's only one other duelist in the park right now, and if Celeste finds him I don't want to miss a second…"

----------------------------

Back in the virtual Kaiba Land, Celeste was wandering down the rows of game booths and arcades. She glanced back and forth, searching for signs of life.

"Darn it, didn't anyone else land here?" She grumbled as she came to a fork in the path.

Glancing down the left, there were only more games. To the right though was a large castle, with a series of monster statues in front of it. They depicted terrifying fiends and zombies, including Summoned Skull and Reaper of the Cards. There was a sign above the castle gates, with an image of Reaper on the Nightmare and the words "Castle of Dark Illusions" written on it.

"_Woah…This is that new house of horrors they were going to add to Kabia Land LA next year!"_ Celeste realized as she moved closer, _"I guess they a made a virtual copy to test it."_

Seeing so sign of Golem Sentry, she smiled and dashed inside.

The minute she crossed the threshold of the entrance, the door slammed shut behind her. She stood inside an entrance hall with a midnight blue carpet running down a set of stairs before her. Torches lined the staircase, and Celeste smiled as she began to descend.

"_Wait till I tell my friends back in LA about this!"_ She thought excitedly.

At the bottom of the stairs was another door. The moment she touched it, it swung open revealing a pitch-black room. Shaking with excitement Celeste went in, not surprised when the door closed by itself, leaving her in total darkness.

A low moan permeated the shadows, and a small light flared overhead. Celeste looked up to see a tiny girl in brown clothes, carrying a wooden staff.

"Raging Flame Sprite?" Celeste asked.

The girl giggled and pointed her cudgel at the ceiling. A burst of flame flew from it, and lit an array of chandeliers overhead. Celeste gasped as she saw that she was standing in some sort of dungeon. Barred cells ran from the doorway behind her to the other side of the room, and piles of armor and weapons sat in the corners. Looking into one of the cells, she saw a rather realistic skeleton missing one arm and both legs.

Celeste shuddered with disgust, and then noticed one of the cells at the end of the room was open. The moan echoed from the open cell, and Celeste cautiously moved toward it. Steeling her nerves, she looked into the cage…

And saw a man in a fancy red suit laying facedown. He moaned as he pushed himself up and rubbed his forehead.

"Feels like I just hit my head against concrete." He groaned as he stood up.

"Pardon me sir, but it looks like you did." Celeste said softly, "Are you okay?"

The man turned toward her and Celeste gasped. He had a young looking face which was off set by his silver-gray hair. The hair was neat and tidy, coming down to his shoulders and covering the left half of his face. He smiled as he saw the light duelist and stepped forward with his hand extended.

"Ah, hello there." He said in a joyous voice, "I was afraid I'd be stuck in this accursed attraction for the rest of the tournament. Pleasure to meet you, I'm…"

"Maximillian Pegasus." Celeste said in awe as she shook his hand, "I'm Celeste Hikari sir, and it's an honor to meet you! I'm a big fan of your card game and…"

Celeste stopped and broke off the handshake. A thought had just occurred to her: Pegasus had vanished after Duelist Kingdom, and no one knew where he was. What would he be doing in a Kaiba Corp Tournament?

"Is something wrong Miss Hikari?" Pegasus asked as he brushed his suit off, "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"No, but I think I see an Eliminator!" Celeste accused stepping back.

"Eliminator? Me?" Pegasus laughed, "Well I'm sure my first opponent was tad upset over me taking him out of this competition but I can assure your I'm not of Kaiba-boy's programs."

"You aren't?" Celeste asked suspiciously.

"Between you and me, Kaiba can barely stand me." Pegasus whispered, "Why waste his time making a virtual duplicate of me? Heck, the only reason I'm here is because it makes good publicity for our respective companies. I've no doubt people have noticed my drop in public appearances over the last four years."

"_Everyone in LA was sure Pegasus was dead before the new cards came out."_ Celeste thought as she nodded in agreement.

"Well I had a few…setbacks to sort out. Now I'm ready to get back to doing what I love: Make people happy with my games." Pegasus smiled as he spread his arms out.

He looked over Celeste and adopted a thoughtful expression.

"Hikari, eh? That name sounds familiar…Have we met?" He asked.

"Maybe you heard it when I won the LA regionals last month?" Celeste guessed, "It had reasonable coverage."

Pegasus nodded this time, "Yes, that must be it. I could have sworn though that…Oh never mind. How did you find yourself in this delightful dungeon? Golem Sentry wouldn't let you pass I presume."

"You tried to get to the arena too, huh?" asked Celeste, "Yeah, I made that mistake too. When I saw this place though I couldn't resist trying it out. It's not supposed to be open to the public…"

"For another year." Pegasus finished for her, "Precisely the reason I entered. I'm just having a bit of trouble finding the exit to this dungeon is the thing. I think I was close, but then I tripped and here I am."

"Well, the fastest way to get around this place seems to be winning duels." Suggested Celeste, eyeing Pegasus's disk.

"Are issuing a challenge to me?" Pegasus asked in shock, "Dear me, and I thought I hit my head hard…"

"I didn't hit my head, and I'm not joking." Celeste smiled, struggling to avoid acting like Zeffie, "A duel with the creator of Duel Monsters isn't an honor you can get everyday!"

Pegasus thought for a minute, and nodded. He smiled as he held up his disk, showing a four in the readout.

"Very well then, I have four points to wager." He said, "And you?"

"Only three." Celeste said, "So how about we each put up a safe bet of two?"

"Playing conservatively, and not overestimating your skills." Pegasus nodded, "Admirable. I can see some of the traits that made you a regional champion. Let's just move away from this cage though, it's fairly cramped."

The two moved away from the cell. Celeste stood back near the door, while Pegasus occupied the opposite side of the room. The area between them was just large enough for a duel arena. The two activated their disks, and the card grids appeared to show their deckmaster options.

Pegasus nodded and tapped the monster of his choice. From the dungeon wall behind him emerged a terrifying beast with bumpy, brown skin. It had no legs, but rather a cone of sorts on which it balanced, and a face with a fanged hole of a mouth on its chest. A pair of ghastly wings extended behind it, and a single golden eye on a stalk bobbed where its head would be.

"Allow me to introduce my deckmaster: Thousand Eyes Restrict!" Pegasus called out.

Celeste grimaced at the sight of the creature, and struggled to avoid vomiting. She checked over her creatures and thought.

"_Soul of Purity and Light was good last time…but I have a feeling a different one of my monsters would make a better overall deckmaster."_ She thought, _"Now this one is one of my non-fairies that I meant to use as support, and its effect is tough to work with…"_

Celeste tapped the card, and behind her rose a book shelf that stretched from the floor to the ceiling. It was crammed full of all manners of tomes, scrolls, magazines, and other reading materials.

"I choose Royal Magical Library as my deckmaster." Celeste declared.

"A good choice indeed." Said a soft, feminine voice.

Celeste turned around, and was shocked to see a young woman wearing a business suit and skirt standing behind her. She wore red framed glasses and had short, black hair, with a pair of white wings extending from her back.

"Hysteric Fairy!" Celeste gasped, "Last time I checked you weren't on my Library's card."

"Well you can't expect a pile of books to speak for it self can you?" The angel asked, pushing her glasses up, "I'm here to do the talking for it. Now listen here: This deckmaster has a power known as search system. With every three spell cards played, you automatically draw a card even if it's not your turn."

"That's awesome!" Celeste smiled, then gave her monster a suspicious look, "Is there a catch to this?"

"Well…yes." Hysteric Fairy said nervously, "Your hand limit will be reduced for this duel from six to five."

"Well that seems to be a bit a problem for you." Pegasus commented with a smile, "Ah well, shall we begin Ms. Hikari?"

"Yes, let's." Celeste said as they each drew five cards.

Pegasus: 8000

Celeste: 8000

"Age before beauty my dear." Pegasus declared as he drew a sixth card, "I'll take the first move with Toon Alligator (800/1600) in attack mode."

Pegasus tossed the card casually into place, and his deckmaster shimmered with green light. A blob of the light broke off, and formed into a small alligator carrying a stone axe. It looked strange though, like it had been formed from watercolor paints with bright colors and big eyes.

"And that's my move." Pegasus smiled as he gave a nonchalant wave.

"…Well I heard that you had an odd sense of humor." Celeste commented upon seeing the gator, "I didn't realize how odd until now."

She drew and swiftly placed one card onto her disk.

"I'll open with Dunames the Dark Witch (1800/1050)!" She called out, waving a hand toward her monster zone, "And despite what her name implies she's actually a light attribute…"

"Fairy-type." Pegasus interrupted, "Let's not forget who made this game."

A book soared off of the shelf behind Celeste, and Hysteric Fairy caught it. She opened it up, and a flurry of white paper flew out of it! The papers gathered in a vortex around the spot Celeste had indicated, and from them emerged a brown haired woman wearing red armor. She hovered about six inches over the dungeon floor on a pair of white, metallic wings.

"Dunames, attack his toon now!" Celeste ordered.

"I think not." Pegasus said with an air of confidence, "Oh Restrict, could you stop her nasty little angel?"

Behind him, the strange bumps on his deckmaster's skin split open. Each one revealed an eye which fired a beam of green light over the field. Dunames screamed, and cowered in fright next to Celeste.

"This is not a good time for a panic attack!" Celeste scolded, trying to remain brave at the sight of her foe's monster, "What's going on?"

"Thousand Eyes Restrict's deckmaster power is known as _sengan jubaku._" Pegasus explained with a smiled, "It was awfully nice of Kaiba-boy to program him with my favorite ability from Duelist Kingdom."

"_Sengan jubaku…_Thousand eye curse." Celeste realized.

"Exactly, though it's not as strong as normal." Pegasus explained, "All that happens is that you aren't allowed to attack with a monster during the first turn you summoned it. So Dunames will have to wait for your next battle phase."

"Drat." Celeste muttered as she placed a card in her disk, "I'll set one card and end my turn."

A facedown card materialized behind Dunames, who had calmed considerably. Pegasus drew, and smiled as he selected his next card.

"Okay then, I choose to summon my Toon Gemini Elf (1900/900)!" He shouted, placing the card down.

A splash of watercolor paint appeared on the floor, out of which rose two women that, like the alligator, looked like they had just escaped from a cartoon. They wore brightly colored dresses (one purple, the other blue), and stood back to back.

"Aren't they precious?" Pegasus sighed, "My adorable little toons will soon cover the field."

"_If you can't say anything nice…"_ Celeste coached herself as she tried to avoid staring at the odd monsters.

"But of course, I can't attack with them their first turn out. So I'll switch my Toon Alligator to defense mode." He said, turning the gator's card, "Your move."

The little reptile crouched down, moving its axe in front of its body for defense. Celeste drew, and Dunames now seemed fully recovered from her fright.

"I'll start with Pot of Greed." Celeste said as the staple card of many decks glowed in her hand.

She pulled two cards from her deck, and gave them a look. Behind her, Hysteric Fairy flew up to the top level of the bookshelf and flicked on a green lantern, casting a glow over the entire top shelf.

"Now I'll set one monster in defense mode." Celeste declared as a hidden monster appeared next to her first one, "And I'll send Dunames after Toon Alligator! Shadow flux!"

Dunames waved her arms, and a blast of sparkling black energy flew at the crouching gator. Its eyes bugged out of its skull, and it held up a small sign that read "UH OH" before being blasted into a puddle of paint.

"Too bad I had time to move him to defense mode." Pegasus pointed out, "Is that your turn?"

Celeste nodded, and Pegasus drew his card.

"Well lookie here, I just drew my favorite card!" He cheered as he placed the newest addition to his hand into the disk, "So welcome Celeste, to a world of magical, mystical mayhem! A world of dreams and laughter…"

Strange music began to play, and a giant book fell from nowhere and landed behind the toon elves. It opened up, casting streamers and sparkling lights all over the dungeon (which actually made it a touch creepier).

"A world of toons!" Pegasus concluded his speech, "Behold: TOON WORLD! And I only have to pay 1000 life points to activate this card."

"One-thousand life points!" Celeste shouted, "Why you would make a card so expensive? Final Countdown I can understand but…"

"Trust me, the cost of this card is the perfect balance to the power it grants my monsters." Pegasus said, "Watch now as my Toon Gemini Elf attacks you directly!"

"What!" Celeste gasped.

The toon girls giggled, and jumped past Celeste's bewildered monster. They locked arms behind her, and clothes-lined Celeste as they snapped back to their original position. Celeste fell forward, and let out a shout of surprise and pain

Pegasus: 7000

Celeste: 6100

"Ouch…" Celeste moaned as she got up again.

"And let's not forget their effect." Pegasus said as the elf in the blue dress stretched her arm forward, "Now you lose one random card from your hand."

The stretched limb snatched a card from the shocked girl, and stuffed it into her grave.

"_My Fairy Box!"_ She thought, and then something occurred to her.

"Wait a minute, how did your monster attack me directly? I had monsters on the field." She asked, pointing at the elf.

"Oh Celeste, my toons live to break the rules." Pegasus exclaimed in a joyous voice, "So long as the magic of Toon World is in play, every last one of my toon monsters will be allowed to attack you directly if I want them to."

"And why wouldn't you want them to?" Celeste asked.

Pegasus shrugged, and put another card onto his disk.

"Excellent question, the short answer is: I have my reasons." He said promptly, "For now, I'll leave you another playmate: My Toon Goblin Attack Force (2300/0)."

This time when the card hit the disk, a strange little creature with green skin jumped out of the cell next to their dueling field. He wore armor, and hefted a club over his shoulder, but like his predecessors he looked like an escapee from a Saturday morning kid's show.

"And then I'll let you take your turn." The goblin's controller finished.

Celeste drew, all the while trying to think of a way out of this, and breathed a small sigh of relief when she saw her card.

"I activate Giant Trunade, sending all of our spells and traps back to our hands." She announced, holding the card over her head.

She hadn't noticed Hysteric Fairy light the second lantern after Toon World was played. But she certainly noticed when the third one lit up. Mainly because the three lights floated over her deck and a card floated into her hand.

Once that had occurred, a blast of wind and water washed over the entire field. The cartoon book slammed shut, and flew back into Pegasus's hand, while Celeste's facedown card mimicked the action.

"Now I'll activate the card that just came back to me." Celeste said as she placed the card back in her disk, "I was using it as a bluff, but now I'll just use Reload."

Her five remaining cards vanished, along with her deck. Behind Celeste, Hysteric Fairy flew back to the top shelf and relit the top lantern (it had gone out after Celeste's extra draw). Celeste's deck reappeared then, and she drew five new cards.

"_Much better."_ She thought.

"I'll set this facedown." She said as she put a card, once more, into her disk, "And then I'll tribute Dunames for Airknight Parshath (1900/1400)"

Celeste switched the card on her disk for one from her hand, and the blue armored centaur galloped forth as Dunames vanished. He drew his sword from a scabbard tucked in his wings.

"Don't forget my deckmaster." Pegasus warned as he shook a finger.

"I didn't. That's why I'm ending my turn here." Celeste said.

Pegasus drew and gave Parshath a cursory glance.

"_Hm…Fairy monsters…most of the best fairies require tributes to be summoned._" He thought, _"Parshath ties with my elf, and if you add that to his trampling power he's a force to be reckoned with. I better make sure she doesn't have anything left to tribute for her stronger monsters."_

"I don't think I'll play Toon World yet." Pegasus stated, "I won't need it to handle your monsters. Toon Gemini Elf, destroy her facedown monster with Do-Se-Do drop kick!"

The elven women locked arms again, and began a very comical dance. They were laughing like mad as they jumped high into the air, and landed on the back of the card next to Parshath. A beam of light came from the card, and both girls looked at each other in horror. They screamed as the card flipped, and sent them flying right back to where they had started.

"Your monster attacked The Forgiving Maiden (850/2000)." Celeste explained as a crying woman in black robes materialized on the card, "I guess she was a bit too tough for them."

"Maybe so, but my toon goblins will have an easy time with your airknight." Pegasus pointed out, "Attack my goblins, with cannonball catastrophe!"

The cartoon goblin on the field whistled, and three more goblins rushed out of the cell. They were pushing a squat little cannon in front of them, which they all piled into at once. The first goblin pulled out a match, which he lit on the sole of his shoe, and carefully ignited the cannon's fuse. He then scrambled inside the mouth with his fellows and the artillery went off with a huge explosion! The four monsters (now curled into green balls) flew right toward the centaur…

When Celeste waved a hand over her disk. A silver shield jumped in front of the goblins, which squashed against it as it intercepted all of them. They peeled off, fell to the ground looking like green pancakes with hands and feet, and scuttled back to their master before popping back into shape.

"What happened?" Pegasus said in shock as Celeste laughed out loud at the comical sight.

"My (hahahaha) Draining Shield trap (hahaha) stops your attack and adds the monsters attack points to (haha) my life points." The girl explained between snickers, struggling to stand up straight.

Pegasus: 6900

Celeste: 8400

"Well darn, you negated my attack." Pegasus said in mock frustration, "But that also means my Goblins don't have to go defense since you negated their attack. I guess I'll just set one card facedown and end my turn."

A new card appeared facedown behind the goblins, three of which scrambled back into the cell next to them. The elves had recovered from their encounter with Forgiving Maiden, and were now a touch miffed. Celeste drew to begin her turn.

"I'll equip my Cestus of Dagla to Airknight Parshath (2400/1400), bringing his attack up by 500 points." She said as she threw a card into the slot on her disk.

A pair of golden blades flashed into existence in front of the winged knight, who sheathed his sword and claimed them. He pointed the new tools threateningly at the goblin, who trembled in fear.

"Attack his Toon Goblins with dagla strike!" Commanded Celeste.

Parshath charged forward, and swung his daggers through the goblin leader. He fell to the ground in two halves, his legs running back into the cell while his torso got up on its hands and followed it. A burst of pixels from the cell indicated the monster was gone.

"And now that he damaged your life points, the cestus will transfer the points you lost to me. Plus, Parshath lets me draw one card on top of that." Celeste said as she picked up another card.

The heavenly centaur waved his dagger at Celeste, bathing her in gold light for a second.

Pegasus: 6800

Celeste: 8500

"Could it be? My turn?" Pegasus asked, reaching for his deck.

Upon Celeste's confirmation he drew a card. Smiling, he took another card and placed it into his disk.

"Well then let's celebrate!" He shouted, raising his hands, "With the return of Toon World!"

The pop up book fell into place again, and opened with an echoing blast of explosions, boings, and other cartoony noises. At the same moment, Hysteric Fairy lit her third lantern and Celeste's card flew into her hand. The lanterns extinguished themselves again, and the angel woman leaned against the wall to catch her breath.

Pegasus: 5800

Celeste: 8500

"And now I'll tribute my cartoon elves for someone a bit cuter." Pegasus continued, swapping the cards on his disk.

The elves looked insulted at the thought of someone cuter than them as they hopped back into the book. A magical whirl of brightly colored hearts and flowers swooped out and dumped what looked like a little girl onto the field.

The thing was, this child was dressed as the Dark Magician Girl, and had huge, anime style eyes. She giggled as she held up her toy staff and winked at Celeste.

"Oh…how sweet." Celeste cooed, "She's so cute."

"I told you. It's because she's my Toon Dark Magician Girl (2000/1700)!" Pegasus responded as the girl flashed victory sign, "Oh, you might like to know that, unlike most of my toons, this one doesn't have to wait a turn before attacking."

The girl gave Celeste a sly smile as she twirled her staff like a baton.

"She doesn't huh?" Celeste challenged, trying to avoiding cooing again, "Well Parshath is too strong for her to beat."

"Haven't you learned anything about my toons?" Pegasus smiled, "Toon Dark Magician Girl, attack her life points directly!"

The little spellcaster saluted to her master before springing herself over Parshath's head. She reached behind her back, and pulled out huge mallet which she clobbered Celeste over the head with! Celeste fell to her knees from the head trauma, while the toon girl dropped the mallet and back flipped back to Pegasus.

"Cartoons are so violent these days, aren't they?" He laughed as he took a card from his hand, "Ah well, I hate seeing all those life points go to waste. So I'll activate my Sebek's Blessing card, stealing those points you just lost."

From the card Pegasus held up emerged the crocodilian god, who waved his staff over the billionaire's head. He smiled as a shimmering pool of light hovered around him for a few seconds.

"I just can't get a break today." Hysteric Fairy grumbled as she flew up once more to light the top lantern.

Pegasus: 7800

Celeste: 6500

"Now I'll lay one facedown card and call it a turn." He finished, as another giant card appeared next to Toon World.

Celeste got back to her feet and drew. Noticing the spell she had picked up her thoughts drifted a bit back to her home in Los Angeles.

"_I remember this card, Christina…Chris…gave it to me for my birthday last week."_ She realized.

Christina (she preferred to be called Chris) was just one of her friends from back home. A gothic girl with black hair and a mostly black wardrobe, with some dark purple for personality. She always wore contact lenses that made her irises look red, but despite the creepy aura about her she was still a good friend.

"_Chris told me this was a powerful spell, but it's useless right now. I need the other pieces."_ Celeste reasoned as she looked at the rest of her hand, _"Better just try to get rid of that toon for now. Maybe this monster will scare him…probably not, she wouldn't be able to attack this turn anyway."_

"Parshath, destroy the Dark Magician Girl!" Celeste shouted, her monster charging forward once more.

"Oh come now Celeste, don't you know cartoon characters never get hurt?" Pegasus laughed, "I activate both of my facedown cards! Go Astral Barrier and Spirit Barrier!"

Parshath closed in as the two cards lifted, and swung his weapon at the trembling girl…

But when he hit, her body stretched like a rubberband and snapped back into its normal shape! Parshath stumbled back with a confused look, while the toon maiden blew a raspberry at him.

"That didn't go as planned. What happened?" Celeste asked.

"I told you, toons don't get hurt. Haven't you ever noticed how Wiley Coyote always gets blown up, smash flat, or dropped off a cliff, but comes back for the next scene?" Pegasus said, smiling bigger than ever, "These traps help my toons do the same thing! First, Astral Barrier can turn anyone of your attacks to a direct assault on my life points. Then, Spirit Barrier negates any battle damage I take as long as I have a monster in play."

"So I'm locked out!" Celeste realized, staring at the traps.

Toon Dark Magician Girl nodded her head very quickly in response, then swung her staff like a baseball bat and sent Airknight Parshath flying back to his part of the field.

"_Not much point to summoning this now, except for the life points I'd gain."_ She thought as she looked at the two cards in her hand, _"They wouldn't last long against his toons, but it's better than nothing!"_

"I'm not done yet, I'll activate Polymerization." Celeste declared, giving her tired deckmaster an apologetic look.

"I'm not mad at you. I'm mad that library master who's _supposed_ to be here." Hysteric Fairy explained as she lit the second lamp, "Fiji Flu my ass, he just wanted a day off…"

The swirling fusion vortex appeared behind the almost forgotten Forgiving Maiden, and drew her in.

"I'm going to fuse Forgiving Maiden with Marie the Fallen one from my hand." Celeste declared, as a woman with black skin and a pink outfit flew through the portal, "To summon St. Joan (2800/2000)!"

From the portal emerged a woman with strawberry-blond hair, cut short. She wore sparkling steel armor, and carried a silver blade in her right hand which she pointed at Pegasus.

"That's it for me." Celeste sighed as Pegasus drew.

"I'll activate my Pot of Greed, so come here my cards." Pegasus said in a sing song voice as he drew his two cards.

Hysteric Fairy ignited the third lamp, and Celeste drew her extra card as well. As that happened, the eccentric artist played another monster.

"And now for my Toon Mermaid (1400/1500)." He declared as a giant clamshell fell to the floor next to the Dark Magician Girl.

A pair of eyes opened on top of the shell, and the shell itself opened to reveal a cartoon mermaid holding a red bow and arrow set. She waved hello to her neighbor, who giggled back and waved her staff.

"_Man, if Barb could see what happened to her favorite monster…"_ Celeste thought.

Barb was, of course, another of the light duelist's friends from California. A peppy teen girl who refused to wear anything that wasn't pink, with blond hair that fell past her shoulders. Red Archery Girl was her favorite monster, and this Toon Mermaid, to Celeste at least, was twisted parody of her friend.

"But don't worry, she's not staying long. You see, she's considered a special summon when Toon World is in play." Pegasus said as he switched cards again, "So I can tribute her for another summon: My Toon Summoned Skull (2500/1200)!"

Toon Mermaid was absorbed back into the book, which spat out a blob of shadows crackling with lightning. It quickly formed into an animated satire of Yugi Mutoh's signature fiend, with its legs still disappearing into the book. Celeste drew back a bit at the sight of this monster.

"Oh don't worry, my sweet little skull can't attack in the same turn I summon him." Pegasus assured the girl.

"Well that's a relief." Celeste sighed, before Pegasus spoke up again.

"Of course, my Toon Dark Magician Girl is still here…" Her opponent continued, "Make her laugh Dark Magician Girl!"

The comical sorceress thought for a minute, and then waved her staff and produced a banana cream pie. She smiled as the pie floated over Celeste's head, and then swelled to the size of an inflatable wading pool. Celeste gasped as she was suddenly buried up to her neck in potassium-rich desert (which thankfully faded quickly from her clothes and hair).

Pegasus: 7800

Celeste: 4500

Celeste quite obviously wasn't laughing, although Pegasus and his monsters were in hysterics. Noticing the lack of mirth on the other side of the field, Pegasus wiped a tear from his eye.

"What's wrong, no sense of humor?" He asked.

"I would have preferred cherry pie." Celeste said simply.

The two toons and Pegasus stared at Celeste, and then everyone in the dungeon (even Celeste's monsters) had another good laugh.

"Oh well said my girl, well said!" Pegasus applauded, "You're the first opponent that truly appreciates my toons!"

"_Well I can at least take a joke."_ She thought, just nodding in response to Pegasus.

"Ah…your turn." Pegasus sighed as he finally stopped laughing.

Celeste drew, and let out a cheer as she held a card over her head. Behind Celeste rose the solemn figure of Marie the Fallen one, raising her points by 200 as per the card's effect.

Pegasus: 7800

Celeste: 4700

"I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Spirit Barrier!" She shouted.

A blast of wind flew forward, and wiped out the trap. Pegasus clicked his tongue and shook a finger at Celeste.

"Tut tut, much too hasty." He scolded, "If you had destroyed my Toon World my toons would have vanished…"

Celeste blushed and realized her mistake, "And your combo would be useless anyhow."

"You see what happens when you don't take time to plan your moves? You were so eager to disrupt my lock that you didn't see the better option." Pegasus responded.

Celeste was silent for a minute, before she placed a card into her disk.

"Well, I can still destroy your toons. I'll equip St Joan with my second Cestus of Dagla." Celeste said carefully.

Another pair of daggers fell to the floor, this time they were retrieved by St. Joan (3300/2000), who attached them to the waistband of her armor. A golden glow surrounded the patron saint of France, and gathered around her sword.

"Joan, attack the toon skull! Parshath, you take the magician!" Celeste ordered.

Both of her fairy-types lunged forward. The toon monsters tried to run away, but crashed right into each other instead. They fell in a crumpled heap and were easy prey for the blade-wielding angels. Once more, a glowing aura boosted Celeste's points as the top two lanterns ignited once again.

"Man this is tiring." Hysteric Fairy panted, "Ease up on the spells a bit."

Pegasus: 6600

Celeste: 5700

"Sorry." Celeste apologized quickly, "That's all for my turn."

Pegasus drew once more, and smiled as he played the card.

"I'll use my Card of Sanctity, so we each draw until we have six cards." He said as a golden light filled the dungeon.

Pegasus drew five cards, while Celeste drew two for his card and one for her deckmaster (this being the third spell). Seeing the card her deckmaster had given her, Celeste smiled. It was an extremely powerful monster, meant to be coupled with the spell she had!

"_And here's George's present."_ She thought, smiling at the high-level monster, _"He said that if anyone could pull this off I could…But I'm missing the most important piece."_

George was the last of her main trio of friends back home. A tan skinned jock with crew cut blond hair, he was always either surfing or playing soccer and football when he wasn't dueling with Celeste and the others. Between the four of them, Celeste, Barb, Chris, and George had setup a trading ring. Each of them gave the others cards they didn't want or need in their own decks, in hopes that it would help the friend they gave it to.

"_Now it looks like these might help me."_ Celeste thought as she placed the two special cards next to each other, _"I wonder how much yard work George really did to buy this for me though?"_

"Well now, I guess I'll summon two Toon Mermaids." Pegasus said as a pair of fish-girls in clamshells dropped to the field, "But, like before, they won't stay long. Prepare to meet my ultimate toon!"

Pegasus removed both of the mermaid cards from his disk, and they vanished back into the pop up book that was Toon World. The book slammed shut for a second, before opening to a new page…

Out of which busted a chibi-dragon with silver scales and huge blue eyes! Celeste's own eyes went as wide as the dragon's upon seeing the creature.

"My immortal tribute to Seto Kaiba." Pegasus smiled, "Say hello to Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon (3000/2500)!"

The cartoon dragon waved to Celeste like the others did before him. Celeste was too shocked to respond.

"Speechless, eh? Well this should grab your attention." Pegasus smiled as he placed a card into his disk, "I had a feeling that with Monster Reborn inexplicably banned for tournament use I'd need this card in my deck to handle stuff like Premature Burial. I play Eternal Rest!"

From Pegasus's hand flew another spell card, this one showing Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer obliterating multiple spirits a strange spell. A swarm of angry ghosts flew from the card, and surrounded Celeste's two monsters. The Fae warriors howled in anguish, before being torn into pixels by the spirits.

"What did you do!?" Celeste shouted, staring at remains of her monsters.

"Eternal Rest wipes out any monster that has an equip card attached to it." Pegasus explained with a shrug, "That included both of your monsters. You're lucky I can't attack with my Toon Blue-eyes this turn, so I hope can make your next one count."

Celeste drew, and gritted her teeth(despite gaining 200 points from Marie). She had drawn a monster, but the not the one she needed. Taking three cards (Miraculous Decent, Light of Judgment, and her last Cestus of Dagla) she slid them into her disk.

"I'll play three cards facedown." She said nervously, hoping she could hide her bluff, "That's my turn.

Pegasus: 6600

Celeste: 6100

Pegasus drew, and looked at Celeste's field.

"Those are probably bluffs, given the way you're acting." He said.

Celeste began to sweat nervously as Pegasus placed another card into his disk, "But why take the chance? I play my own Giant Trunade."

A blast of wind and water swooped across the dungeon again, sending all three of Celeste's cards flying out of her disk. She caught them, while Pegasus grabbed his two and then he played two more.

"Now then, I'll replay Toon World for another 1000 life points." He said, the book falling open as though it had never left, "And then I'll play Premature Burial, reviving my Toon Dark Magician Girl (2000/1700) since she was popular last time!"

A ring of light appeared in front of the book, and a creepy zombie version of the toon girl wearing a ragged outfit pulled herself out of the ground. Celeste let out a "blech!" of disgust at the sight, before the sorceress toon reached up and removed a zombie mask from her face. Still cute as ever, she giggled and spun the mask on one finger. It turned into her cane, and the rest of her outfit repaired itself.

In the meantime, Hysteric Fairy was struggling to keep up with move. She frantically lit the final lantern, and it extinguished itself immediately. Another card found it's way to Celeste's hand while the now-fatigued angel weakly climbed to the top shelf and lit the top lantern again. She then slumped weakly on top of the book shelf, panting to catch her breath.

"Are you okay?" Celeste shouted up to her deckmaster, noticing her condition.

"Not really." The business fairy panted, "But I think you need to worry more about yourself."

Celeste turned to see Pegasus pointing right at her.

"Alright, you two know what to do!" Pegasus shouted.

Toon Blue-Eyes pulled out an oversized bottle of seltzer water, which it shook violently. Aiming at Celeste, it removed the cap and sprayed the poor girl with three liters of carbonated beverage. Mercifully, her clothes dried out before her shirt became transparent again.

Toon Dark Magician Girl obviously had a different plan in mind. She waved her staff and it turned into red stick of dynamite! She casually lit the fuse and chucked it over to Celeste, who ran back as far as she could against the bookshelf. The fuse reached its end, and Celeste squeezed her eyes shut…

A loud "POP" echoed through the room, and Celeste, the books, and a disgruntled Hysteric Fairy were now covered in colorful streamers and confetti. A single slip of paper floated in front of Celeste, the word "KA-BOOM" written on it in bold letters.

"_This isn't funny anymore." _Celeste thought as her life points dropped, _"Now, it's annoying."_

"Of course, to let a creature as powerful as my Blue-Eyes Toon attack I need to make a small sacrifice." Pegasus admitted with a sly smile, "I need to pay 500 life points or else he can't attack. But given his strength I'd say it's quite a bargain…"

The cartoon dragon nodded in agreement, and pulled out a tiny cash register. The word 'SALE' rang up in the price window, and the toon burst into laughter again.

Pegasus: 4300

Celeste: 1100

"That's it, it's your turn." Pegasus stated as he waved his hand, "I can't wait to see how my toons decided to finish this."

The two cartoon monsters began to whisper to one another excitedly. Celeste slowly reached for her deck, annoyed but somewhat proud.

"_Well, I didn't really expect to win. After he _did _create this game."_ She said to herself, _"But I'm not just going to give up. He'll have to earn this victory!"_

Celeste drew, and her eyes rested upon the card in her hand. Marie floated behind her, and sprayed a blast of white sparks over Celeste to bring her life points up again.

"_No way…" _She thought, her jaw going slack, _"Barb's present to me…"_

She looked at the other two cards she had drawn earlier, still safe in her hand. She did some quick math, and then slowly placed the card she had drawn onto her disk.

"I summon Winged Kuriboh (300/200) in attack mode." She said.

A small brown fuzzball with green paws and brown eyes floated down from the bookshelf next to Hysteric Fairy. It had a pair of tiny angel wings, and hovered about two feet over the ground.

"And next I'll lay this card facedown." She continued, sliding a card into place, "And I'll have to discard these two since I'm ending my turn now."

In front of Celeste appeared a facedown card, while Celeste placed Light of Judgement and Miraculous Decent into her grave. Her hand now stood at five cards, while Pegasus brought his back to one.

"_Winged Kuriboh and a facedown card?"_ He thought, shaking his head, _"No, that's impossible. It's completely inconceivable that anyone could have discovered the secret of that monster."_

He shivered a bit as he checked the card he had drawn, his Negate Attack. Not useful right now, but it looked like the game was his.

"_Yes…it's safe to attack."_ Pegasus assured himself, _"The worst that could be is Mirror Force, and if it is I can set Negate Attack. Then, she'll use that Kuriboh to summon a new monster, and I'll stop its attack. After that, I only need another toon to end this."_

Having made up his mind, Pegasus pointed at the Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon.

"Okay Blue-Eyes Toon, let's end this with a direct attack on her life points!" He shouted.

The anime dragon nodded, and pulled from nowhere a huge array of cartoon guns and lasers. All of them were aimed at Celeste, who smiled as she tapped a button on her disk.

"_Here it comes."_ Pegasus thought as he braced himself for Mirror Force.

"I activate Transcendent Wings!" Celeste shouted, her facedown card lifting.

"WHAT!" Pegasus shouted, dropping from his defensive stance.

Celeste took her last Cestus and a Mystic Shineball from her hand, and placed them in the graveyard. Winged Kuriboh's wings began to grow dramatically, and the tiny puffball began to glow with radiant light. In a flash, the mini-fairy had vanished, replaced by a golden dragon with feathery wings. In its claws was the Kuriboh and it let out a frightful roar!

"By discarding two cards from my hand, and sacrificing my Winged Kuriboh, I've transformed him into Winged Kuriboh Lv. 10 (300/200)!" Celeste shouted as she played the high level monster she had been holding, "And since it's your battle phase, I can use his effect!"

"NO!" Pegasus screamed, scrambling backwards, "If you sacrifice that monster…"

"This game is mine!" Celeste cheered, "Because every monster in attack mode will be destroyed, and their total attack will be deducted from your life points!"

The dragon-kuriboh began to glow with gold and silver light. It pulsed with energy, and Pegasus let out a whimper of fear as his toons stared at the phenomena.

"Go Winged Kuriboh, CELESTIAL SACRIFICE!" Celeste ordered, shielding her eyes from the light.

Hysteric Fairy let out a sigh, lit the middle lantern, and then hid behind the bookshelf.

Pegasus screamed as the entire prison around them was consumed by a growing orb of light, and then everything went silent.

Pegasus: 0

Celeste: 1300

"_Thanks guys."_ Celeste thought as the light faded away, _"When your birthdays come around I'm going to get you the best presents ever!"_

Looking around, all of the monsters had vanished. Pegasus was sitting the far wall, moaning in pain from the last assault on his life points. He slowly got up, clutching a fresh bruise on his forehead.

"I can't believe someone actually has the Winged Kuriboh series." He said as he walked over to Celeste, "You quite a duelist Miss Hikari."

"Well…My friends are the ones that gave me these three cards for my birthday." She explained sheepishly, "If it weren't for them I wouldn't have stood a chance."

"You shouldn't underestimate friendship. What you said about losing if not for your friends holds true for another famous duelist: Yugi Mutoh." Pegasus explained as he shook her hand, "You performed admirably, and even when the situation bleak you didn't give up. Maybe you and Yugi should duel someday!"

"_Been there, done that."_ Celeste thought, but wisely didn't say.

"Anyway, I believe I owe you two points." Pegasus said as the two dots of light flew into Celeste's disk, "Enjoy the rest of your time here Celeste."

"I will, don't worry!" Celeste said as she began to fade, "Too bad I can't explore more of the house though."

Celeste vanished completely, and Pegasus leaned against the wall again. As he did, a brick shifted loose, causing the back wall of the cell he had been in before to swing open. He quickly entered the passage, humming "Cartoon Heroes" as he went.

"_I could have sworn I'd heard the name Hikari before…"_ He thought as he walked down a dimly lit passage, _"Ah yes, that delightful girl that won my 'Design a Card' contest eleven years ago was named Hikari. But it couldn't have been Celeste, she would have been five and the winner of that contest was fifteen…Maybe they're related."_

Giving it no more thought, he continued along, humming the song.

----------------------

Jackson was banging his head against his desk, while Sota was smiling like the Cheshire Cat.

"That's another 5000 to me." Sota grinned as he made a note of it on a piece of scrap paper, "Maybe you should quit while you still have your health."

Jackson made no reply, and just returned to his work. He grumbling under his breath though, and making cautious glances at Sota's "betting slip."

"_Just wait till he turns around."_ Jackson coached himself, _"Then you can rip it up."_

_**You're probably wondering if the Hikari that Pegasus is thinking of is related to me. Well that's another story for another day I'm afraid.**_

_**For this story though, we're going back to Joey and Yugi. Joey has just met a girl who wants to see who the true master of luck is, using a deck that has many similarities to our favorite gambler. Prepare to meet a character sent in by one of our biggest fans: SMCandy. We call the chapter:**_

_**Dumb Luck**_

_**See ya then!**_

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Thousand Eyes Restrict

DARK

Spellcaster

One star

0 attack

0 defense

Sengan Jubaku: As long as this monster serves as your deckmaster, no enemy monsters may declare an attack in the same turn that they are normal, flip, or special summoned.

---

Royal Magical Library

LIGHT

Spellcaster

Four stars

0 attack

2000 defense

Search System: For every three spell cards activated, draw one card. Your hand limit is reduced to five for the duel in which this monster serves as your deckmaster.


	13. Dumb Luck

Disclaimer: Not only don't we own Yu-Gi-Oh, we also don't own the fan character that's dueling in this chapter. Hitomi Haruki was sent in by one of our first fans, SMCandy. Thanks Candy, we hope you enjoy the chapter!

_**Joey here again, ready to duel!**_

_**Unfortunately, it seems that I can't find many people who are willin' to duel someone of my stature.**_

…

_**Okay, I can't find anybody at all to duel against. But I think that's about to change.**_

**_There's this girl here, who has apparently been lookin' to duel me for some time now. She calls herself "Lady Luck." She seems pretty nice…_**

**_I just hope this one case where I _can _judge a book by its cover._**

Dumb Luck

Joey screamed as the ring of light faded away this time. He could already feel that there was no ground underneath him, and he was beginning to fall.

Fortunately for him, Yugi and Victor grabbed the back of his shirt, saving him from a painful fate down below. They pulled, trying to get him up onto a catwalk the two of them had been fortunate enough to land on.

"NOW, do you believe Kaiba is tryin' to get us?" Joey shouted.

"This doesn't seem like a good time Joey…" Yugi said, struggling to hold on.

Too bad for Joey, both of his companions lost their grip. He fell, screaming all the way down, toward the uncertain darkness beneath the catwalk.

"JOEY!" Yugi shouted, staring down as he attempted to spot his friend.

"Come on, there's some stairs over here!" Victor called out, pointing down the path.

The duo ran for the staircase, and began to descend.

------------------------------------------------

If Yugi knew what was under the catwalk, he would have been slightly less worried.

Joey, in the meantime, was finding out first hand. He plunged headfirst into a large vat of plastic spheres, each about the size of a ping-pong ball. The balls gave way beneath him, but slowed and eventually stopped his descent.

Joey took a minute to turn himself upright, finding that he could maneuver through the balls with some ease. He moved to the top of the vat, and emerged from the pile, rubbing his head.

"Okay, I really should stop landing on my head." He muttered, looking at the ball pit he sat in, "What with all these balls anyway?"

Looking over them, Joey noticed that each orb was marked with a letter and a number. Looking around, he moved to the edge of the vat, and carefully climbed out. He stopped, and sat on the edge, looking around to get some idea of where he was.

Scattered across the floor some five feet below him were several half-finished machines. Each was equipped with three windows and lever, and covered with golden panels.

"Hm…Those look like slot machines." Joey realized, climbing down from his perch.

Still observing the scenery, he noticed other machines. And electronic Bingo board, a roulette wheel, and other sorts of casino games. All of them seemed to be only partially finished, or in some state of disrepair.

"Where the heck am I? Some sort of casino repair shop?" Joey wondered, walking up to one of the slots.

On whim, Joey pulled the lever on the machine. The windows blurred with images of numbers and fruit, before lining up on a trio of sevens. The machine beeped and whistled uncontrollably, before releasing a puff of smoke and powering down.

"Well, it seems you're just as lucky as I heard." Said a female voice from nearby, "You must be if you landed in the ball container instead of one the board or the machines."

Joey spun around, bracing himself for a fight, and the voice laughed.

"Calm down Joey, I'm not here to hurt you." Said the voice.

From behind the Bingo board emerged a woman. She seemed to be in her mid-twenties, with red hair down to about her shoulders and large, blue eyes. She wore a white shirt with puffy sleeves, and a black vest over it. Her shirt was tucked into a pair of black pants, and she wore red high-heels. She looked like the sort of women one would expect to be serving drinks or dealing cards out at a casino.

"I must say that it's a pleasure to finally meet you." The woman said, "I've been watching your career Joey, and it seems the goddess of luck takes a bit of favor on you."

"What are you talkin' about, who are you?" Joey asked, remaining defensive.

"Oh, how rude of me." The woman said, stepping forward, "My name is Hitomi Haruki. Known around gambling circuits as 'Lady Luck.'"

"Lady Luck, huh?" Joey asked, "You're a good gambler?"

"_Very _good." Hitomi responded, "I've been playing games of chance for a while now, and luck usually seems to be on my side."

"So, why have you been watching me?" Joey asked, smiling a bit, "I mean, besides the obvious…"

Hitomi smiled and stepped forward, revealing a duel disk strapped to her right arm.

"You interest me." She explained, "I've based my career around luck, and always accept what fate throws my way. But it seems that luck tends to favor you as well when you're in a pinch."

She turned on the disk, and Joey watched as an array of card appeared in front of her.

"I decided, when I first heard about your success in Duelist Kingdom, that I wanted to see which of us is the luckier." Hitomi grinned, "Lady Luck versus the famous Wheeler Luck. What could be a better duel than that?"

"So, you've been watching me since Duelist Kingdom." Joey nodded, trying to remain calm, "Then you must know about Battle City and Kaiba Corp Grand Championship too."

"That I do." Hitomi confirmed with a nod, "And from what I've gathered your luck seems to have slipped over time. I want a chance to test it before it disappears forever. So what do you say?"

Joey looked at his deck, and smiled. He turned on his disk, and the card array appeared in front of him.

"How many points are we bettin'?" Joey asked.

"Four each." Hitomi suggested, "Winner moves on, loser is eliminated. It's the biggest gamble we can take here."

"Four points then." Joey nodded, "Let's choose our deckmasters."

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi and Victor had reached the bottom of the stairs by this point. They were on the factory floor, but there was no sign of Joey.

"Where could he be?" Yugi asked, starting to get worried.

"Let's try this way." Victor suggested, pointing toward a group of machines labeled 'Virtual Poker."

Yugi nodded in agreement, and the duo headed toward the indicated area.

-------------------------------------

Joey was checking his monsters, trying to select his deckmaster. He looked at Flame Swordsman for a minute, but something kept drawing his gaze to another monster.

"_For some reason, I feel like I should use a new deckmaster."_ Joey thought, looking at the other monster, _"It couldn't hurt this once…Could it?"_

Hitomi nodded, and tapped one of the cards before her. A piercing blast of light shot from nowhere, and blasted into the ground. From the light emerged a young woman, in a green dress with hair made of leaves. She yawned, stretched, and smiled at Hitomi.

"I select Goddess of Whim as my deckmaster." Hitomi nodded, "Now let's see what you choose."

Joey nodded, and pointed at the second monster.

"Okay then." He said, "I'm gonna take a chance on a new deckmaster…"

A loud screech sounded from behind Joey, and out of the darkness behind him swooped a dragon! A dragon any duelist would recognize, from its ebony black scales and piercing, red eyes.

"I choose Red Eyes Black Dragon!" Joey called out.

"_Thank you Joey."_ Echoed a voice in Joey's head, _"I always hoped that I could serve as a deckmaster for you."_

"_What the…Oh right, telepathy."_ Joey thought as he realized his dragon was talking to him, _"So what can you do?"_

"_My power is one that you should only use in a dire emergency."_ The dragon's voice explained, _"Listen well…"_

Joey closed his eyes, and nodded. Hitomi smiled as she drew five cards.

"Want to flip a coin?" She asked.

"Okay." Joey said, reaching for his pocket, "I'll call heads…"

A huge coin plummeted from above, and slammed into the ground between the two! Joey gasped, and almost fell over with shock. Hitomi also stepped back, but smiled when she saw the result.

"Tails, I'll go first." She said, taking a sixth card, "Let's begin!"

Hitomi: 8000

Joey: 8000

Looking over her hand, Hitomi smiled as she put down her first monster.

"I summon Jirai Gumo (2200/100) in attack mode!" She declared.

Goddess of Whim let out another yawn, and looked up. She smiled and snapped her fingers and, as if in answer to the snap, a thick strand of spider web shot to the ground. Down the web came a terrifying creature. It was large, brown spider, with terrible claws and a drooling mouth.

"Ugh…I hate that thing." Joey grumbled, "Jirai Gumo has never been good news for me."

"That will be all for my turn." Hitomi stated, with a nod.

Joey drew, and gave his hand a good look.

"_Of course, my Goblin Attack Force is not in my opening hand for once."_ Joey thought with a frown, _"Have to play defensively."_

"I'll set this monster facedown." Joey said, sliding a card into place, "And one of my own cards will go facedown also."

A hidden monster appeared, with another facedown card in the spell zone behind it.

"Go ahead Hitomi." Joey said, waving a hand.

Hitomi drew and, without hesitation, placed another monster onto her disk.

"I summon Abare Ushioni (1200/1200), also in attack mode!" She called out.

A huge bull with red fur, covered in white markings, charged onto the field. It stamped its hooves, and glared at Joey.

"And next, I'll play my Second Coin Toss card." She continued, an image of a goblin picking up fallen coins appearing before her, "Every good gambler knows that a second chance can help you win big, and I'm sure it will now."

"So what does it do?" Joey asked, looking at the card.

"I'll let you know if and when I need to use it." Hitomi said, "First I'm going to use Abare Ushioni's effect."

A gleaming, red coin fell from above, and landed in Hitomi's hand. One side showed the bull's head, and the other showed its tail.

"The sides pretty much speak for themselves." Hitomi smiled, "Now, I flip coin and call it. If I'm right, you lose 1000 life points. If I'm wrong, then I'll lose 1000 points instead. But I rarely miss this early in the duel."

Joey watched as she sent the coin spiraling into the air.

"I call tails." She said, just as the coin began to fall.

It clattered to the ground, with the image of the bull's tail facing up.

"I win." Hitomi smiled, "Ushioni, charge!"

The beast let out a frightening bellow, and charged forward. It lowered its head as it approached and, before Joey could try and run, suddenly bucked the poor teen into the air! Joey screamed as he sailed roughly ten-feet straight up, and came down hard on his back.

Hitomi: 8000

Joey: 7000

"Darn it…" Joey groaned as he got up, "Ah well, it's still early. I can make up for that."

"We'll see about that. Jirai Gumo, attack the facedown monster!" Hitomi shouted.

The spider, instead of gleefully ripping Joey's facedown card apart, turned to Hitomi. A bronze coin fell, and she caught it once more. This one depicted a web on one side and the spider itself on the other.

"Now what is it?" Joey asked, as Hitomi showed him the coin.

"Jirai Gumo's effect has changed since your Duelist Kingdom days." Hitomi explained, "The web is tails, and the spider is heads. Before I attack, I have to make another coin toss. If I'm wrong, my life points are cut in half before my attack happens. If I'm right, the attack just happens, nothing else."

"Great." Joey said, "So you based your whole deck around coin tosses?"

"Among other things." Hitomi nodded, "What's life if you don't take few risks, right? I call heads!"

Hitomi pitched the coin in a lazy arc over her monsters' heads. It fell to the floor with a clatter, showing the picture of the web.

"So much for your early luck." Joey smiled.

"Don't be so sure about that." Hitomi said as her spell began to glow, "Now you'll see what Second Coin Toss does."

The coin suddenly flew backward along its path, and landed back in Hitomi's hand! Joey gasped as Hitomi held up the trinket.

"This spell lets me take back one coin toss, and try it again." Hitomi explained, "So let's give this another go. Heads!"

The coin flew again, and this time it landed with the spider facing up. Jirai Gumo turned back toward Joey, and charged forward.

"Oh geeze…" Joey gasped, bracing for impact.

"No reason to panic Joey." Hitomi said as her deckmaster held up a golden coin, "Now my deckmaster activates her power. Destiny's whimsy!"

The goddess tossed her coin into the air, and it hovered in place. Jirai Gumo stopped, and looked up at the coin with all eight of its eyes.

"So what does this do exactly?" Joey asked.

"You ask a lot of questions, don't you?" Hitomi pointed out with a shrug, "I guess you would be curious. My deckmaster can make or break the duel with a single coin, which she'll toss every time I declare an attack."

"Okay." Joey nodded, "You have to call it I guess."

"Nope, this time the results are set for me." The woman said, "If it's heads, my monster doubles its attack for the rest of my battle step. If tails, the attack is cut in half for the rest of the battle. So show me what the goddess of luck has in store today!"

The coin fell, showing a picture of a fist pointing its thumb down. A beam of gold light struck Jirai Gumo, which shrieked as it suddenly shrank to half its size!

"Uh oh…" Hitomi frowned, "Looks like they didn't want me to get an early lead."

The spider continued its attack, as per the rules and regardless of its sudden…downsizing. Joey's facedown monster flipped over, revealing a small knight dressed in brown, leather armor. If Serenity or Celeste had been there, they would have agreed he looked positively adorable.

"That is my Swordsman of Landstar (500/1200)." Joey smiled, "And thanks to your deckmaster, his defense is stronger den your big bug's attack."

The warrior held up a shield, and used it to swat Jirai Gumo back to its proper side of the field. It landed with a thunk, and let out a growl of displeasure at being knocked aside so easily.

Hitomi: 7900

Joey: 7000

"Hmm…Don't think I'll press my luck anymore this turn." Hitomi said, rubbing her chin, "Your turn Joey."

Joey drew, and smiled.

"I summon Little Winguard (1400/1800)!" He announced, putting down the monster, "Come on out buddy!"

Red Eyes let out a roar, and from the ceiling swooped the tiny swordsman in his winged helmet. He and the Swordsman of Landstar exchanged a quick nod, before the newest warrior held up his sword.

"Winguard, destroy Abi…Abo…that bull-thing whose name I can't pronounce!" Joey commanded, "Winged saber strike!"

The tiny knight flew forward at an amazing speed, and sliced its sword across the bull's face. The creature roared in pain, and fell over before bursting into balls of red fluff. Hitomi cringed as her monster vanished.

"Nice work." Joey smiled at the little monster, "Now I'll end my turn, and use my Winguard's ability to switch him to defense mode."

The knight fell to the floor, holding up a little shield in front of himself. Hitomi drew, and plugged the card into her disk.

"Time to make another wager. I activate Ante." She announced, "So place your bets Joey!"

The Bingo board behind Hitomi lit up suddenly, and let out a series of loud beeps and whistles. Joey covered his ears against the noise, while Hitomi held up a card in her hand.

"I'll explain." She said, "We each need to choose a monster in our hand, and show it. Who ever picked the lower level monster will have to discard it, and lose 1000 life points."

Joey nodded, and picked one of his cards.

"Ready?" Hitomi asked.

"Bring it." Joey said, trying ignore the heavy ringing in his ears as the board continued its racket.

"Then let's ante up!" Hitomi called out, turning her card around.

"I chose my four-star Panther Warrior!" Joey shouted, turning the card around.

"Tough luck then, I chose my seven-star Slot Machine!" Hitomi responded.

A ghostly image of a huge slot machine rose up behind Hitomi. It aimed a robotic arm at Joey, and fired off a powerful laser, vaporizing his card and a piece of his life points as he fell over.

Hitomi: 7900

Joey: 6000

Joey groaned, and got back to his feet just in time to see Hitomi place another monster onto her disk. It appeared, facedown, in front of her.

"I'm setting one monster facedown." She said, "But a good gambler knows not to take unnecessary risks. I'm just going to end my turn right now."

"_And if my Dice Jar rolls a six for me, then I'll be walking away knowing that I'm luckier than Joey Wheeler._" Hitomi thought with a smile, _"Stay with me luck…"_

Joey picked up his card, and gave it a good look. He thought for a minute, before turning to Little Winguard.

"Alright buddy, time to try our luck." He said, "I move Little Winguard to attack mode…"

The knight flew up again, and hefted his sword.

"And I'll also move my Swordsman of Landstar to attack mode." Joey continued, the fairy-warrior moving into an offensive pose.

"Huh?" Hitomi gasped, "Wait a minute…There's only one reason you would do that. But you couldn't have drawn that card yet…"

"Well guess what, I did." Joey smiled, "Go Shield and Sword!"

Joey slammed the card into its slot, and a wave of energy floated over the field. Hitomi watched as her insect shrank until it was no bigger than a normal spider, while Joey's warriors got slighter taller.

"Now the attack and defense of every monster on the field has switched." Joey smiled, "So your big bug is now a small target! Smash it Little Winguard (1800/1400)!"

The winged knight flew over the scurrying form of Jirai Gumo (100/2200), and landed on top of it. A burst of brown sparks flew from under his boots.

"Swordsman of Landstar (1200/500), attack her facedown monster!" Joey continued.

The brown-clothed fighter swung his sword, and Hitomi's hidden monster turned over. It was a red and purple jar with a goofy, grinning face on it. It spat out a pair of dice, one white and one gold.

"A Dice Jar (200/300)!" Joey shouted.

"That's right. Now we get to have a roll off." Hitomi grinned as she caught the gold die, "You know what happens to the loser, right?"

"They lose life points equal to 500 times whatever the opponent rolled." Joey frowned, taking the white die, "I've used this card in the past…"

"Then let's roll!" Hitomi called out, throwing her die.

Joey tossed his, and the dice clattered to the ground. Joey's came up as a three, while Hitomi's was on the one.

"Urk…" Hitomi gasped, as three points of light formed on the ground around her.

"Well look at that, guess my luck is coming back these days." Joey smiled, "A three deals you 1500 points of damage, so pay up!"

Three explosions covered Hitomi with dust and metal filings from the floor. She coughed as the 1500 points dropped from her total.

Hitomi: 4700

Joey: 6000

"Okay, looks like luck favored you that time." Hitomi admitted, wiping her face clean of some dirt, "But I can accept it when luck decides to go against me. That's why it will always start to swing in my favor again, because I just let wait for it to do that."

"We'll have to see when that happens." Joey smiled, "I'm ending my turn now."

Hitomi drew, and noticed something.

Both of Joey's monsters were in attack mode!

"_That has to be a trick."_ Hitomi thought, _"But I didn't become a gambler because I was afraid to take risks."_

"I summon Agido (1500/1300) in attack mode." She declard.

As the card was played, a red, egg shaped creature rolled onto the field. It floated into the air, and sprouted a pair of bladed arms. One its front appeared the image of the legendary Eye of Horus, which focused on Joey's monsters.

"Attack his Little Winguard!" Hitomi ordered, "Sprial cutter!"

The odd monster began to spin at high speed, extending its limbs as it did so. It was soon a blur of bladed death, and it launched itself at Joey's monster!

"Hey, what about your deckmaster?" Joey asked.

Agido stopped moving forward, but still spun in place. Hitomi looked over her shoulder, and sighed as she saw that Goddess of Whim was fast asleep, leaning against the now quiet bingo board.

"Ahem." She coughed, "Goddess?"

The sleepy monster opened one eye, looking quite upset at being awakened. Hitomi gestured to her monster, and the deckmaster responded by bouncing a coin of Hitomi's head!

Joey stifled a laugh as the coin fell to the ground, showing the goddess's divine countenance.

"Heads, lucky day." Hitomi smiled, "Now my monster's attack doubles."

"Wait…That gives it…3000 attack points!" Joey realized.

The spinning egg suddenly doubled in size, wiping out its target as it did so! Joey braced himself as a shockwave of energy almost knocked him off his feet.

Hitomi: 4700

Joey: 4600

"_Okay, my Skull Dice card is not doing me any good this time."_ Joey thought, looking at his facedown card, _"Her monsters are either too weak for me to need it, or too strong for it to make a difference!"_

Agido stopped spinning, and shrank back to its regular size. It hovered serenely in place, while Hitomi looked over her hand.

"Hmm…" She muttered, "Too be honest Joey, I'm not too impressed yet. I thought that Mai would have had a better taste in duelists…"

"Well I don't really care what…" Joey started to retort, then a confused look crossed his face, "Wait, Mai? You know Mai, as in 'Mai Valentine?'"

"Actually, I do." Hitomi smiled, "I happen to be an old friend of hers."

"I thought Mai said…" Joey began.

"That she didn't have any friends?" Hitomi asked with a smile, "Well, she kind of more considers me her teacher."

Joey seemed thoroughly shocked now.

"Alright, explanation please." He requested, crossing his arms.

Hitomi nodded, and placed her remaining cards in the pocket of her slacks.

"You see, Joey, before Mai became a professional duelist she worked on a casino boat." Hitomi explained, "Though it was a job with good pay, it didn't really make her happy. I was an employee on the same boat, and this boat happened to be a fairly new one, one the customers could enjoy classics like Black Jack and Poker, or newer games."

"You mean like Duel Monsters?" Joey guessed.

"Bingo." Hitomi nodded, "You could make a fair amount as a house duelist like me, and when I watched Mai work the other card games I had this feeling she could be a great duelist. So, I offered to teach her how to play. She wasn't sure at first, but I wore her down eventually. She picked up the game quickly, and soon became one of our top duelists, beating all sorts of guests from common gamblers to movie stars."

"So what happened?" Joey asked, "Why'd she leave the ship?"

"I can't be sure, I left it first." Hitomi confessed, "I decided I needed to move on to bigger things, but I gave Mai a couple gifts before I left. Her Harpy Feather Duster and Rose Whip cards were her last gifts from me, along with information on how she could find me if she needed me."

"Wow…" Joey said, "I can't believe I'm actually talking to Mai's teacher."

"Well believe it. About two years ago, after some strange storm, Mai got back in touch with me." Hitomi grinned as she slid a card into her disk, "She spoke very highly of you Joey. I had been watching you for a while, I knew the two of you had met, but I wasn't quite clear on your relationship until Mai and I spoke."

"Uh…Relationship?" Joey asked, now even more confused if that was possible.

"She wasn't kidding, you aren't too bright." Hitomi commented, a card appearing in front of her, "Ah well…That's enough of a history lesson for now. I'm setting one card facedown to end my turn."

Joey drew, trying to regain his composure. He looked over the cards, and smiled as he saw a gaggle of familiar faces.

"About time these guys joined the party. I summon Goblin Attack Force (2300/0)!" Called the blond youth as he played the monster.

Four goblins dressed in leather armor filed out of the card, and gathered next to the Swordsman of Landstar. Each carried either a sword or club, and all seemed ready to give a beating to Hitomi's monster.

"Go, goblin brutality attack!" Joey shouted.

The goblins ran right up to Agido, and one of them struck it with his club. The egg-fairy fell to the floor, where the four warriors began beating and kicking it until it shattered into pieces.

Hitomi: 3900

Joey: 4600

"Ouch, that had to hurt." Hitomi commented as an orange-and-red die appeared over her head, "But that might have been pointless thanks to my Agido's ability."

"Another ability? What does this one do?" Joey asked.

"Simple, I roll one die." Hitomi explained, snatching the die from over her head, "Depending on what number I roll, I can take one fairy of an equal from my graveyard and summon it."

"The only fairy in there is Agido." Joey pointed out, "If you roll anything but a four, you waste the effect."

"True, but I'm feeling lucky." Hitomi smiled.

With that, she threw the die forward. It bounced along the ground, before finally settling right on the four. Joey's eyes almost bugged out of his head as the cube began to glow, and Agido (1500/1300) reappeared on the field.

As if to add insult to injury, the goblins returned to their post only to fall down into another game of cards. Joey frowned, remembering how his monster had to go to defense since it had attacked.

"Okay then. I switch Swordsman of Landstar to defense mode." Joey said, turning the card on his disk.

The little warrior landed amidst the goblins, and was dealt into the card game. Joey waved to end his turn, allowing Hitomi to draw.

"Now let's see. I think I'll tribute Agido…" Hitomi declared.

The egg-shaped fairy vanished, and a mechanized roar echoed around the factory.

------------------------------------------------

Yugi looked up as he heard a loud, rumbling roar echo from far off.

"Wait!" Yugi shouted over to Victor, who was starting to run off, "Did you hear that?"

Victor was about to pose the timeless response of 'Hear what?', when the roar sounded again. He nodded toward Yugi.

"Sounds like a duel to me." He stated, "And chances are good that Joey's involved."

"I'd bet money." Yugi agreed, "I think it was this way."

Yugi and Victor took off, heading toward the source of the noise.

--------------------------------------------------

Joey gulped. The monster he was looking at was disturbingly close to Bandit Keith's Barrel Dragon. This monster looked more like someone had stuck a pair of legs and a dragon tail onto the handle of a laser pistol, and somehow brought it to life.

"I summon Blowback Dragon (2300/1200)." Hitomi grinned, "And you're really gonna love the next part. I activate its special ability."

The dragon pointed its head upward, and fired three black coins toward the ceiling. They spun for a minute before coming down again. On each coin, one side was blank, and the other was marked with the image of the dragon.

"If I get at least two heads, or dragons in this case, I can destroy one card on your field." Hitomi explained as the trinkets hit the floor, "Now let's see."

Joey looked down, and groaned. Two of the coins showed the dragon, and the last was blank.

"Perfect. Barrel Dragon, wipe out his Swordsman of Landstar." Hitomi ordered.

The dragon took aim, and a crosshair appeared on the fae fighter. It looked toward the dragon, and gulped, before being blasted by a beam of concentrated energy and erased from existence. The goblins fell back at the sudden loss of their poker buddy (One of them casually scooped up the fallen warrior betting chips before falling over.).

"And now, my monster can and will destroy your goblins." Hitomi grinned, "And since they have no defense, my deckmaster's power is a formality at the moment."

"Aw crud…" Joey muttered.

The goddess yawned, and tossed her coin upward. It landed with the thumb's down side facing the duelists, and Blowback Dragon began to spark and pour out smoke. It somehow still managed to form a group of crosshairs on Joey's monsters, all of which gulped in fear.

"Laser barrage!" Hitomi commanded.

The dragon fired another beam of light, sweeping this one across all four goblins. They shrieked in pain as they were cut down before they had a chance to run. Joey quickly raised one hand over his facedown card, which lifted up.

"I'm not gonna let myself be left defenseless." He declared, "I activate Scapegoats!"

The four little lambs trotted out onto the field, and Hitomi could barely contain her laughter as she hit her disk. One of Hitomi's cards leapt up, showing a group of goblins sitting around a large table.

"Guess again Joey, I use a few tokens myself." Hitomi explained, "So I keep this in my deck, just to help me clear my opponent's life points. It's called Token Feastevil, and it activates as we summon any token monsters!"

"Oh great…" Joey moaned.

The scapegoats bleated in fear, and suddenly burst into piles of fluff. Hitomi grinned as four tiny explosions went off on Joey's chest, causing him to fall backward.

"This trap then destroys all tokens on the field, and you lose 300 life points for each one." His foe explained, "So I just knocked out 1200 of your life points, and cleared your field!"

Hitomi: 3900

Joey: 3400

Joey got back to his feet, clutching at his chest. At the same time, he happened to glance over Hitomi's shoulder…

Just as Yugi and Victor came barreling from around the Bingo board.

"Joey!" Yugi shouted, seeming very relieved, "Are you alright?'

"Could be better." Joey said, "I'm in a bit of a fix here."

"I'll say." Victor nodded, noticing the Blowback Dragon, "Ugh…I've faced Blowback Dragons before. They are _not _fun to go up against."

"Yeah, I figured." Joey said.

"Don't give up Joey." Yugi encouraged, "You can win this!"

"Oh, he probably can." Hitomi admitted with a shrug, "But if you ask, the odds of that are slim to none."

She smirked, and gave a casual wave.

"Your move." She sighed.

Joey drew, and frowned.

"_Darn it…I've got nothing left."_ He thought, _"And with her deckmaster…Wait, that's it!"_

"I'm using my deckmaster right now!" Joey shouted, pointing at his Red-Eyes Black Dragon, that had been patiently waiting behind him.

The dragon roared, and a wave of black fire rolled over him and Joey. Hitomi gave the flames a strange look, and then gasped as Joey emerged from them, covered in black armor that seemed styled after his trademark dragon!

"My deckmaster's power is called Red-Eyes Transmigration, named the ritual spell that summons this guy." Joey said, flexing one arm as his duel disk appeared on it, "Say hello to Lord of the Red (2400/2000)!"

"Um…Okay…" Hitomi said, taking a deep breath, "What exactly can it do, and what happened to your deckmaster?"

Looking around, Yugi and Victor both noticed that the Red-eyes was now gone. Joey just grinned, and spread his arms.

"My deckmaster's power changes my deckmaster." Joey explained, "I need to offer him as a tribute to do so, and he changes my deckmaster to Lord of the Red, and summons it to my field by ignoring its regular summoning restriction. And just you wait till you see what happens next."

Joey took the card he had drawn, and placed it into his disk.

"First I'll play The Warrior Returning Alive." Joey stated, the spell appearing next to him, "I'll use this to move my Goblin Attack Force back to my hand."

The card emerged from Joey's graveyard, and he picked it up. He then slid another card into his disk, and a little pixy carrying a large die.

"Now I'll use Graceful Dice, to increase the attack of my monster." Joey smiled, "Here's hoping."

The die was cast, and bounced along the floor for a second. It stopped on the one, and Lord of the Red (2500/2000) began to glow with red and black fire. The flames began to expand around Joey however, and toward Hitomi's field.

"What…" Hitomi started.

"This is Lord of the Red's power." Joey explained, "When two spells are activated in the same turn, I destroy every monster on the field except for myself. Brace yourselves, this is gonna get rough!"

The flames exploded outward, and Blowback Dragon was wiped away. Hitomi crossed her arms in front of her, and the flames passed over her. Yugi and Victor ducked behind the board again, and didn't come out until the fire storm ended.

Hitomi looked at her field, empty aside from Second Coin Toss. She sighed, remembering the goblins had just retrieved.

"Don't look so upset, the duel ain't finished." Joey said, "My deckmaster power comes with a restriction, I can't summon Lord of the Red unless my field is completely empty. And even after I do, I can't summon anymore monsters in the same turn."

Joey pointed right at Hitomi, who nodded.

"Okay then, next round my luck will back around." She promised.

"I'll be ready. Blackfire shot!" Joey called out.

A blast of black fire roared from his hand, and struck Hitomi right in the chest. She flew backward, landing on her behind, and let out a yowl of pain.

Hitomi: 1400

Joey: 3400

"It's a complete turn-around!" Victor gasped.

"Yeah, Joey's good at that." Yugi smiled, "But he needs to be careful still. One well-played card and he loses this duel."

"What do you…Oh yeah." Victor realized, "Lord of the Red is his deckmaster now, so if it's destroyed he'll lose."

Hitomi drew, and smiled as she saw the creature in her hand.

"Get ready Joey, I'm about to summon a special monster." She declared, slapping down the card, "Say hello to a lucky little spirit known as Leprechaun (1500/1200)!"

A portal of green light appeared on the floor, and out of it leapt a two-foot tall figure. It was stocky little man, dressed in green clothes with a brown in his mouth, and a bright red beard.

"'Allo there lad!" The figure said with a grin, "Care to spare wee bit of change? I'm a bit short."

The creature fell over, laughing in hysterics. Hirot and Goddess of Whim were giggling, while Joey and his friends groaned at the lame pun.

"Oh come on, that was funny." Hitomi said, "Ah well. Leprechaun, let's use your ability! The risk coin flips of destiny!"

The green trickster snapped his fingers, and a black pot filled to the brim with gold coins appeared. Three coins flipped out, each one with a hat one side and a shoe on the other.

"Let me guess…The hat is heads and the shoe is tails?" Joey asked.

"Bingo." Hitomi grinned, "You see Joey, this is one of two special cards. I got them both from an Industrial Illusions event, and they're exceptionally powerful. Leprechaun, for instance, will flip three coins now."

The coins soared into the air, and began to spin around Hitomi.

"If only one lands on Tails, we both draw five cards. If only one lands on heads, we each discard five cards from our hand, and if there enough we discard the missing from our deck." Hitomi grinned, "If all three land on tails, all spells and traps are destroyed."

"And if they're all heads?" Yugi asked, scratching his own head with worry.

"Then something really special happens." Hitomi smiled, the coins soaring back into the air and clattering to the ground.

Leprechaun began to dance a jig, all three coins showed a hat.

"Yes! Now I can summon my favorite monster from my hand or deck." Hitomi cheered as a card came from her deck, "So let me introduce the first lady of gambling society, and the one woman that every gambler, male or female, trusts in."

She put down the card, and golden light flew out of the floor.

"Presenting, Maiden of Luck (2000/2000)!" Hitomi shouted.

An attractive young woman with golden-colored hair emerged from the light. She had tanned skin, and amber eyes, and wore a gold and white dress that revealed her shoulders. She was absolutely decked out in gem covered necklaces and rings, shimmering with every color of the rainbow.

"Very pretty." Joey admitted, "But she's not as strong as my monster. And if you'd try to attack and failed the coin toss, I'd blow her away, followed by the rest of your life points."

"Don't worry, I already realized that." Hitomi explained, "And normally, I wouldn't mind trying my luck at that sort of thing. But Maiden and Leprechaun are too close for me to want to risk them in such a way. I have something in mind…"

Maiden extended one hand, and a golden table appeared before her. One it sat a red and black die, which she scooped up and began to shake in her hands.

"Maiden has a special ability as well. I call it lucky breakdown." Hitomi said, "If she rolls a one, two, or three then we both get three monsters with 1500 attack or less from our graveyards, and put them in our hands."

"Kinda like Backup Soldier, got it." Joey nodded.

"A four, and our hands and graveyards are shuffled back into our decks. Then we each draw five cards." Hitomi continued, "A five means we can each summon two monsters from our hands or deck, as long as they're level four or lower."

"Got it, okay." Joey nodded, "And the six?"

"We each draw five cards." Hitomi said, "So let's roll those dice."

Maiden released her die, and it clattered onto the table. It stopped on the four, and Joey's hand of cards immediately vanished, followed by Hitomi's. Both player's decks began to glow, and Hitomi smiled.

"Time to refresh our hands." She said coolly, sliding five cards from her deck.

Joey took the cards as well, and gave them a look over. Hitomi, meanwhile, smiled as she laid another card facedown.

"I end my turn. Attack me if you dare." She challenged.

Joey drew, and frowned.

"_I only have one spell in my whole hand. I can't use Lord of the Red's power this turn."_ He realized, _"Even worse, her facedown card might be able to destroy Lord of the Red if I attack, and I lose if I lose my deckmaster."_

Joey looked to Hitomi, and almost swore.

"_Damn she's got a good poker face."_ He thought, _"I can't risk this. I'm not the most cautious fella, sure, but I'm not a complete idiot."_

"I'll just set one card and end my turn." He stated, sliding the card into play.

It appeared, and Hitomi drew. She nodded, and put down another card, this one a monster. It appeared facedown next to Maiden of Luck.

"I'm still not going to risk an attack." She said, "A smart gambler knows that you don't take an unnecessary risk too often."

"This is getting tense." Yugi fretted, "If Hitomi would attack, she'd have a fifty-fifty shot at winning the duel. And that's not taking into account what they might have facedown."

"I'd like to know what she's planning that's so much better than attacking." Commented Vitor.

Joey drew, and his eyes narrowed.

"I'll set one more card facedown. End turn." He said, sliding the card into place.

Hitomi drew, and pointed to her facedown monster.

"Ready to see what this is Joey?" She asked, the monster turning over, "It's an old friend from earlier…"

The monster turned over, revealing the familiar shape of a red and purple jar with a goofy grin.

"Your Dice Jar!" Joey gasped, as a white die appeared over his head.

"Right you are." Hitomi smiled, taking her gold die, "I'm gonna end this duel with the ultimate battle of luck. So let's who's really the luckiest! Dance my dice!"

Hitomi tossed her gold cube, and Joey through the white one. They collided, and fell to the ground. Hitomi let out a cheer, her die landed on a four, while Joey's was only a three.

"Oh yeah, take this Joey!" Hitomi cheered.

Joey braced himself as four explosions erupted around him. As the smoke cleared, however, he didn't have a single scratch on him or his armor.

"Hm…didn't feel a thing." Joey commented, looking over the armor, "If it weren't for the nasty chafing around my legs, I might consider wearing this more often…"

"There are some things I just don't need to know about Joey." Yugi sighed, holding his head.

"And that was one of them." Victor winced.

Hitomi: 1400

Joey: 1400

"And now for the reason I got my second nickname." Hitomi smiled, "Risk Taker. I activate, Paths of Destiny!"

Her trap lifted, showing a Warrior Dai Grepher looking down two paths in the middle of a forest. One looked bright and happy, while the other was dark and frightening. Two coins fell from above, one to Joey and one to Hitomi, each one was black on one side and white on the other.

"Time for the final test of luck Joey, for the both of us." She said, holding up the coin, "We each toss a coin, and call it in the air. If it lands on the color you call, you gain 2000 life points."

Joey's eyes went wide, but Hitomi held up one hand.

"Before you get too excited though, you should know what happens if it lands on the other side." Hitomi explained, "If it lands on the side you didn't call, you lose 2000 life points and, in this case, the duel.'

"But you still have your second coin toss." Joey realized, "You can redo the toss this time."

"But only once. So let's try our luck." Hitomi said, tossing her coin up, "I call black!"

"And I'm callin' white!" Joey responded.

The coins soared upward, and clattered to the ground. Joey gasped, seeing his coin land on black, while Hitomi's was white!

"I'm using Second Coin Toss!" Hitomi stated, her coin flying into the air again, "I call black again!"

Joey's coin also flew up! He looked at it, and then smiled at Hitomi.

"Guess when you use Second Coin Toss, we have to redo all of the flips." Joey realized, "I call black too!"

The coins fell once more, and both duelists gasped this time. Both coins were white.

"Guess this duel is a draw." Hitomi sighed.

"Not quite." Joey responded, one of his facedown cards lifting, "Sorry Hitomi, but I had a way out in case you tried some direct damage trick. I chain Emergency Provisions to the draining power of your trap, and offer my facedown card as the tribute!"

Hitomi gasped as the mouth appeared, and Joey's Magic Arm Shield was devoured by it. His life points jumped, just before an orb of black energy shot from Hitomi's trap and clobbered both of them.

Hitomi: 0

Joey: 400

Joey and Hitomi both fell over, gasping in pain. Yugi and Victor ran forward, Victor to Hitomi's side and Yugi to Joey.

"Nice work Joey." Yugi smiled as he helped his friend up.

"Thanks…" Joey said, brushing off a scorch mark on his armor, "Man this stuff is strong!"

The armor faded away, leaving Joey in his regular clothes. He looked over to Hitomi, who had got up. She walked over with a smaller smile on her face this time.

"Congratulations Joey." She said, extending her hand, "I have to admit, you were luckier this time. And better prepared."

"You did real good yourself." Joey admitted, accepting the handshake, "And to tell the truth…I had just drawn Emergency Provisions that turn."

Hitomi froze her hand in mid-shake. Yugi laughed, and shook his head.

"You can always count on Joey's luck." He said, "Well, almost always at least."

Hitomi laughed a bit also, as her disk shut down and four lights flew into Joey's disk.

"Let me guess: You intended to use Magic Arm Shield in case my attack worked." She said.

"Yep." Joey nodded, breaking off the handshake, "But then I thought you might be trying for some direct attack or something, so I'd need the extra points. I was expecting maybe Roulette Spider or Fire Darts or something, but I decided to get ready."

Joey stepped back, and Yugi locked onto his arm.

"Who says I never learn from my mistakes?" He joked with a wink.

"I know I didn't." Hitomi said, allowing Victor to pass her and place a hand on Joey's shoulder, "Best of luck to you."

Joey smiled as he, Yugi, and Victor all faded from view. Hitomi sighed, and began looking around the factory.

"Hmm…Wonder where they put the exit." She muttered.

Looking at her deck, which still sat in her deactivated disk, she put a hand on top.

"Okay then, if I draw a spell, I go straight." She decided, "Trap I go left, and monster I go right."

Hitomi drew her card, looked at it, and started on her way.

---------------------------------

"YES!" Jackson cheered, pumping a fist in the air, "OH YEAH! CALLED IT!"

"We get the picture." Sota sighed as he crossed off Jackson's latest loss, "But you're only breaking even again."

"Yeah Jackson. If I were you (Heaven forbid), I wouldn't book a Vegas vacation yet." Rei quipped, looking over her station, "Hey, you two want to see a duel I recorded from earlier?"

"Who was playing?" Jackson asked.

"That Tim Hokage kid." Rei said, typing a few commands, "Take a look…"

_**I never expected to go up against a gamble strategy myself. Hitomi is a girl I can really respect.**_

**_I still can't believe she's Mai's teacher. Wonder if I should Mai know she's here…_**

_**Well, that'll have to wait till I see her. Meantime, we haven't seen Tim for a while. I'm a bit worried, so we'll see what he's been doing since he beat Keith.**_

_**A new opponent steps up, with a strategy born from the game of kings. It's called**_

_**En Passant**_

_**The title's a clue to the opponent's deck. Good luck figuring that one out.**_

_**See ya next week!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Lord of theRed

Warrior/Ritual/Effect

DARK

Seven Star

2400 attack

2000 defense

This monster can only be ritual summoned by the effect of 'Red Eyes Transmigration.' You must also tribute on 'Red Eyes B. Dragon' and one Warrior-Type monster from your hand or field. When two magic cards are played in the same turn, destroy all monsters on the field, except this one, after the second card resolves.

---

Leprechaun

Spellcaster/Effect

EARTH

Four star

1500 attack

1200 defense

Once per turn, you may toss a coin three times. If all three coins land on heads, special summon one 'Maiden of Luck' from your hand or deck in face-up attack position. If two coins land on heads, You and your opponent both draw five cards. If two coins land on tails, you and your opponent each discard a total of five cards from your hand and the top of your deck, starting with your hand. If all three land on Tails, destroy all spells and traps on the field.

---

Maiden of Luck

Spellcaster/Effect

LIGHT

Six star

2000 attack

2000 defense

Once per turn, you may roll one die with the following results:

1, 2, or 3: You and your opponent return up to three monsters with an attack of 1500 or less from your respective graveyards to your hands.

4: All cards in both players hands and graveyards are shuffled into their respective decks, and both players draw five cards.

5: Both players special summon two, level four or lower monsters from their hand or deck in face-up attack or defense position

6: Both players draw five cards.

_Huge thanks to our loyal fan, SMCandy, for sending us Hitomi and the two monsters listed above. We look forward to possibly using her in future projects._

_---_

Original Deckmaster

---

Goddess of Whim

Fairy

LIGHT

Three star

950 attack

700 defense

Destiny's Whimsy: Whenever you attack with a monster on your side of the field, you must flip a coin. If it's heads, double your monster's attack for the rest of the battle phase. If tails, the monster's attack is halved for the rest of the battle phase.

---

Red Eyes B. Dragon

Dragon

DARK

Seven star

2400 attack

2000 defense

Red Eyes Transmigration: You may send this deckmaster to the graveyard in order to special summon one 'Lord of the Red' from your hand, deck, or graveyard to the field (ignoring any summoning restrictions). The selected 'Lord of the Red' becomes your new deckmaster, and has no powers other than its card effect.

A/N: There you have it, the first time we've ever included a fan-character sent in by a reader. Tell us what you think!


	14. En Passant

_**En passant is a French phrase that means "In passing."**_

_**In other words, it happens when you're walking by. Sometimes it's good, other times it's bad.**_

_**In chess, it's a special move a pawn can use when confronted with another pawn, by passing the other pawn. So it happens "In passing."**_

_**But who knew I would meet one of my toughest opponents en passant.**_

_**And who knew he would know what it means?**_

**En Passant**

"Okay then." Rei said as the file she was trying to load finally finished, "Here we go guys."

The screen filled with a new image. One of a medieval castle on a grassy hill.

--------------------------------------

Tim let out a shout of fear as he plummeted straight down. The teleporter had left him hanging a good ten feet in the air after his duel with Bandit Keith, and so logically, gravity was having its fun with the younger Hokage.

It took a mercifully short amount of time for Tim to hit the ground, and he was pleasantly surprised to find his fall broken by a large armchair.

"I didn't think Lazy-boy did in-game advertising." Tim commented as he got up.

Somehow, he had been transported from the mountain valley to a large room. The ceiling was very high up (roughly twice as far as where his fall had started) and the floor was decorated with several comfortable looking seats. A fireplace was set into the wall, a small fire crackling peacefully in it, and several portraits of monsters (The Blue Eyes among them) hung along the wall. The room was clean, and brightly lit, with off-white walls and blue carpeting. Overall, it seemed to be a rather lavish living room of sorts.

Spying a window, Tim walked over and looked through it. Outside, he could see a very well kept lawn with many statues and hedge sculptures. Off in the distance, was a mountain range not unlike the one he had left behind.

"Hmm…That must be where I started." Tim reasoned as he noticed the mountains.

Looking toward the portraits, another thought occurred to him.

"I never knew Dark Magician ever had a mustache like that." He muttered, noticing a rather large, comical mustache painted in black ink on the portrait of the famous Spellcaster.

Tim carefully attempted to remove the offending mark from the painting, rubbing against it with the palm of his hand. While this did very little to the mustache, it did cause the wall to suddenly swing back, resulting in Tim falling face first into a tunnel.

"_Well…one thing to say about the Virtual World," _Tim thought as he pulled himself up, _"It keeps you on your toes…or the ground in my case!"_

Looking down the passage, he could see that it carried on quite a distance. Spotting a torch on the wall next to him, Tim snatched it up, and began to move down the secret hallway.

Other than the fact that the walls, floor, and ceiling of this path were completely smooth, there was nothing of true interest in the tunnel. In fact, after just a few yards, Tim found himself facing a dead-end.

"It's great that I found a secret passage." He sighed, leaning against the end of the trail, "But there has to be more to the castle than this…"

As he said this, Tim felt something shift under where his arm was.

"Not again." Tim moaned, his eyes going wide.

The wall he had chosen as a resting place immediately fell backwards, unceremoniously dropping Tim onto the floor. His torch hit the ground, and was extinguished.

"I hate you Kaiba…" Tim groaned.

A quick look around the room assured Tim his torch was no longer necessary. He had entered an even larger room than the previous one, with a ceiling at least 2 stories above his head. The room was square, with many suits of armor standing at attention along the walls. At the center of each wall Tim could see stood a marble statue of the Paladin of White Dragon, astride his draconic mount.

Standing up, Tim felt his head collide with something very hard. He clutched the fresh lump, and moved away from the wall before standing up again. Turning around, he noticed a fourth Paladin statue, its spear extended over where Tim had been laying.

"I hate Paladin of White Dragon…I hate Kaiba…AND I HATE THIS FREAKY CASTLE!" Tim fumed.

He was about to let out a shout of frustration, when he heard a new sound.

It was laughter, and it was in the room with him.

Turning around, Tim saw a pair of doors had opened in the corner of the wall on his right. Standing in the door frame was a young man of about sixteen. He had greasy, black hair, several obvious facial blemishes, and a pair of thick glasses which had been duct-taped together at the bridge. He wore a white polo shirt, and grey slacks, plus a pair of black dress shoes.

And he was currently chuckling at the fire duelist.

"What are you laughing at?" Tim scolded, "That really did hurt!"

"Sorry." The boy apologized (sounding as though his nose were slightly plugged), "But seeing someone lose their temper over something so small is kind of amusing.

"Yeah, well…When you take as many head injuries as I do, they get less amusing." Tim grumbled, "So, did you get teleported to this crazy castle too? Or did you start here?"

"Teleported, after my first victory." The boy said, stepping forward, "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Kevin, Kevin Fischer."

"I'm Tim Hokage." Tim said as the two shook hands, "Maybe you've heard of the Amazing Dueling Hokage Brothers?"

"A bit." Kevin admitted, "But to be honest, I don't pay extremely close attention to the dueling world."

"Then what are you doing in a Duel Monsters tournament?" Tim asked.

"I said I don't pay _extremely _close attention." Kevin explained, "I still duel, but I'm also a huge fan of Chess. I tend to split my attention between the two games."

"Really, you play Chess?" Tim asked, "I play a little bit myself, but I can never find an opponent. My brother doesn't like the game much…"

"Well today's your lucky day. I'm a huge Chess fan!" Kevin smiled.

"But this isn't a Chess tournament." Tim pointed out, "Otherwise, I'd probably have lost by now…"

"The type of tournament doesn't really matter to me." Kevin stated as he held up his duel disk, "I found a way to join my two favorite games with my Chess deck."

"A Chess deck?" Tim asked, "Sounds interesting…"

Tim activated his duel disk. The tray swung out, and the life point display turned on.

"Mind if I see it in action? How about a duel for all four of my win points?" He asked.

Kevin snickered a little bit, and nodded. He moved away from Tim, toward the opposite end of the room, and turned his own disk on.

"I'm warning you, I beat my last opponent in just ten moves." Kevin declared, "With my strategies, I'm unstoppable, as my own four points prove."

A grid of cards began to float in front of each duelist. Tim and Kevin both realized it was time to select a deckmaster. As Tim pondered over his cards, Kevin carefully reached forward and selected one. The grid vanished, save for the selected card, which shattered. A low growl echoed through the room and a large bear with red and purple fur lurched out from behind the geekish teen.

"Meet my deckmaster, Pandemonium Watchbear." Kevin introduced with a sly grin, "And believe me when I say that his power will clinch the match for me."

"_Well, I used Blazing Inpachi last time. I think this time I'll make a _royal _pain out of myself." _Tim considered as he pressed down on one of the cards.

The card shattered, and a pillar of fire leapt up behind the red head. Out of the inferno stepped a bronze-skinned man with blue hair. He wore a red coat, and small fires constantly sprang up around his feet.

"For my deckmaster, I'll pick one of my Flame Rulers." Tim announced.

"Very well." Kevin nodded, "You can have the first turn."

"_Every good chess player knows that it's best to play black against an unfamiliar foe."_ Kevin said to himself.

Tim prepared to draw, and as he did someone cleared their throat behind him.

"Hey mon, you trying to plan yor move?" A distinctly Jamaican voice asked.

Tim turned around, and found himself face-to-face with Flame Ruler.

"Yeah." Tim confirmed, "Hey, can you tell me what your deckmaster power is? I know my Inpachi had controlled burn…"

"My powuh beats dat by a long shot." The pyro explained, "I call it summon fire, and it lets you summon any fire attribute monster fo' one sacrifice less then ya usually need. Pretty sweet, 'eh mon?"

"In the copyrighted words of Paris Hilton 'That's hot!'" Tim smiled, flashing a thumbs up.

Tim: 8000

Kevin: 8000

Tim turned back to his foe, and saw Kevin already held five cards. Tim drew six from the top of his deck, and gave them a look.

"But this is hotter." Tim smiled as he put a monster down, "I summon Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000) in attack mode!"

Flame Ruler snapped his fingers, and a vortex of fire rose up before Tim. The flames vanished, leaving behind a serpentine creature wreathed in flames. It had two large horns, and a draconic face. Tim placed another card into his disk, and a facedown one appeared behind his dragon.

"Now I lay one card facedown and end my turn." Tim declared.

As soon as those words escaped his lips, the dragon shot a fireball right at Kevin! The greasy kid gasped, and shielded himself with the tray of his duel disk.

"Oh, and you take 500 damage every time I end my turn." Tim smiled, "It's Solar Flare's effect."

Tim: 8000

Kevin: 7500

"Highly amusing." Kevin grumbled sarcastically as he drew and looked at his hand, "Hmm…guess I'll open with a knight's game. But first…"

Kevin placed a card into his disk, and a wave of blue energy covered the field. The ground shuddered for a second, and a card slid from Kevin's deck.

"I play my Terraforming spell card." Kevin announced, "This let's me add any field spell from my deck to my hand, and I know just the one."

He snatched the card that had emerged, and opened his field slot. He placed the card in, and the ground began to shake again. This time much more violently.

"Time to turn this duel into my personal chess board." Kevin called out, raising his arms over his head, "I play Pandemonium!"

In the center of the area between the two, a hole opened up. The hole was quickly filled with lava, casting an eerie red glow over the area. The four Paladin statues began to warp in the red light, turning into terrifying skeletal creatures riding on mini versions of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon. The tiles on the floor began to shift and merge, until they numbered sixty-four. They alternated red and black, and Tim shivered a bit.

Kevin adjusted his glasses, unfazed by the dramatic transformation.

"Now then, time for my knight." He said, playing a monster, "Shadowknight Archfiend (2000/1600) that is!"

Pandemonium Watchbear let out a terrifying howl. A toxic looking whirlwind spewed forth from the floor, and a terrifying new creature formed from it. It was a skeletal demon with a blue muscular structure visible. Its blue hair was fanned by an unfelt wind, and its right hand was replaced by a red blade. Its left hand was a large shield with three crimson prongs on it. Behind it stretched a pair of wings, covered in exo-skeletal armor.

"Now then, let's test your defenses. Shadowknight, destroy his monster with lambda strike!" Kevin ordered.

The demon swooped forward, until it was in Tim's monster zone…

And then it turned toward the serpentine dragon. It dashed forward, slicing the poor creature in two! The separate pieces of monster fell to the ground, wiggling in agony before vanishing. Tim gulped a bit at the sight of this.

"_I still don't like Kaiba."_ Tim thought, _"And I'm starting not to like chess very much."_

"Of course, everybody knows that a Knight's true power on the field is hard to realize. Therefore, you only take half the battle damage you normally would." Kevin explained as Tim's life points dropped.

Tim: 7750

Kevin: 7500

"I suppose you think I should feel lucky? I just saw my dragon get taken out by a guy I usually see depicted as a little wooden horse!" Tim shouted, "I thought you said this was a Chess deck!"

"It is." Kevin said evilly, "But unfortunately for you, the only monsters in the game that truly embody Chess are a terrifying group, known as the Archfiends."

"Archfiends?" Tim asked.

"That's right, a tribe of vicious demons that aren't easy to master. They're so ferocious, that they drain life points each turn from the duelist that attempts to command them." Kevin explained, "But Pandemonium is their home, so I don't have to pay any life points to keep them around."

Tim looked at the floor of Pandemonium, and realized now that it looked like a large Chess board.

"After this, I'm taking up checkers." Tim joked, "You done?"

"Yep." Kevin nodded, "Do your worst."

"I intend to." Tim retorted as he drew.

He looked at the monster he had drawn and set it onto his disk.

"I'll set one monster in facedown defense mode." He said, pointing to the facedown card as it appeared, "And I play Mystical Space Typhoon on Pandemonium!"

Tim played the spell, and a furious wind began to kick up.

"You said Pandemonium kept your life points up, so I think I'll just get rid of it." Tim declared, "So now you'll have to pay for your monsters!"

The winds began to erode the statues and the edges of the lava pool.

"Ah, yes. Normally that would be an issue." Kevin nodded, "But lucky for me, I discovered that Pandemonium Watchbear was a perfect master for my deck in my last duel."

The bear let out another howl, and the wind quickly died out. Tim gasped as his spell card vanished, and the damage that had been done was reversed.

"My deckmaster's ability is called protector of Pandemonium." Kevin explained, "And he makes it so that Pandemonium can never be destroyed! Anytime a card would destroy it, that card is completely negated!"

Kevin broke into a fit of laughter, and Tim looked worried.

"_Damn! I can't keep my dragons on the field, and he doesn't have to pay for his monsters."_ Tim realized, _"I'll have to fight my way out, but I don't know how strong the rest of these archfiends are!"_

"Did you want to try anything else?" Kevin asked.

Tim slid another card into his disk. It materialized facedown, next to the first one, and he waved to end his turn. Kevin drew, and smiled as he placed another monster into play.

"Normally, it's a poor move to bring out the queen early." Kevin stated, "But in a duel, it's a different story! I summon Infernalqueen Archfiend (900/1500)."

A blast of fire flared before Kevin, and from it emerged a vicious demonness. She was almost completely covered in a purple gown, and she had the same skeletal wings as the Shadowknight. In place of hands, she had insect like pincers.

"Sh-she l-l-looks mean." Tim stuttered.

"Oh, and she is.' Kevin nodded, "But not very strong on her own the poor dear. Ah well, Shadowknight destroy his facedown monster!"

The fiendish knight swooped forward again, and slashed through the facedown monster. A large red boar appeared, and let out a defiant roar before traveling to the cemetery.

"So much for Great Angus (1800/600)." Kevin laughed, "Infernalqueen, you may attack directly! Cross-the-board clobbering!"

The demonic ruler dashed forward, her body awash in flames.

"She may kiss my ass!" Tim shouted, waving a hand over his facedown card, "I activate my Sakuretsu Armor trap, and destroy her!"

The card lifted, and a suit of black armor jumped in the demon's path. As it did however, Kevin made an odd gesture with his left hand. From the lava pool shot six orbs, which began to hover over his hand.

"It's not that easy." Kevin explained, "No matter how good a strategist one is, luck is an aspect in any game. The archfiends know this, and have a special ability to reflect it."

"Now what?" Tim asked as one of the orbs caught fire.

"It's called the Archfiend roulette, and it activates if you try to target an Archfiend with any card effect." Kevin explained, "It will randomly select a number between one and six and, in my queen's case, if a two or five comes up the effect of your card is negated."

The flame began to jump randomly from one orb to another. Tim and Kevin both watched (Infernalqueen hovered in place, awaiting the result) as the flame settled on one of the orbs. The orb hovered over Kevin's head, and the number two glowed on it.

"Two, your trap is negated." Kevin smiled, "FIRE IN THE HOLE!"

Infernalqueen resumed her charge, smashing right through the armor, and slamming right into Tim. The fire duelist let out a shout of pain, and fell backward as a result.

Tim: 6850

Kevin: 7500

"Now, I set one card down. Take your best shot." Kevin challenged as a facedown card appeared behind the Queen.

"_And I thought I would be the royal pain in this duel._" Tim thought as he pulled himself up and drew a card.

Tim saw what he had drawn, and smiled.

"Hey Flame Ruler!" He shouted.

"Yeah mon?" The pyro responded.

"Thanks." Tim smiled, "I summon Flame Cerberus (2100/1800) in attack mode!"

A trio of barks filled the area, and a three headed dog jumped out of nowhere. Its body was covered in purple fur, with orange around each of its heads. Kevin gasped, and then shot an accusing glare at his foe.

"Wait a minute, that's a six-star monster!" He shouted, "You need a sacrifice to summon it!"

"You don't pay attention, do ya child?" Flame Ruler sighed, "I give my controller a discount on any fire monster he summons. He needs one less sacrifice than usual."

"Meaning he _can _summon a six star monster for free." Kevin grimaced, "Oh boy."

"By the way, Shadowknight Archfiend?" Tim smiled.

The fiend drew back a little.

"You're fired!" Tim shouted.

Flame Cerberus jumped forward, charging straight at the cowering demon.

"Er…I activate Negate Attack!" Kevin shouted, his facedown card lifting, "Now your attacks stop!"

A shimmering barrier formed between the two, until Tim's facedown lifted.

"Oh no you don't, I activate my Trap Jammer!" Tim responded, "It negates your trap, and your roulette can't stop that."

A purple mist wafted over the barrier, and it shattered. The three-headed monster continued forward, and slammed its target into the floor. Shadowknight burst into a cloud of foul wind, and dispersed.

Tim: 6850

Kevin: 7400

"Well, I guess now we just need someone to pay Donald Trump." Tim's deckmaster commented.

"Ugh…red rook takes black knight." Kevin moaned.

"I can't do anything more this turn, I have to end it." Tim declared with a passive wave.

Kevin drew, bringing his hand total up to three cards. At the same time, Infernalqueen began to glow with a red aura.

"During my standby phase, my queen raises the attack of any Archfiend I choose by 1000 points for one turn." Kevin explained as he pointed to his monster, "Seeing as she's my only one, guess I have to use that ability on her."

Infernalqueen Archfiend (1900/1500) let out a screech as the aura flared brighter, boosting her power. Kevin frowned, knowing it wasn't enough.

"Nothing I can do other than set this monster in defense mode, and switch my queen to defense as well." He sighed, turning the card on his disk as he set another one.

The demonic queen fell to a kneeling position, and the back of a card appeared next to her. Tim smiled a bit as he drew (not really caring as Infernalqueen returned to (900/1500)) and slapped another monster onto his disk.

"I summon Blazing Inpachi (1850/0)!" He shouted as a giant statue of wood rose up from the floor.

The wooden carving burst into flames, and it raised its fists in rage. Kevin gulped nervously, and took a step back.

"Inpachi, destroy her majesty with blazing beatdown!" Tim commanded.

The fiery golem jumped forward, and slammed its fist into the devil's stomach. She screamed in pain prior to shattering into a variety of brightly colored shards.

"Flame Cerberus, you get the facedown!" Tim shouted, "Hell hound howl!"

All three heads on the dog let loose a torrent of flames, which soared right toward the hidden monster. It was revealed as a yellow, wooden mask, which promptly burst into flames and then shards.

"That was my Mask of Darkness (900/400), and when it's flipped over I can retrieve one trap from my graveyard." Kevin announced as his Negate Attack flew from the disk and reappeared in his hand.

"Well, I think that's enough of a beating for now." Tim said with a wave, "I end my turn."

Kevin added his fourth card to his hand, and let out a sigh of relief.

"Alright buddy, it's time for me to take control again." Kevin snarled, playing a card, "I summon Vilepawn Archfiend (1200/200) in attack mode."

The ground trembled, and a column of stone rose up from the floor. It cracked in two, and then shattered leaving a creature that resembled a bald, wingless Shadowknight. Its sword and claws weren't red, but the muscles certainly were.

"And next comes my favorite spell: Falling Down!" Kevin shouted as he slid another card into place, "And when I said take control, I meant it."

Vilepawn's eyes shimmered with a hazy, red light. At the same time, a similar glow was cast around Flame Cerberus. The beast growled a little, then trotted over and stood next to the fiend-type.

"Why, do I not like where this is going?" Tim muttered as he witnessed this.

Looking around at the duel surroundings, he frowned.

"Hell, I don't like where it is right now…"

"Excuse me, can we get back to me kicking the snot out of you?" Kevin asked with a sneer, "Flame Cerberus, destroy his Inpachi with…what was it? Oh yeah, hell hound howl!"

The trio of flame blasts roared from the pyro's mouth, and washed over the burning wood machination. As the fire cleared, all that was left was a pile of soot.

"Vilepawn go for his life points! En passant slash!" Kevin cried out.

The pawn leapt forward, and swung his weapon across Tim's chest. The fire dueler gasped, and fell backward from the pain.

Tim: 5400

Kevin: 7400

"Okay, that's done." Kevin smiled, "Your move meat!"

"Okay, from what I gathered Falling Down takes control of my monster." Tim observed as he drew, "But what's the downside?"

"There's two." Kevin explained as he started to glow red, "First, I need an Archfiend present to play it. And second, I pay 800 life points during each of your turns to keep it in play."

Kevin cringed as the glow intensified, and wisps of smoke rose from his skin.

Tim: 5400

Kevin: 6600

"Ouch." Kevin groaned, "I don't like doing that. But part of Chess is sacrifice. That and sometimes getting your opponent to do what you need them to."

"Would that involve getting them to invite you to a tournament just so you could embarrass them?" Tim laughed, his shoulders shaking with mirth.

Kevin sighed, "Are you going to move or pass?"

"All I can do is set this facedown." Tim declared, ceasing his laughter to play the card, "All yours."

The facedown card appeared, and Kevin drew. He frowned, seeing no monsters he currently wished to summon, and then shrugged.

"_It's not like he has anything I have to worry about."_ He reasoned, _"If his trap targets, then he has to either risk my Vilepawn negating it or hit his own creature. And if it doesn't…well, I didn't tell him about the other effect of Pandemonium."_

"Vilepawn, attack directly!" Kevin shouted, "Go for the opening in his defense!"

The fiendish foot soldier jumped forward, and swung its sword at Tim again. The teen grunted, and stumbled backward as his life points dipped.

"Ah ha! It was a bluff." Kevin cheered, "Cerberus, attack your former master directly!"

The trio of flames flew from the roaring dog's mouths…

"Bluff this." Tim sneered as his facedown card lifted.

The flames vanished a second before hitting Tim. Kevin blinked in surprise, and then howled in pain as the flames came up behind him and slammed into his back!

Tim: 4200

Kevin: 4500

"How do you like my Dimension Wall trap?" Tim asked as Kevin slumped forward, "It redirects all damage from one attack from me to you. Oh, and it doesn't target a monster, so your Archfiends can't negate it."

"Very clever." Kevin said as he straightened up, "A Duel Monsters equivalent of the Romanian Reverse. I'd applaud you but I usually save that to the end of the game."

"You better save your life points instead." Tim suggested, "You're looking a little burned out right now."

Both competitors began to chuckle at that comment. Slowly, the chuckling grew into full-blown laughter, which took a whole minute to die down.

"Well, no one can say you don't know how to have fun!" Kevin said between snickers, "I'll end my turn now, so let's see what you can do."

"Okay." Tim said as he drew.

The red glow overcame Kevin again, who winced as another 800 points were subtracted from his score.

Tim: 4200

Kevin: 3700

"I'll activate Card of Sanctity, to bring our hands back up to six each." Tim declared, holding the spell overhead.

A flash of golden light filled the chamber, and both players drew four cards. Tim and Kevin both smiled at what they had drawn.

"Well, I'll summon another Blazing Inpachi (1850/0) in attack mode." Tim stated as another flaming tree monster rose before him, "And then two more cards facedown, that's all."

The two hidden cards appeared behind Inpachi, and Kevin drew.

"Please, you put a monster weaker than the one I have in attack mode, and set two cards." Kevin said with an air of arrogance, "Your plan couldn't be more obvious unless you said 'I just set a trap, please hit me!'"

"Shows how much you know." Tim smiled, "I activate the first of those cards right now: Dust Tornado!"

One of the facedown cards lifted, and a blast of wind shot forward.

"And it will destroy the card that enslaved my monster!" Tim explained.

The wind washed over Flame Cerberus, which shook its three heads. It panted a bit, and meandered back to Tim (taking a quick paddle through the lava pool on the way).

"Good boy." Tim smiled as he scratched the pooch behind the ears of the center head.

"Oh boy." Kevin muttered sarcastically, "That's not going to help. Watch now as I summon the ruler of Pandemonium."

Kevin slapped a card onto his disk, and the area went dark. Only a single set of glowing red eyes was visible.

"I give you, the king of the Archfiends. One so strong that he can only appear if one of his subjects is in play to serve him. Behold: TERRORKING ARCHFIEND (2000/1500)!" Kevin's voice echoed.

'Terror' king seemed to be an appropriate title. The shadows fell away, leaving a demon from Tim's worst nightmares. It had the same wings as the Infernalqueen and Shadowknight, but its bony body seemed to have been shaped to reflect some form of wicked royalty. A blood-red crown sat on its head, and it held a huge sword in both hands.

"Now the game nears its end." Kevin smiled, "And it won't be long before you hear me say checkmate! But first, I'll give my pawn a little help with this special spell card."

Kevin placed the card into its slot, and a new image appeared. This one showed Vilepawn Archfiend standing before four shadowy shapes, obviously trying to choose one of them.

"It's called Crossing the Board!" Kevin announced.

"Wait, 'Crossing the Board'?" Tim muttered, his eyes widening in fear, "Uh-oh! I just remembered what happens when a pawn crosses the board in chess!"

"Yes, you can turn it into a bishop, a queen, a rook, or a knight." Kevin smiled, "And this spell allows me to do the same with Vilepawn! I can tribute it to summon one of four other Archfiends from my deck or graveyard, and I select Shadowknight Archfiend!"

The Vilepawn began to shimmer with a sickly green aura. Blue hair flowed from its head, and a pair of wings shot from its back. At the same time, its muscles turned blue while its weapons changed red. The new Shadowknight Archfiend (2000/1600) let out a howl of pleasure at being in play.

"Do your math wrong?" Tim challenged, "Neither of your monsters is strong enough to beat Cerberus."

"True, so it's time for my Archfiends favorite equip spell." Kevin smiled, "A weapon that's as evil as they are. Axe of Despair!"

An axe with a black blade and twisted wooden handle floated down from the ceiling. Terrorking (3000/1500) grabbed the weapon, ignoring his sword as it clattered to the floor. Kevin grinned, and Tim gulped as his monsters began to tremble.

"Now then, let's teach that dog how to play dead." Kevin smiled, "Terrorking, attack Cerberus with demonic decapitation! OFF WITH HIS HEAD…S!"

The demon king soared forward on his wings, and swung his weapon horizontally toward the canine monster. Tim looked away as he heard a sickening 'slice' followed by three separate thumps.

Tim opened his eyes to see no sign of Cerberus, and Kevin who looked close to being violently ill.

"Okay…" Kevin muttered as he took a deep breath, "Shadowknight, your target is Blazing Inpachi…but don't make it too gory."

The knight swooped into the air, and soared straight toward the wood beast. It brought its sword down on the monster, cutting it in half from top to bottom. The separate pieces fell to the ground with hollow thunks, and disappeared.

Tim: 3225

Kevin: 3700

"Your turn." Kevin said, looking fairly green around the gills.

Tim drew, silently glad that he looked away. Seeing the monster he had drawn, he looked at his deckmaster.

"Go fo' it mon." Flame Ruler encouraged.

"I activate my facedown Call of the Haunted!" Tim shouted, waving a hand over his card.

The trap lifted, and a spooky purple mist floated out.

"And I'll bring back one of my Inpachis." Tim decided, sliding the card from his grave and putting it in place.

From the floor burst a wooden hand, which was slowly followed by the remainder of the sylvan giant. Upon reaching the surface, it reignited and burnt the last of the soil from its body.

"Now I'll use my deckmaster's ability of summoning fire again." Tim smiled as he removed the card from his disk, "So is it getting hot in here, or is it just my Inpachi being tributed?"

Tim's monster was consumed by a savage column of fire, which began to grow even fiercer. On the verge of raging out of control, a pair of arms extended from it. The flames took shape, revealing a terrifying monster. It looked like a giant centaur made of fire, with the head of a lion and a pair of dragon wings.

"Your king's not the only royalty on the field." Tim smiled, pumping a fist in the air, "Say hello to my latest addition: Infernal Flame Emperor (2700/1600)!"

The great beast roared, and Kevin sneered in response.

"Oh yeah? Thanks to my spell my Terrorking is stronger." He pointed out.

"What spell?" Tim asked as he slid a card from his cemetery.

The Axe of Despair glowed red hot, and then shattered into flaming shards! Terrorking Archfiend (2000/1500) drew back, and then shrugged, picking up his sword from where it lay.

"Wha…bu…How?" Kevin stammered.

"When my Infernal Flame Emperor hits the field, I can remove fire monsters from my graveyard and destroy one spell or trap for each one." He explained, "I removed the Inpachi I just sacrificed to destroy your axe. And because you said your king needed a subject, I think that's who I'll get rid of."

Kevin drew back and braced himself.

"Infernal Flame Emperor, destroy his Shadowknight with hellfire blaze!" Tim commanded.

The huge bonfire of a creature belched forth a wave of blazing destruction. Kevin's monster screamed as the inferno rolled over it, and it was quickly immolated.

"Hey, red king takes black knight." Tim smiled.

Tim: 3225

Kevin: 3000

"Ugh…That was unpleasant." Kevin grumbled as his Terrorking nodded in agreement.

Tim pointed at the demonic ruler and frowned.

"Hey, why didn't that royal pain in my ass go to the grave?" He asked.

"Because I only need another Archfiend out to _summon _him." Kevin explained, "Afterward, he stays put. He's a full grown demon king, he doesn't need a babysitter."

Tim grumbled something under his breath.

"Can I take my turn now?" Kevin asked, reaching for his deck.

"I'll end my turn here." Tim sighed.

Kevin drew, and thought for a minute.

"_Hm…If I can play this right, I may have him."_ He said to himself.

"Get ready, because your about to face the most powerful spell in my deck." Kevin warned.

"_Not _Falling Down?" Tim asked, looking scared.

"Not in this case." Kevin confirmed, "Behold the malevolent force that is: Misfortune."

Kevin played the card, and Terrorking looked up at the much larger emperor. It let out a threatening growl, which Tim's monster responded to with its own growl. The Terrorking roared, and Tim's monster roared in turn, the flames around it building up.

Tim backed up a few steps, and found himself against one of the statues in the room.

"Um…now's not really a good time for a shouting contest." Tim warned his monster.

"Oh dis is gunna _hurt_, mon." Tim's deckmaster frowned.

Terroking unleashed a bellowing roar, a column of dark energy rising around it. Obviously not one to be outmatched, Flame Emperor unleashed its own roar, the flames expanding around it and washing over Tim!

The fire died down, and Tim slumped to his knees. Kevin was laughing his acne'd head off, and clutching his sides

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"He laughed as Tim got up, scowling at both his own monster and his foe.

"It's all funny 'til someone gets barbequed." Tim growled.

"Den it's hilarious." His deckmaster grinned.

"_Note to self: Trade Flame Ruler after this."_ Tim thought.

Kevin had managed to stop laughing, and was getting back to his feet.

"Maybe I should explain. Misfortune subtracts half of the attack of one of your monster directly from your life points." Kevin chuckled a bit, "So you just lost 1350 life points, and a fair amount of dignity."

"Who cares about dignity? I'd settle for a bandaid right now." Tim moaned as he shook some ash from his hair.

Tim: 1975

Kevin: 3000

"The best part is, I only have to skip my battle phase after I play that." Kevin explained as he put two more cards into his disk, "But before I end my turn, I set one facedown card and summon Darkbishop Archfiend (300/1400)."

A pool of foul water gathered next to the king, and out of it rose a demonic priest, wearing a twisted version of a bishop's raiment, and carrying a skull topped staff. Behind it appeared a facedown card.

"This turn is over." Kevin smiled.

Tim drew, and looked at the four cards in his hand. He knew nothing about Archfiends other than what he had encountered in this duel, but he could tell that Kevin was setting up for something. Looking over his cards, a thought began to form.

"_He probably wants to destroy my emperor so he can finish me off." _Tim realized, _"Yeah, that's not gonna happen. I've got just what I need to literally turn it around on him…"_

"I set _three_ cards facedown!" Tim shouted, sliding the cards into his disk, "And now my emperor will attack your bishop!"

Another wall of flame was emitted by Tim's monster (even as the hidden cards materialized behind it). Kevin shook a finger, and tapped his disk.

"Guess again. Do you remember what my Mask of Darkness gave back to me?" Kevin asked.

"I don't know, why don't you jog my memory?" Tim requested.

"Gladly. Go Negate Attack!" Kevin shouted.

A swirling barrier of energy rose up again. This one was successful in deflecting the fire away. Kevin's monsters both looked appreciative for the save.

"Damn." Tim muttered, "Well, here your monsters _are _damned but…You know what? I'll just end my turn."

"Excellent." Kevin smiled as he drew.

"_Now if only my next card would be…_" Kevin looked at his new card, _"YES! I knew having three copies of this was a good idea!"_

"You're through buster! I just drew the best card I could in this situation." Kevin taunted as he placed the card in his disk, "I warned you earlier, so prepare to hear it. I activate Checkmate!"

A swirling aura of dark energy warped around the Terrorking Archfiend. Tim's brow furrowed as he tried to figure out what was happening.

"Don't know this one? Let me explain." Kevin offered, "This powerful spell can only be used with Terrorking Archfiend, and I have to sacrifice another Archfiend to use it."

Darkbishop moaned, and collapsed back into a puddle of water. The water vanished, and Terrorking's eyes glowed red again.

"And now, my Terrorking can attack your life points directly!" Kevin shouted, his face turning red with excitement.

"You've got to be joking!" Tim gasped.

"Afraid not!" Kevin cried out, "Terrorking, finish him with locust storm swarm!"

Tim drew back in fright, then remembered his plan. He pressed two buttons on his disk, and the corresponding cards lifted.

"Hold on, I activate two of my facedown cards." Tim declared, "And they're both Rush Recklessly!"

Two cards showing a charging boar rose up before Tim. Kevin just laughed.

"That won't help! I'm not after your monster!" Kevin chastised.

"I know, that's why my cards are targeting your Archfiend." Tim explained calmly.

Kevin blinked in surprise, and then the Archfiend roulette reappeared. Two flames appeared at once, and jumped from orb to orb.

"Well, you targeted my monster, so his effect goes to work." Kevin smirked, calming down a bit, "Don't know why you'd want to make him stronger though."

The flames jumped around until Kevin snapped his fingers. They stopped on separate orbs, which glowed with the numbers one and three. Terrorking Archfiend (3400/1500) roared as its power rose. A gruesome hole opened in his chest, releasing a vicious swarm of terrifying insects.

"Ha, bad luck for you!" Kevin laughed, "Both of your cards worked on my monster. Your defeat will be even more painful!"

"Yeah, right. But you still haven't seen my third card." Tim explained, "This is a move I'm going to call the 'Hokage Gambit.' I'm about to lose anyway, but there's a slight chance I can turn this around. You see my last card…"

The card lifted, and a pair of tubes appeared, one on either side of Tim.

"…Is the Magic Cylinders!" Tim finished, the bugs stopping in midair.

"Magic Cylinders, ha!" Kevin scoffed as his roulette began again, "I only need a two or a five and I'll win any how."

"But that's a two in six chance. It's more likely it will land on a one, three, four, or six." Tim pointed out, "And if it does, I win."

Kevin gulped, realizing Tim was right. Tim just smiled as the flame continued to jump.

"Stop it whenever you want." Tim smiled.

Kevin glared at the Dice Reroll card in his hand, seriously regretting not setting it last turn.

"Archfiend roulette…STOP!" Kevin shouted.

The fire stopped, and the orb glowed…

A six revealed itself.

"No…" Kevin moaned, realizing what that meant.

"I said it once before, and I'll say it again: Sayonara Sucker!" Tim said as the buzzing swarm was sucked into the first tube.

The second tube belched the insects back out, and Kevin screamed as they swarmed over him.

"AHH! GET 'EM OFF ME!" Kevin yelled, running around in blind panic, "THEY'RE IN MY HAIR…THEY'RE IN MY HAIR!"

_CLANG!_

Tim winced at that noise. Kevin had run face first into the statue Tim had collided with not long before.

Tim: 1975

Kevin: 0 (and minor head trauma)

Kevin groaned, and fell to his back. His disk shut down, and the room returned to its normal state.

"I'll bet you hate this castle now too. Right?" Tim smiled.

"Uh huh." Kevin moaned as he pushed himself up, "So, fire monsters."

"Yeah?" Tim asked.

"They're pretty impressive."

"So were your Archfiends." Tim said, flashing a thumbs up, "My brother is a fiend duelist, and I doubt even he's heard of them."

"Well, they are kind of tough to use right." Kevin admitted, "Especially since they cover all attributes."

"So does another group I know." Tim smiled.

Four points of light floated from Kevin's disk, dropping his total to zero. He sighed, and watched as Tim's count leapt to eight.

"Well, congrats. Those are well earned." Kevin admitted, "Suppose you have to go now?"

"Looks like it." Tim said as his body began to fade, "Well, unlike Fischer and Kaspirov, I hope we play again someday."

"I'll hold you to that." Kevin warned, "And next time, I'm white."

Tim just flashed a victory sign, and disappeared. Kevin got to his feet, and rubbed his head.

"Checkmate." He smiled as his disk shut off, "Game, red."

Then he began to applaud.

_**I don't see how I won that duel exactly, but I hope you all like my latest card. Brian calls me a cheap punk whenever I use it against him, and I always say "Do you know how much this card cost me? Believe me, it wasn't 'cheap.'"**_

_**The overzealous may want to stay away from the next chapter, that we're calling**_

_**Born Again**_

_**But seriously, you should read it. Or else you won't know what's going on.**_

_**And trust me, it's gonna be one hell of a time!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Crossing the Board

Spell

Image of Vilepawn Archfiend trying to choose between four different shadowy figures.

You may only activate this card if you have a 'Vilepawn Archfiend' on the field. Tribute the 'Vilepawn Archfiend' to special summon one of your choice of the following from your hand or graveyard: Desrook Archfiend, Infernalqueen Archfiend, Shadowknight Archfiend, or Darkbishop Archfiend.

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Pandemonium Watchbear

DARK

Beast

Four stars

1300 attack

1800 defense

Protector of Pandemonium: If Pandemonium is in play, negate and destroy any card that would remove it from the field.

---

Flame Ruler

FIRE

Pyro

Four stars

1500 attack

1600 defense

Summon Fire: You many summon any level five or higher FIRE monsters for one sacrifice less than you normally require.

_This deckmaster power was inspired by the anime saga "Brothers in Arms," where Seto Kaiba's deckmaster, the Kaiser Seahorse, did the same for LIGHT monsters. Most creative credit for this effect goes to the writers of those episodes_


	15. Born Again

_**During the Grand Elemental Tournament, we all had to face our share of annoying opponents. But we all agreed that Celeste's most memorable foe was the worst.**_

**_He had a strong belief in God, so much so that he was constantly pressuring the other duelists about converting to Catholicism. His constant preaching and praying got on everybody else's nerves, and we considered it a blessing when he was finally knocked out of the running._**

**_Unfortunately, while he was a lousy at socializing, he was skilled at dueling. And apparently, he was good enough to earn a place in this competition._**

**_And now he's decided to try and convert me, and my deck, into a bunch of has-beens._**

_**I'd ask God for help, but I don't want to encourage this guy…**_

**Born Again**

Mako Tsunami felt a cool breeze flow over his body as he reappeared. Looking around, he found that he was standing on a dock, jutting out over the sea. Nothing but clear, blue-green water stretched out before him. Smiling, the ocean duelist knelt down and ran his hand through the simulated liquid.

"Now this is more like it." He sighed as he splashed the cool water into his face, "Finally, the perfect place for me and my monsters."

Sighing again, in a state of supreme bliss at being reunited with the water, Mako turned his back to the ocean. He was fully intending on falling backward into the water, when he noticed a large structure before him.

It seemed to be some sort of chapel or temple. The entire structure was made of pure white marble, with angelic statues and carvings all along the outside. Upon closer inspection, Mako was able to recognize a few of the monsters from Celeste's deck (including Guardian Angel Joan and Agent of Judgment Saturn).

"Wow." Mako said, his eyes going wide, "You really think I would have noticed this before…"

Taking a step forward, Mako noticed a normal sized wooden door set into the wall of the building. Overcome by curiosity, he cautiously pushed the door open and stepped inside.

The interior of the building was just as opulent as the outside. Glowing orbs of pure light hovered along the white walls, with more statues and carvings adorning the inside. Mako now stood in a huge cathedral, with dozens of rows of pews stretching before him. Looking around, Mako saw that no books lay in any of the seats and that there did not appear to be anyone else present. Looking up, he saw that (other than more carvings) the walls had no outstanding features all the way up to the ceiling (some 30 feet above his head.)

Mako was about to turn around and leave, when he heard a voice muttering something.

"Our father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name." The voice began.

Mako looked around again, trying to locate the source.

"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done. On Earth as it is in Heaven." The voice continued.

Mako began to wander down the rows of pews, trying to see who was there.

"Give us this day, our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us." The voice went on.

Mako was getting close to the front row, and the person sounded much closer now…

"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil…" The voice prayed.

Mako was now at the front row. Looking to his left, he saw a young man, about seventeen, wearing a white dress shirt with black slacks and a black jacket. He was holding a rosary in one hand, and was kneeling in a position of reverence. He had a duel disk attached to his left arm, and seemed completely oblivious to Mako's presence.

"Amen." The boy finished with a slight British accent.

He stood up, pocketing the rosary as he did, and turned to Mako. He had brown hair (cut short) and green eyes. He was a touch shorter than Mako, with a willowy build, and pale skin that suggested more time spent studying than playing outdoors.

"Well now, it seems I've attracted a follower." The teen commented as he adjusted his jacket, and extended his hand, "Pleasure to meet you good sir. I am John Peter."

Mako shook the boy's hand, and gave him a strange look.

"I'm Mako Tsunami." He introduced himself, "Have we met before? You seem familiar…"

John seemed surprised by this comment, and broke off the handshake. He thought for minute, placing one hand under his chin.

"Hmm…I wonder…I've heard of you of course Mako, you're a professional duelist, but I can't think of a time when we would have…" John muttered.

Then a smile crossed his face. He snapped his fingers and pointed at Mako.

"You didn't perchance participate in the 'Grand Elemental Tournament' a few years back, did you?" He asked.

"I did." Mako nodded, "I was competing with the water duelists…"

Mako's eyes widened and he slapped his forehead.

"Of course! You were one of the light duelists!" Mako exclaimed.

His face then fell.

"And you were a pompous jerk." Mako recalled his eyes narrowing again, "I really remember you now. You called yourself the 'born again duelist' and spent most of your time before the start of the competition trying to convert everybody!"

John chuckled a bit, and spread his arms.

"Now now, I meant no disrespect Mr. Tsunami. I was only considering the good of their souls." John explained, "Besides, if you'll recall, I didn't win that tournament. It was divided into six sections, and I was eliminated from the light section by…"

"Celeste Hikari, who happens to be a friend of mine." Mako smirked, "And I remember that too."

Mako chuckled a bit, and John looked quite flustered. He gritted his teeth, and noticed Mako's duel disk. Another smile crossed his face, and he held up his own.

"Tell me Mako, how well have you been doing in this tournament?" John asked.

Mako stopped chuckling and tapped his disk. The glittering number five appeared over his head. John just smiled wider and tapped his own disk, a five hovering over his head as well.

"I came across a poor soul who had yet to find a challenge." John explained, "I myself was at three, seeing as my first opponent was unwilling to go all-or-nothing so early, but this one was willing to put it all on the line."

"I take it you won then." Mako guessed.

"That I did, and I was quite thankful to be transported to this church afterwards. I was just saying my usual thanks to God for my outstanding victory." John confirmed with a nod, "Now it seems that the Lord has decided to give me a chance to prove my love for Him once again…"

John pointed right at Mako once more, his voice filled with determination.

"Mako Tsunami, I challenge you in His name!" John intoned.

Mako smiled, rubbed his chin, and nodded.

"Consider your challenge accepted. And since you seem so confident, how about we each bet all of our win points?" Mako suggested with a shrug, "Who ever wins will get to go right to the finals that way."

John smiled, "Very well then, I agree to your terms. But first, let us move outside. This is a house of worship, not violence…"

-------------------

Outside the church, both competitors stood with their background of choice behind them. Mako was farther out on the dock, with the endless expanse of ocean stretching out behind him. John was kneeling in prayer, looking very much like the Forgiving Maiden that was carved in the wall of the house of worship behind him.

"Amen." John muttered as he got to his feet and turned on his disk.

"_About time._" Mako thought as he flicked the power switch on his own machine to the 'on' position.

The trays on both disks swung out, stopping parallel to their bearer's arms. A grid of cards materialized in the air before each duelist, and both began to consider their deckmasters.

Or rather, Mako began to consider his. John reached right out and tapped one of the cards before him.

"Now then Mako, for my deckmaster I choose a creature which embodies the light and love of all of God's creations." John announced as a figure made of piercing light rose behind him.

The light faded, and now a human-like creature covered with blue scales and fins and carrying a golden trident stood beside John. It tapped its weapon on the ground, and a pulse of light floated over John's deck.

"I select Kaiser Seahorse!" John declared, "And I'll tell you what he does right now: So long as he serves as a deckmaster, I can summon any light attribute monster from my hand for one fewer sacrifice than normal."

"_Clever."_ Mako thought with a scowl, _"Celeste told me a bit about this guy: his deck is filled with high level light monsters. He was supposed to have some way to bring them out fast too. Now how was that again…?"_

"Mako? Aren't you going to select your deckmaster?" John yelled, shaking the ocean dueler from his thoughts.

"Right. Um…" Mako looked over his cards, and frowned.

Terrorking Salmon had been good against Em, but now he knew that this monster's power would mostly be useless. He moved his finger tentatively from card to card, and hovered over one.

"_Well, this one _is _the hardest to summon."_ Mako reasoned as he selected the monster.

"Okay John, my deckmaster is Fortress Whale!" Mako called out.

The card shattered, and the pixels floated into the water behind Mako. At first, nothing happened. Then a huge rumbling noise started to shake the dock under Mako's feet. Struggling to keep their balance, both players watched as the wooden boards beneath Mako shattered, and out of the water beneath the dock rose a giant whale.

It was easily the size of a blue whale, with a huge horn extending from the front of its head. On its back sat a huge battery of cannons, guns, lasers, and a variety of other fire arms.

"Okay, I'll admit that's impressive." John gulped, struggling to adopt a confident pose, "But size doesn't matter! Just as David slew Goliath, so shall I defeat you with God's help!"

Mako wasn't listening, he was busy regaining his footing while standing on top of his monster's head.

"Wow, I seem to have a habit of picking the big monster huh?" He asked himself.

"_It would appear so child of the sea." _A deep, wise voice echoed through his mind.

Mako blinked, and looked down at his deckmaster/dueling platform. He now stood at least ten feet over John's head.

"Was that you?" He asked the monster.

"_That it was." _The voice responded, _"I swear on these boundless waters that I shall do all in my power to help you win, Mako."  
_

"I don't suppose you'll tell me what those powers are." Mako requested.

"_Listen well…" _Fortress Whale ordered.

Mako heard the words of his deckmaster in his mind, and nodded.

"Okay then." He said, "John, let's decide who'll go first!"

"I think you may have that opportunity." John shouted up to his foe, "And can your deckmaster please lower himself a bit! It's quite hard to talk to you up there!"

"Right!" Mako shouted back, "Um…Do you think you could…"

"_Say no more, I heard him."_ FW stated as he lowered down.

Mako now stood at about the same level as John. The whale staying slightly above the water so that its eyes were over the line of the dock.

"Now that that's settled…" Mako smiled.

"TIME TO DUEL!" Both duelists shouted together as they drew five cards apiece.

Mako: 8000

John: 8000

Mako drew his sixth card, and looked over his hand. He placed it in his monster zone right away.

"Looks like I'll start this duel with my Sea Serpent Warrior of Darkness (1800/1500)." Mako cried out.

Fortress Whale opened his mouth, and out of it leapt a human covered in blue and purple scales. In fact, it looked a good deal like John's deckmaster, minus a few fins and fringes.

"Well look at that, my monster and your deckmaster are practically twins." Mako smiled.

"Don't even try that Mako. Kaiser Seahorse is a far more noble and pure creature than your monster." John argued, "My monster has embraced the light of God, while yours chooses to hide in the shadows and ignore His guidance."

"_This is going to be a long duel." _Mako lamented to himself.

"Go ahead John, my turn is over." Mako sighed.

John drew, and a smile lit up his features.

"Excellent. Prepare yourself to witness the power of one of the soldiers of the heavens." John warned as he slapped a card into place, "I summon forth Luminous Soldier (2100/1400)!"

His deckmaster raised its weapon, and a beam of light focused on the ground before John. From the light rose an imposing man. He was heavily muscled, and covered in silver and red armor. He carried a vicious blade, and wore a golden mask shaped like a sun.

"What the…" Mako gasped.

"And before you protest about the star level, I'd like you to remember my deckmaster power." John interrupted, gesturing to the creature next to him, "Luminous Soldier is a five star monster, normally requiring one sacrifice. But through the generosity of my deckmaster I may summon him without one."

"…Oh, right." Mako said through gritted teeth.

"And now, I play Card Destruction!" John shouted, sliding another card into his disk.

Mako gasped as his remaining five cards vanished, along with John's four. Both players quickly drew the same number they had just lost, as per the effects of John's card.

"Very nice." John commented, observing his hand, "Luminous Soldier, obliterate his monster! Luminosity laceration!"

The armored warrior lunged forward, his sword ablaze with white-hot flames. He swung it right through Mako's monster, which quickly ignited with the white fire!

Mako: 7700

John: 8000

"Now then…" John began.

He stopped as the white flames around Mako's monster were extinguished, leaving behind a badly injured (but still very much alive) sea serpent.

"Wait a minute, that monster should be in the graveyard!" John protested, glaring at the creature, "What happened."

"My deckmaster power, guardian of the sea!" Mako announced from his perch, "It's quite simple John. Fortress Whale provides strength and protection for all creatures of the ocean, so much so that they can't be destroyed in battle…"

"Can't be destroyed in battle!" John spat, "How is that…"

"Fair?" Mako interrupted, "You didn't let me finish. They can't be destroyed in battle _unless_ they lose by at least 700 points. The difference in our monsters' scores was only 300, so while I still take the damage..."

"Your monster is safe." John groaned, "I end my turn."

Mako drew, and smiled as he saw the new creature.

"Well this guy can be a little tough to work with, but there's no denying he's useful in my deck." Mako said as he played a monster, "I summon Star Boy in attack mode (550/500)."

Out of nowhere materialized a creature that resembled a red starfish. He had a single eye and a mouth full of sharp teeth. John looked at the monster and huffed.

"And just what is that little hellion supposed to do?" John challenged, "He's not even half as strong as Luminous Soldier."

"He doesn't have to be." Mako explained as a blue light glowed over his monsters, "Star Boy raises the attack of all water monsters by 500 points."

Star Boy (1050/500) and Sea Serpent (2300/1500) were both glowing blue, and seemed much more energetic.

"I see…" John muttered.

"Sea Serpent, destroy Luminous Soldier!" Mako ordered, "Ocean dweller's strike!"

The scaly humanoid lunged forward, and jammed his weapon into a crack in the soldier's armor. The warrior groaned, and vanished.

"Star Boy, attack directly!" Mako commanded with a sweep of his arm.

Star Boy swooped forward, and sank his teeth into John's arm. John let out a shout of pain and surprise before shaking the creature loose.

Mako: 7700

John: 6750

"That's my turn Johnny boy." Mako smiled.

"Who are you? Pegasus?" John taunted as he drew, "Ah, this will do nicely. I summon Kaiser Glider (2400/2200) in attack mode."

John put the monster in place, and before him rose a strange creature. It looked like a cross between a dragon and some form of hawk, with golden feathers all over its body. It let loose a loud screech, causing Mako to cover his ears.

"Kaiser Glider, destroy Star Boy with golden flame attack!" John ordered, "And since I best your monster by over 700 points it looks like your bonus was short lived."

The dragon breathed a wave of gold fire, which consumed Mako's monster within seconds. The ocean duelist frowned as his Sea Serpent (1800/1500) fell back to its normal score.

Mako: 6350

John: 6750

"Now I'll set this card down and end my turn." John stated, sliding a card into his grave, "Your turn Mr. Tsunami."

Mako drew, and smiled as he saw one of his strongest monsters.

"_Aha! Levia Dragon Daedelus! I just need to draw my Legendary Ocean, and he'll be out in no time…"_ Mako plotted.

"I activate a trap." John declared.

"A trap!" Mako shouted, shaken from his thoughts, "But I didn't do anything."

"And I'd like it to stay that way." John admitted as his card lifted, "My trap is called Multiple Destruction."

The card showed a hand dropping several flaming cards. Mako gave it a strange look, then gasped as his cards vanished again.

"What!" He protested.

"This powerful trap forces both of us to be rid of our current hands." John informed his opponent, "Then, we each draw five cards. As payment though, I lose 100 life points for every card I dropped."

John and a very put off Mako each took five more cards. John winced a bit as his trap burnt him with several tiny flames.

Mako: 6350

John: 6450

"_Crud, that's not helpful."_ Mako frowned as he looked at his new hand (which included A Legendary Ocean).

"I set one monster in defense mode, and switch my Sea Serpent to defense as well." Mako stated as he slid another card onto his tray.

His serpent warrior took a knee, and a defensive monster materialized next to it. Mako flicked open his field slot, and inserted another card.

"And then, I activate A Legendary Ocean!" Mako called out, "So get set to take a dive."

Rather than the two duelists descending into the ocean though, the water began to rise up! It only came up to about John's waist, and around the two rose the aquatic city. In the light of the surface Mako was able to tell the entire city was crafted of the same white stone the church behind John was.

"Hmm…I wonder if that church is from this city." Mako wondered as his Sea Serpent rose to (2000/1700).

"I'm sure I don't know." John admitted, "But I'm also sure God had a good reason to banish your city beneath the waves…"

As John blathered on, Mako clutched his head.

"_I wonder if he forgot this is a virtual world." _Mako thought, _"The only 'Gods' here are the programmers!"_

"My turn's over John!" Mako shouted.

John stopped talking and smiled as he drew. His smile grew brighter as he placed another card onto his disk.

"Very well, it's time I stopped talking for God." He said, "I summon The Creator Incarnate (1600/1500)."

Before John rose another creature, this one a human dressed in golden armor. He had a fuchsia cape and golden scimitar.

"Okay…" Mako began, before John raised one hand.

"I should not speak for the lord when he can come and talk for himself." John stated.

"What?" Mako said, his face going blank.

"I tribute The Creator Incarnate to activate his special ability." John declared, raising his hands to the sky, "I beseech thee my Lord, descend from the Heavens to cast thy judgment upon this wicked soul!"

The golden warrior rose into the sky, and a huge lightning storm crackled overhead. Mako ducked as bolt of electricity rained from above.

"By tributing The Creator Incarnate I may special summon THE CREATOR (2300/3000)!!" John intoned.

A huge flash of light fell from above, and standing behind John was a megalithic idol made of red metal. A pair of wings attached to a huge ring was hooked to its back, and it sparked with lightning.

"Oh my…" Mako began.

"Thou shalt not use the Lord's name in vain." John warned as he held his hands over his head, "This one monster embodies all of God's love and mercy..."

"THEN WHY DOES IT HAVE 2300 ATTACK POINTS!" Mako screamed.

"Because sometimes, love hurts." John explained, "Now, for the grandest part of my deck, I play Card of Safe Return!"

A new spell rose, showing a man crouching under three cards.

"Now, whenever I summon a monster from the graveyard I will be permitted to draw a card." John explained, "And now I activate the effect of The Creator, discarding one card from my hand to allow a monster in my grave back into his good graces."

John pitched a card into his graveyard, and another was ejected. It flew around John, before settling on his tray.

"In game terms?" Mako asked.

"I can bring a monster back from my graveyard by discarding one card." John explained, "And since you're such good friends with Miss Hikari, this one should seem familiar…"

A beam of golden light descended from the sky, and a gorgeous angel wearing a golden dress appeared. She had lavender hair and six glorious, silver wings.

"I discarded this one when I played Card Destruction." John explained, "She is known as Wingweaver (2750/2400)."

"Oh crud." Mako said simply, not noticing as Jon drew another card for his Card of Safe Return.

"Now then, you said that your monster had to lose by at least 700 points, right? Kaiser Glider, unleash thy wrath upon the Sea Serpent!" John ordered, "And then Wingweaver shall unleash Heavenly might upon his facedown monster."

The dragon breathed golden fire again, turning Mako's water monster into a piece of charcoal. At the same time, Wingweaver began to glow with golden light, which surrounded Mako's facedown monster. The creature was revealed as his Creeping Doom Manta (1500/1400) before fading into the light.

"Creator, I humbly request that you open this heathen's eyes to your wondrous mercy!" John said as he fell to a praying position, "If though doest deem it necessary, unleash thy holy lighting shockwave!"

The Creator looked down and John, and nodded. It pointed right at Mako, and blast of electricity flew from its hand. Mako screamed as the energy struck him in the chest, knocking him flat across his deckmaster's back!

Mako: 4050

John: 6450

Mako let out a moan as he lay sprawled across his monster's back.

"Well, I guess lightning and water _don't _mix." John commented, "But that is what you get for defying the will of the Celestial Heralds…"

John was about to launch into another rant when Mako pulled himself up.

"Would you please…" Mako grumbled as he picked up his hand, "JUST SHUT UP!"

John stood aghast at this, as Mako stared down at him.

"Seriously! No wonder Celeste got a headache dueling you." Mako gasped, "You just won't quit on this 'mission from God' thing, and it's driving _me _nuts!"

"Um…end turn." John said, sheepishly.

Mako saw his readout turn to the words draw, and swiftly plucked a card from his disk. He plugged it into his disk, and a facedown spell or trap card materialized before him.

"That's all I can do." Mako admitted.

John drew, and another smile crossed his lips.

"Well Mako you may not like hearing about the Lord, but you can't deny that I'm about to win." John stated, "Kaiser Glider, attack!"

A stream of golden flame rushed toward Mako, who just smiled as he jammed his finger onto a button on his disk.

"Nice try, but this trap will hold you off." Mako smiled, "I activate Tornado Wall, negating all damage done to me so long as the field is called Umi!"

A huge rush of wind kicked up, and a flurry of tornados rose around Mako. They sucked up the water from the ground, and formed a protective barrier! John gasped as his monster's fire was extinguished by the water spouts.

"Ah well. I'll just end my turn then." John sighed with a wave, "But thy trap can't protect thee forever."

"_It won't have to if I can draw the right card."_ Mako thought as he drew.

Looking at the monster on it, he smiled once more.

"_Just what I need to keep him off me for a bit longer."_ He realized, sliding the card into place.

"I set one monster in defense mode and that's it." Mako stated as a hiding monster materialized in front of the tornados.

"Fine, I draw." John said as he did so, "And though your trap saves your life points, it can't protect your monsters! Wingweaver, attack his facedown creature with Heaven's might!"

The six winged fairy folded her hands in prayer, and a shimmering aura flowed over her. Mako's monster flipped, showing a young woman with blue hair, black armor, and carrying a trident.

"Not quite enough Johnny." Mako smirked, "My Maiden of the Aqua (900/2200) is a little too tough for you, thanks to my field and my deckmaster."

A shimmering light fell on the girl, who was unimpressed. She just shrugged it off, and the light faded.

"Blast!" John shouted, "Very well, your move."

Mako drew again, and quickly adopted a poker face.

"One more facedown, and that's all." Mako stated, another hidden card materializing in his spell and trap zone.

"You can't hide behind your traps forever." John warned as he drew, "Aha! I just found the perfect way past it even."

John tapped his disk, and his own field slot swung open. He swiftly placed a card into it, and Mako gasped as his city began to slip beneath the waves again.

"Say farewell to your ocean Mr. Tsunami." John smiled, "I play my own field spell: Luminous Spark!"

The water faded away, and an orb of bright light now hovered over the field. It shone down, and John smiled as the structure behind him was illuminated by the orb.

"Now then, without Umi your Tornado Wall vanishes…" John stated.

The tornados died out, and Mako's trap shattered.

"Your Maiden loses her field power bonus…"

Maiden of the Aqua (700/2000) began to tremble as John's monsters loomed over her.

"And my monsters each gain 500 attack, at the cost of 400 defense." John finished.

The Creator (2700/2600), Kaiser Glider (2900/1800), and Wingweaver (3250/2000) all grew slightly under the searing light.

"So now this duel is truly mine!" John shouted, "But I can't risk you saving yourself with Mirror Force or Sakuretsu Armor, so I'll invoke The Creator's effect once again…"

John discarded a card (Tribute Doll), and The Creator extended its hand. A bolt of lightning flew down, and from the ground emerged the golden armored Creator Incarnate (2100/1100), crouching in defense mode.

Upon seeing this, Mako began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" John asked, drawing as per the effect of his spell.

"If you hadn't decided to summon that monster to protect yourself, you could have won." Mako said simply as his facedown card lifted up, "I activate Torrential Tribute!"

John went pale as Mako's trap emitted a gush of water.

"No…you were waiting for me to summon something!" John gasped, realization dawning on him.

"Yep, and you walked right into my trap." Mako smiled, "Since you just summoned, my trap destroys every monster on the field. Including The Creator!"

The gush had become a torrent now, and all five monsters present were caught in it. John braced himself as the water fell away with a mighty crash, obliterating his creatures.

Looking at his hand, John winced. His only monster was eight stars, he needed another monster to summon it. Sighing, he waved to signal the end of his turn.

Mako drew, and swiftly placed a card onto his disk.

"Well John, I've got a clear shot now." Mako smiled, "And I think Abyss Soldier (1800/1300) is just the guy to take it."

From the water leapt a creature that looked very much like a whale from the waist up. But this monster had arms and legs like a human, and carried a golden trident in its hands.

"And here we go! Attack with ocean's fury!" Mako ordered.

The whale-man lunged forward, and jabbed its armament into John's ribs. The light duelist screamed in pain, and fell onto his behind.

Mako: 4050

John: 4650

"That ends my turn." Mako stated, "Show me what you got."

John drew, gasping in pain after the last attack. It hadn't left a mark, but the attack had clearly been draining on him.

"Well, well, another card from Ms. Hikari's deck I believe." John panted as he played a monster, "And thanks to my deckmaster, I can summon him no problem. Arise Airknight Parshath (2400/1000)!"

A cloud of feathers rose up, and from them emerged a centaur. The human part of his body was outfitted with metallic blue armor, and a helmet with a golden halo. The horse like section was snow white, and a total of six wings spread out behind the creature.

"Airknight, destroy his monster!" John ordered.

The angel leapt forward, and pulled a shimmering blade from a scabbard at his side. Mako and his monster both braced themselves, as the aqua type was slashed across the chest. It stumbled backward, but wasn't destroyed thanks to Mako's deckmaster.

Mako 3450

John: 4650

"Sorry, you only beat my monster by 600 points there." Mako smiled as he pointed at his deckmaster, "Fortress Whale says he's staying."

"Maybe so, but I still get to draw a card since my Airknight damaged your life points." John retorted as he drew, "And that will have to end my turn."

Mako drew, and smiled as he placed his Great White into his graveyard.

"Watch this John." Mako commanded, "Abyss Soldier, use your power on Parshath!"

The soldier twirled his spear, the image of Great White appearing behind it. Pointing his weapon at the fairy-type, a blue aura formed around the soldier. Airknight gasped in fright and vanished, his card reappearing in John's hand.

"What!" John gasped, "But how?"

"Easy, by discarding one water monster my Abyss Soldier can send one card on your field back to your hand." Mako explained with a smile, "So that leaves me free to go for your life points again. But first I'll summon Giant Red Seasnake (1800/800) in attack mode."

Mako placed the monster onto his tray, and just like the name suggested a large crimson serpent with blue stripes leapt from the water.

"Boys, it's snack time!" Mako called out.

The snake lunged, and chomped on John's arm. Abyss Soldier once again buried his spear in John's ribcage. The teen groaned, and fell to his knees from the pain.

Mako: 3450

John: 1050

"That's all from me." Mako smiled, as he sat in a crossed legged position on his deckmaster, "Now didn't you say something along the lines of 'I'm going to win?'"

John grumbled under his breath (something relating to damning Mako) and drew. He stopped muttering however, and smiled as he slammed the card onto his disk.

"I summon my second Creator Incarnate (2100/1000)!" John shouted.

For the third time, the golden warrior rose onto the playing area.

"And then I tribute him to summon my second Creator (2800/2600)!" John concluded, swapping the card on his disk for one from his hand.

"SECOND!" Mako shouted, "You have two!?"

"That's right…" John smiled as the enormous monolith of a monster rose up behind him once again, "He was never limited due to his fairly low attack strength and inability to be summoned from the grave. But that just means I have a perfect back up if one is destroyed. Now I discard my Electro-Whip spell…"

John pitched the spell into his grave, and The Creator fired another lightning bolt. From the electricity emerged the form of Wingweaver (3250/2000) once again. John was smiling as his Card of Safe Return flashed, and he drew another card. Mako and his monsters drew back at the sight of the heavenly summonings.

"Now then, I believe both of my monsters trump yours by more than 700 points, so if the two of you would?" John smiled as he gestured to Mako's side of the field.

The Creator launched its bolts, eradicating Abyss Soldier! At the same time, Wingweaver began to pray, and Giant Red Seasnake was absorbed by a shaft of heavenly light.

Mako: 1000

John: 1050

Mako blinked, and checked his life point read out to be sure it was correct.

"_Oh boy."_ He thought, _"I need a plan. The only monster I have that could beat these two is Daedelus, and he's in my grave already!"_

"Oh Mako, it's your turn." John smiled, "And I hope you're ready to fall to divine justice…"

Mako gulped, and drew. His eyes went wide when he saw the card in his hand.

"_Wait a second, I thought I removed this after I stopped working for Needlez!"_ Mako thought, seeing the spell he had drawn, _"No, wait…I meant to but I never got around to it. I must somehow avoided drawing it since then."_

Looking up at the monsters before him, Mako sighed.

"_I really don't like this spell, it seems kind of cheap, but I'd rather not lose."_ Mako reasoned, sliding the card into his disk, _"After this duel though, I get rid of it."_

"Well John, you're about to lose this duel." Mako stated, discarding a card from his hand, "I activate Lightning Vortex!"

"Lightning Vortex?" John asked, looking confused, "What's…"

Before he could finish his question, John got his answer. A blast of electricity soared from the sky, and obliterated both of his monsters! John stopped in mid-sentence, his mouth hanging open in shock.

"I discard one card from my hand to destroy every face up monster you control." Mako sighed as he thought of the Flying Fish he had just used to activate the spell, "Looks like your monsters fell before the power of an ocean storm. And now I'll end this by summoning my deckmaster to the field."

The Fortress Whale let out a low cry, and all of its weapons pointed right at John.

"You might want to hold onto something." Mako suggested.

John gulped, and fell to a praying positon.

"Oh God, please spare your servant from a horrible fate." He squeaked out.

"Fortress Whale, attack directly!" Mako ordered, falling to his stomach, "FULL ARTILLARY BARRAGE!!"

The cannons, lasers, rifles, and various other fire arms all went off together, flying harmlessly over Mako's head. John was not so fortunate, as the battery of bullets plowed into the floor around him, resulting in a tremendous burst of flame of heat.

Mako: 1000

John: 0

The smoke cleared, and Mako leapt back onto what was left of the dock. His last attack had reduced it to multiple platforms of wood floating on the ocean.

"_Sorry about that."_ Fortress Whale's voice echoed, _"Don't know my own strength sometimes."_

"_As long as you didn't hurt the church, I don't think he'll complain."_ Mako assured his deckmaster.

The smoke cleared, and John was groaning as he got back to his feet. The church was still very much intact, and John gave it a look to be sure it was alright.

"Very well then." He sighed, "It would seem that the Lord has decreed my defeat this time. Perhaps I was being a bit to prideful for my own good."

"You just need to work on your people skills a little." Mako assured him, jumping onto John's platform, "Other than that, it was a fun duel."

"Indeed." John nodded as he waved one hand over his disk, "Well Mako, there's no shame in losing to a strong duelist like you. Take my five points as we agreed, and know that I shall be praying for your victory."

Five points of light flew from John's disk, and settled into Mako's. The ocean dueler smiled as his count jumped to ten, and then turned into a golden number eight.

"I guess they're waiting on a few more finalists." Mako commented as a ring of light gathered at his feet, "Well, thanks for the duel John."

"No problem Mako, but I'll be expecting a rematch someday." John smiled.

Mako vanished before he could reply, and John carefully jumped from his platform over to the church. He began to mutter another prayer as he entered into the sanctified building, a smile on his lips.

_**Note to self: Never duel against John again if I can help it. It's just too big a headache.**_

_**Oh, and if you thought we were done with gambling after 'Dumb Luck,' you were sorely mistaken.**_

_**Gold and I have tangled with eliminators, and Zeffie's about to try her luck against one.**_

_**We call the chapter**_

_**Weighted Dice**_

_**And we promise, the opponent is a new deckmaster. See ya there. **_

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Fortress Whale

WATER

Fish

Seven star

2350 attack

2150 defense

Guardian of the Sea: No WATER-monsters you control can be destroyed in battle unless they lose by at least 700 points.

---

Kaiser Sea Horse

LIGHT

Sea Serpent

Four star

1700 attack

1650 defense

Summoning Light: As long as this monster serves as your deckmaster, you may summon any LGIHT attribute monsters you want for one less tribute than normal.

_Kaiser Sea Horse served as Kaiba's deckmaster in the anime. All of the credit for its effect goes to the creators and writers of the show._


	16. Weighted Dice

**_Zeffie had duel Mr. Richington first and he was tough. But now, Zeffie has made it to somewhere new._**

_**Still no sign of Zeffie's friends though. And now Zeffie is wishing that he had listened to her parents more.**_

_**They said if Zeffie gets separated from Goldie she should wait to be found.**_

_**They said Zeffie shouldn't wander around looking for help.**_

_**They said Zeffie shouldn't talk to strangers.**_

_**And now Zeffie is lost in a strange place, dueling a strange new friend…**_

**Weighted Dice**

Deep in the virtual world, stood a huge city. It was the sort of place that always seemed to have something going on. Neon lights and music flooded the streets, drawing attention away from the dirty sidewalks and buildings. Even though the sun was down, the city lit up like it was day.

This is where Zeffie found herself landing after Beating Mr. Richington. She smiled as she looked around, taking in the lights and sounds of the big city.

"Cool!" She cheered as she started down the mysteriously empty street, "Zeffie always wanted to visit the city!"

The small child began to skip her way down the street, looking back and forth with each leap. She soon discovered that, despite all of the pomp and circumstance, there was no one else around. What's more, none of the buildings' interiors were visible through their windows. Zeffie stopped to tug on the door to one of them, but it remained shut in spite of her best efforts.

Zeffie looked at the door, and pulled on the handle with both hands. Still nothing. She placed one foot against the door frame and pulled…

And promptly fell on her behind with no reaction from the door. Getting up, Zeffie ran a hand over it. She gasped as she discovered that the handle was just sticking out of the wall, and the door was painted around it.

"_That's a mean trick."_ She thought as she stuffed her hands in her pockets and walked down the street again.

"Attention Ladies and Gentlemen!" A voice echoed down the street, "Come one, come all! See the most amazing feats of magic you've ever witnessed! All at the Pyramid of Light Casino!"

Zeffie perked up a bit at this announcement.

"A magic show?" She gasped, "Zeffie loves magic shows!"

And with that, she began to skip down the street again. It didn't take long for her to find the place. It was a giant, pyramid-shaped building, with a smaller building built into the front. Zeffie walked up to the door, and ran a hand over it carefully. The instant she touched it, it swung open. Smiling, she walked inside.

The inside of the building was huge. It was about the size of a football stadium and all covered in plush red carpet. There were slot machines off to the side, with blackjack tables across from them. A series of roulette wheels stood clicking in the center of the area, which was descended a little bit lower than the rest of the room. Zeffie looked around at all of the machines, and noticed that they were all pumping out music and electronic beeps, despite the fact that there was no one around to use them.

"Where is everybody?" Zeffie asked.

A flash of light lit up the center of the room. The roulette wheels all stopped, and sank into the floor. Fresh patches of carpeted floor covered the holes where they once stood, and a young man now occupied the pit. He had sandy blond hair, and wore a white shirt covered by a gray vest. He had gray pants, and his eyes had a friendly (yet mischievous) appearance.

"Well, well, well." He said in a smooth voice, looking at Zeffie, "Seems I get to perform for a full house tonight."

Zeffie looked around, and then pointed to herself.

"Yes, you." The man confirmed with a nod, "Pull up a chair, and enjoy the show."

A chair instantly appeared before the stranger. Zeffie cautiously moved forward, and took a seat.

The man smiled, and produced a deck of Duel Monster Cards. He shuffled it, much like a poker player would by rifling the deck, and fanned them in front of Zeffie with the pictures facing her.

"Pick a card, any card." The man invited as Zeffie glanced over the pictures on them.

She slowly plucked one, and looked at it. It was a monster called Slot Machine.

"Now put it back in." She was instructed.

Zeffie put the card in the deck, which the magician began to shuffle again. He stopped, and pulled the top card off.

"Is this your card?" He asked, showing a monster called Dice Jar to the girl.

Zeffie shook her head. The man frowned, and pulled the next card off. This one was a spell called Second Coin Toss.

"That one?" He asked.

"No." Zeffie said, "Zeffie chose…"

"Don't tell me!" The man interrupted as he snapped his fingers.

One of the slot machines on the side began to whir wildly. Zeffie turned to it, and watched as it grew and transformed into a ten-foot tall giant. It sprouted arms and legs, its outside turned gold, and the three windows on it remained in a blank position. The mammoth machine stomped forward, and walked over to the entertainer. He smiled as the golden monster turned into a card, which he held up.

"How about now?" He asked, showing her Slot Machine.

"Wow!" Zeffie cheered as she began to clap, "That was awesome! Do it again!"

"Sorry, a good magician knows not to show the same trick twice." The man explained as he slid the card back into his deck, "But I can show you a few other ones. You want to know how to make a duelist disappear?"

"Um…" Zeffie started as the young man stepped back.

He waved his hand, and a duel disk materialized on his left arm! He plugged the cards in, and smiled.

"Just put them in a match against the trickiest spellcaster ever." He answered, "Me! The Sand Gambler."

Zeffie gasped, and jumped up. Her chair vanished as she readied her own disk.

"You're an eliminator, aren't you?" Zeffie realized as she glared at him.

"Sorry for tricking you, but it has been terribly boring around here." Sand Gambler explained, "And I'm not going to force you. You can walk out of here right now and you'll never have to see me again."

Zeffie glanced back to the door, and frowned as she remembered that the only thing beyond it was an empty city.

"Zeffie thinks…She'll duel." Zeffie nodded, "So get ready Sandy!"

"Sandy?" The gambler muttered, "Well that's a new one. Call me that if you'd like, I guess."

Zeffie's disk whirred to life, as she and 'Sandy' both moved into dueling stances.

"But I'm going to warn you." Sandy smiled, "In this casino, the house always wins! So feel free to take the first turn, you might need it…"

A grid of cards materialized before Zeffie, just like they had with Mr. Richington.

"Right, deckmaster." Zeffie realized as she looked over her monsters, "Um…"

"Feel free to choose any monster you'd like." Sandy offered, "Seeing as I'm a Duel Monster I'll be my own deckmaster."

"Okay then." Zeffie nodded as she selected a card, "Then Zeffie chooses Skull Red Bird!"

A large skull, about twice as big as Zeffie's head, landed next to the blond girl. A raven-like bird, roughly half Zeffie's size, jumped out from behind the gruesome object and perched on it. It had blood-red feathers, which turned a shiny golden-yellow on its wings, and wore a spiky black collar around its neck.

"Well, about time I got a chance to play." The bird huffed in a haughty English voice, "I dare say I was beginning to molt in that deck…"

"Cool, you can talk like Takuhee could!" Zeffie smiled.

"Indeed." The bird confirmed, "You can just call me Red for this duel."

"Okie-dokie Reddy!" Zeffie saluted, "So what can you do?"

The bird snickered a little, and leaned close to Zeffie's ear. He raised a wing up, blocking Sandy's view of them, and whispered something.

"Okay?" Red asked, lowering his wing.

"Sounds great." Zeffie nodded as she turned back to Sandy, "Now Sandy, let's duel!"

Both duelists drew five cards (Zeffie picking up a sixth), and the life point counters set.

Zeffie: 8000

Sandy: 8000

Zeffie placed one card on her tray, and put two into the slots on its back. In front of her appeared two facedown cards. Red flapped his wings, and a tornado rose up from the floor. Out of the whirlwind stepped a man with a falcon's head and wings wearing a white robe.

"Zeffie lays these two cards facedown, and summons Winged Sage Falcos (1700/1200) in attack mode." Zeffie declared, "Your turn."

Sandy drew, and a smile crossed his face.

"I'll open by summoning my beautiful assistant: Gamble Angel Bunny (1200/1200)." He stated, slapping a card onto his disk.

Sandy let out a shrill whistle, and a trap door opened in front of him. A small platform rose up from the hole, and standing on it was a young woman wearing fishnet garters, bunny paw gloves and boots, a sleeveless leotard, and bunny ears on top of her head.

"Bunny?" Zeffie asked.

"That's right." Sandy smiled as the woman handed him a silver coin, "And she has a special ability."

He held up the coin, revealing that one side was marked with a pair of bunny ears.

"This is heads…" Sandy explained.

He turned the coin over, showing a fluffy cottony tail on the other side.

"…and this is tails." He continued, "I flip this coin and call it. If I'm right, you lose 1000 life points."

"And if you're wrong?" Zeffie asked.

"Then I lose 1000 life points." Sandy smiled as he tossed the coin up, "But I feel lucky. Heads!"

The coin glittered in the casino's lights…

And vanished as it reached the apex of its flight! Zeffie looked around, confused, and Sandy smiled. He waved his hand, and a top hat appeared in it. Turning it so the open end faced down, he put a hand under it. The silver coin fell into the palm of his hand, revealing the bunny ears.

"Looks like I called it right." Sandy smiled.

Gamble Angel Bunny pumped her fist in the air with a shout of 'Congratulations!' and a shower of golden coins fell from the ceiling. Zeffie yelped as the metal tokens bombarded her, bouncing off her head and disk.

Zeffie: 7000

Sandy: 8000

"No fair!" Zeffie shouted, pointing an accusing finger at her foe, "You must have used magic to cheat!"

"What?" Sandy gasped, looking deeply hurt, "Why my dear Zeffie, I've never been more insulted. It's true I'm a spellcaster, but you forgot that I'm also a computer program created by Seto Kaiba. I can't cheat, it's impossible for me to even try."

Zeffie lowered her arm and thought for a bit.

"Good point." She nodded, "But if you're a program, doesn't that mean you can't really fell insulted?"

Sandy blinked, opened his mouth, snapped it shut again, and then finally found his voice.

"That's…not important right now." He said simply as he put another card in his disk, "I continue my turn by equipping Bunny with Malevolent Nuzzler."

A green-skinned woman materialized behind the bunny girl. Bunny (1900/1200) smiled as a dark aura flared up around her.

"Now then, take out Falcos with card shark assault!" Sandy ordered.

The bunny nodded, and leapt into the air. In one of her hands appeared a deck of cards, the edges of which gleamed razor sharp. She laughed, and tossed the deadly cards right at Falcos. Zeffie just took a card from her hand, and shoved it into her graveyard.

"NOW!" She shouted to Red.

The large bird lifted his left wing, revealing that there were several tiny, golden knives stashed under it. He plucked out four with his right wing (just how he held them was unclear), and tossed them up at the rabbit woman. She gasped in horror as several of her cards were knocked down, and the knives struck her in the chest!

"Falcos, counter attack!" Zeffie ordered.

The falcon man dodged the remaining cards, and opened his beak. A wave of high-pitched sound shot from it, and slammed into Gamble Angel Bunny. She moaned, fell to the floor, and vanished.

"What the…" Sandy gasped, "What just happened?"

"Zeffie activated her deckmaster's special ability: surprise knives!" Zeffie explained.

"It's very simple." Red interjected, "If Zeffie discards one card from her hand, I'll throw some of the knives I keep under my wings at any monster that she's attacking or that's attacking her. That monster will then lose attack points equal to 100 times its star level."

"Zeffie saw Bunny was a four-star-monster." Zeffie explained, "So when she used Reddy's power, she dropped Bunny's attack from 1900 to 1500."

Zeffie: 7000

Sandy: 7800

"Clever." Sandy complimented, "But I happen to know that any monster Falcos destroys is sent to the top of my deck. That means I'll just draw Gamble Bunny again on my next turn."

Sandy looked over the remaining four cards in his hand, and frowned. A point of light appeared on his deck, and turned into a card.

"But there's nothing more I can do until then." He confessed.

"My turn then." Zeffie smiled as she drew a new card.

"Unfortunately, it would appear we're also out of moves for now." Red whispered to Zeffie.

Zeffie nodded in agreement, and pointed to Falcos.

"Falcos, attack directly with shriek of pain!" Zeffie commanded.

Falcos's beak opened again, and another blast of high-pitched noise flew out. Sandy screamed in pain, and covered his ears as the sound forced him back a few steps.

Zeffie: 7000

Sandy: 6100

"Your turn." Zeffie said.

"What?" Sandy shouted, uncovering his ears.

"YOUR TURN!" Zeffie yelled.

"I can't hear you, I'll just take my turn!" Sandy responded as he drew.

"Zeffie activates Drop Off!" Zeffie called out.

"WHAT?" Sandy asked as one of his opponent's cards lifted.

A ghostly hand appeared behind Sandy, and smacked him in the back of the skull. Sandy winced in pain, and the hand grabbed the Gamble Angel Bunny he had just drawn, stuffing it into his graveyard.

"ZEFFIE SAID…" Zeffie started to shout.

"Not so loud, I can you hear you now." Sandy scolded.

Zeffie's mouth snapped shut in response.

"Drop Off then? You forced me to lose the card I just drew." Sandy realized, "Smart girl, but I always have a trick up my sleeve."

Zeffie's eyes narrowed.

"Figuratively speaking of course." Sandy said hastily, "I summon Gemini Elf (1900/900) in attack mode."

Sandy put the card down, and a pair of elven maidens jumped down from no where. One was blond and wore a blue dress, the other had red hair and a purple dress. The two locked arms, and awaited their orders.

"Next, I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your facedown card." Sandy continued as he played the spell.

A blast of wind flew forward, and wiped out Zeffie's facedown Sakuretsu Armor trap. Zeffie gasped, but then smiled.

"Why are you…" Sandy began to ask, "Oh right, you still have your deckmaster's ability to fall back on. Well I've got something too…"

Sandy plugged another card into his disk, and a giant, evil looking axe floated in front of Gemini Elf (2900/900).

"I'll equip my lovely ladies with Axe of Despair, giving them an additional 1000 attack points." Sandy smiled, "Now those flimsy knives won't make a difference. Ladies, wipe out that bird-faced freak!"

The blue elf grabbed the axe and leapt forward. Falcos started to rise into the air, but, before he could reach safety, the elf jumped higher and brought her weapon down on his skull. Zeffie winced, and looked away as her monster shattered into millions of bits of data.

Zeffie: 5800

Sandy: 6100

"Now I lay this card facedown." Sandy said as he put one of his remaining two cards into play, "Beat that."

The card appeared behind the elves, and Zeffie drew her fourth card.

"Oh, that's interesting…" Red commented upon seeing the card.

Zeffie smiled and held a hand next to her disk.

"Zeffie has a plan! Zeffie removes Falcos from play…" Zeffie declared, a card sliding from her disk.

Zeffie picked up the card and put it in the pocket of her shorts. She then put a card from her hand onto the disk. In front of her rose another whirlwind. In this one appeared another human-bird hybrid. He wore red pants tied off with an orange sash, his head resembled that of a crow's with brown feathers, and a pair of brown bird wings came from his back.

"To special summon Garuda the Wind Spirit (1600/1200)." Zeffie smiled, "And then Zeffie normal summons Bladefly (600/700) in attack mode."

Another monster appeared next to the bird-man. This one looked like a large bee, but rather than a stinger, it had a huge forelimb that ended in a sharp scythe.

"What good will those two do you?" Sandy asked.

"Simple, Bladefly gives all wind monsters 500 extra attack points since he's such good friends with them." Zeffie explained, bouncing up and down on her heels as she did.

A light breeze filled the room, as both Bladefly (1100/700) and Garuda (2100/1200) began to hover a little higher above the floor.

"I reiterate, what good will those two…" Sandy started to ask.

"Zeffie's not done yet!" Zeffie explained as her field slot opened, "Zeffie activates her field spell card: Rising Air Currents!"

A blast of wind filled the room, and everybody, duelist and monster alike, covered their eyes from the stinging breeze. As it died down, they all looked around. The bright and colorful casino had vanished. In its place, they now were standing far over the city, held aloft by a rush of warm air! Red swooped up from below, and landed on Zeffie's shoulder, a smile on his beak.

"Ahh…feels good!" Red shouted as he spread his wings, "A very wise move Zeffie!"

"This spell gives all wind monster 500 more attack points, but takes away 400 defense points." Zeffie explained as Garuda (2600/800) and Bladefly (1600/300) both stretched their wings in the breeze.

"Um…You realize that you're 300 points short of beating my elves right?" The gambler asked, gesturing to his monster.

He stopped, and gasped as he noticed that both elves were doubled over, and shaking. The Gemini Elf (2500/900) seemed to have been completely thrown off balance.

"What's happening?" Sandy gasped, "My elves lost attack power, but how? You didn't use your deckmaster!"

"Zeffie didn't have to." Zeffie explained as she gave Bladefly a pat on the head, "Zeffie's Bladefly takes 400 attack points away from every earth monster on the field."

"And that's just what the elves are." Sandy realized.

"Garuda, attack the elves with chaos gust!" Zeffie called out.

The winged-beast began to furiously beat his wings, whipping up a huge windstorm. As he did, Sandy's facedown card lifted. A red and purple box appeared, and carnival music began to flow from it.

"Huh? A whack-a-mole game?" Zeffie guessed.

"Close, but no cigar Zeffie." Sandy grinned, "This is a trap known as Fairy Box. Now I get to flip a coin, and if I call this one right your monster's attack will drop to zero."

A golden coin appeared in Sandy's hand. One side was blank, the other was marked with an eye.

"The eye is heads, blank is tails." Sandy explained, "I call tails this time."

He tossed the coin up, and a gust of wind caught it. It began to fly around in a chaotic pattern, spinning the whole way, until it vanished behind Zeffie. Sandy held out his hand, and the coin dropped out of nowhere right into it. Zeffie smiled as she saw the eye staring up from her foe's hand.

"Uh oh." Sandy mumbled as the winds picked up.

The elf women screamed as one as the furious blast of air struck them. They plummeted toward the ground, becoming harder and harder to see as they got further away. Their card and Axe of Despair's vanishing from Sandy's disk indicated their destruction.

"Bladefly, attack with scythe sting!" Zeffie shouted.

The insect flew forward, but Sandy tossed his coin again.

"Heads!" He shouted frantically.

The coin simply fell into his palm this time, showing the blank side had landed on top.

"Got ya!" Zeffie cheered.

"Not quite." Sandy responded as an aura of bronze light flared up around him, "I use my deckmaster power: winning streak!"

The coin shimmered for a minute, and Sandy tossed it up again. The coin hung in midair as Sandy explained.

"With my deckmaster power, if I don't like the outcome of a card I played that requires me to toss a coin, roll a die, or guess a card's identity in someway, I get to try it again." Sandy stated, "And it only costs 1000 life points. So I call heads again…"

The coin fell, and landed in Sandy's outstretch hand. This time the eye stared up at the night sky.

"And this time I'm right." Sandy laughed, "So Bladefly (0/300) has zero attack for the rest of your turn."

The bug stumbled in mid air, and Sandy swatted it away. It buzzed, and floated back to Zeffie, who gave it a reassuring pat on the head.

Zeffie: 5800

Sandy: 4700

"Anything else you want to try?" The spellcaster asked Zeffie.

Zeffie looked at the lone card in her hand, and shook her head no. Sandy smiled and drew his next card.

"First, I'll have to pay 500 life points to keep fairy box in play." Sandy said as his life points dipped.

Zeffie: 5800

Sandy: 4200

"Next, I summon Roulette Barrel in attack mode!" Sandy shouted, placing another card on his disk.

In the air in front of him, a metal platform rose up. From the platform came a futuristic cannon, and on the terrace around it were the numbers one through six. The cannon let out a beep, and began to spin wildly.

"What's it doing?" Zeffie asked as she and her monster watched it spin.

"It's doing what any good roulette does, choosing a random number." The gambling monster explained, "It randomly picks two numbers between one and six. Then, I choose one of those numbers. If the number I pick matches the level of a monster on the field, then I can destroy the matching monster instantly."

The cannon beeped again, and stopped. Two targeting crosshairs appeared on the dais it sat on, centered on the numbers two and four.

"Guess that means I can destroy either one of your monsters." Sandy said with a twisted grin, "I choose to destroy your four-star Garuda!"

The crosshairs vanished, and then refocused on the bird man. He let out a shriek of surprise, as the cannon fired, wiping him from the field.

"And then, I lay this card facedown." Sandy finished as his final card materialized in front of him, "Make your move."

"Okay, draw!" Zeffie cried out as she did, "And Zeffie summons the monster she just drew, Sonic Duck (2700/700)!"

Zeffie placed the card on her disk, and a green duck wearing a red scarf and a bucket helmet jumped up from the city below. It flapped its wings, generating a loud buzzing noise, as it hovered next to Bladefly.

"You realize you have to risk my Fairy Box if you attack." Sandy challenged.

"You can't call that coin right every time." Zeffie pointed out, "Sonic Duck, attack…"

"You said 'attack' meaning you've started your battle phase." Sandy interrupted, waving a hand over his disk, "So I activate my Zero Gravity trap card."

Sandy's only facedown lifted, and a wave of blue energy washed forth. It collided with every monster, causing them to spin around in wild circles. When they finally stopped, Sonic Duck and Bladefly were hovering further back from their target, and Roulette Barrel had projected a force field around itself.

"Now all monster have changed their battle positions. And to change your monsters back, you'd have to skip your battle phase and go into main phase 2." Sandy pointed out, "Pretty clever, don't you think?"

Zeffie looked slightly depressed, but just turned one of the monster cards back to its original positions. Bladefly moved forward again, now shifted back into attack mode.

"That's all Zeffie can do, your turn." Zeffie nodded.

"Excellent." Sandy said as he drew.

The Fairy Box began to beep wildly, and drawing Sandy's attention toward it.

"Looks like I'll pay another 500 life points to keep this." He stated as the box ceased its beeping.

Zeffie: 5800

Sandy: 3700

"But now it's time for a quick refresh." Sandy smirked, sliding a card into his disk, "I play Card of Sanctity, so we both draw until we hold six cards!"

Zeffie smiled and drew five cards from her deck, while Sandy picked up six.

"Perfect!" He cheered as he placed a card in his disk, "I hate heights, so I play my De-spell card to destroy Rising Air Currents."

A green mist covered the field, obscuring Zeffie's vision. She looked around, struggling to see where her monsters had vanished to, when the mist cleared. Both of them were now standing back in the casino, Sonic Duck (2200/700) and Bladefly (1100/700) were both looking around, upset they had lost their advantage.

"Why do you use De-spell?" Zeffie asked, curiously, "That's a really, really, really old card, isn't it?"

"An oldie but a goodie." Sandy pointed out with a smile, "It's perfect for destroying field and equipment spells, plus I can have up to three in my deck. Now then, let's spin Roulette Barrel again!"

The laser cannon began to spin wildly, beeping like it was about to explode. It suddenly stopped…

And both crosshairs were lined up on the four! Zeffie let out a cheer and began to jump up and down.

"Yeah! Now your monster has to blow itself up! Yippee! Yahoo!" Zeffie cheered as she and her monsters celebrated.

"Don't be so sure Zeffie." Sandy grinned as the bronze aura flared up around him again, "I'm using my deckmaster power again! Spin Roulette Barrel!"

The cannon began to spin once more as Sandy's life points dipped. The crosshairs were projected again, this time landing on the four and the two.

"So now I can destroy either a level four or a level two monster." Sandy smiled, "And I choose to destroy the only level two monster in play: Bladefly!"

The target cursors projected onto the giant bee, which let out a worried buzzing noise. The laser weapon fired, and Bladefly was wiped out before it had a chance to fly away. Sonic Duck (1700/700) let out a surprised quack at the loss of another bonus and its comrade.

Zeffie: 5800

Sandy: 2700

"Next, I'll lay this card facedown." Sandy continued sliding another card into his disk.

The card appeared before him, facedown in his spell and trap zone. Sandy then put another card in next to it, and a giant mouth burst from the ground in front of him!

"And now I play Emergency Provisions to destroy it and my Fairy Box, giving me 1000 life points for each one." Sandy smirked, "So I get a small return on all the life points I spent."

The mouth gobbled down the two cards, and the carnival box disappeared. Sandy smiled as his life points began to climb again.

Zeffie: 5800

Sandy: 4700

"Next comes one more facedown card. That's my turn." The gambler stated as he placed one last card into his disk.

"_This isn't fair; he keeps getting do-overs!"_ Zeffie thought as she drew her seventh card, _"Zeffie needs to get something to fight back with."_

Zeffie frowned as she looked over her hand, but then saw what she had drawn. Struggling to keep a good poker face, she laced a monster horizontally onto her tray.

"Zeffie sets one monster in defense mode." She said, trying to sound calm, "And that's all."

"Good." Sandy said with a nod as he took his card, "Now lets take Roulette Barrel out for another spin, shall we?"

The cannon (which Zeffie was surprised hadn't overheated by now) began to spin once again. This time the targets were projected onto the three and the six.

"Perfect!" Sandy shouted, "I choose to destroy the three star Sonic Duck!"

The cannon beeped once more, and the duck let out a feeble quack as it was pulverized by the photon beam. Zeffie cringed, and as she did her foe's facedown card lifted.

"And for my next trick, I activate Level Conversion Lab." Sandy declared as a huge tank of water with a computer monitor attached to it rose up behind him.

"Oooh…what's that?" Zeffie asked, looking at the tank.

"This is a powerful trap card, with several steps involved." Sandy explained, "First, I have to show you a monster in my hand…"

He held up one of his cards, showing the golden monster Zeffie had chosen earlier. In the tank behind him, the life-sized version materialized. It seemed to be deactivated, as it floated in the tank with no sign of life.

"Next, the computer randomly picks a number between one and six. That becomes my monster's new star level." Sandy continued as the machine behind him began to beep.

The screen began to flash with a jumble of numbers and data. It finally stopped, showing the number one. Sandy gasped as the liquid in the tank began to turn red.

"Oh no, a one means I have to discard the monster!" He shouted as a loud buzzer sounded.

"You do?" Zeffie smiled.

"Normally yes, but I still have my winning streak power!" Sandy remembered as his life points dropped yet again.

The tank stopped buzzing, and the screen began to flash again. This time it stopped on the number five.

Zeffie: 5800  
Sandy: 3700

"So now my normally seven star monster is a five star." Sandy said as he removed Roulette Barrel's card, "So I can summon it with just one sacrifice…"

Roulette Barrel faded away as he put the card down, and the glass tube shattered into millions of fragments. The golden machine that Zeffie had seen before rose up from the wreckage, and stared down at its foe. It loomed over her facedown monster, with malice somehow emanating from it.

"Say hello to my little friend: Slot Machine (2000/2300)!" Sandy called out, "And now I get to have some more fun by equipping it with my 7 Completed spell card."

He placed the card into the disk, and one of the machines windows spun around. It stopped, showing a red seven in it.

"This spell lets me raise either the attack or defense of any machine type monster by 700 points, and I choose attack this time." Came the explanation from Zeffie's adversary, "Slot Machine (2700/2300) take down her facedown with lucky strike!"

The giant gambling device raised one of its arms. A red laser shot from it, flying right toward Zeffie's hidden monster. The card flipped over, showing a grey owl, with a golden crown on its head and a card in its beak. It threw the card into the air, just before it was blasted into vapor.

"You just attacked Zeffie's Owl of Luck (300/500)!" Zeffie shouted as she caught the card, "Now Zeffie can take any field spell from her deck, and put it on top."

She placed the card onto her deck, and Sandy just laughed.

"Let me guess: that's another Rising Air Current, isn't it?" He snorted, "It won't help you. My Slot Machine will be too much for anything you might summon!"

"Is it Zeffie's turn?" Zeffie asked with a fake yawn.

Sandy just nodded, and Zeffie drew her card (Rising Air Currents, of course). She then placed a new card on her tray, horizontally just like before.

"Zeffie sets another monster in defense mode." Zeffie smiled, "Your move Sandy!"

The gambling monster drew, and laughed as he turned his card toward the girl. The image depicted a knight in silver armor, wielding a long sword.

"Know what this is?" Sandy challenged as he played the card, and the knight appeared before him.

"Nobleman of Crossout!" Zeffie gasped as the armored soldier jumped forward.

He drove his blade into her facedown card, and a young woman in a purple body suit appeared. Lady Ninja Yae (1100/200) screamed, and vanished in a blast of pixels.

"Right, so I just removed your facedown monster from the game." Sandy taunted as he played another card, "And next, I summon my second Gamble Angel Bunny (1200/1200)!"

A trap door opened, and a second bunny waitress (identical to the one that had been destroyed earlier) jumped out of it. Sandy tossed another silver bunny coin into the air.

"I think this one will be…tails!" He stated.

The coin landed showing a replica of the bunny girl's cottony tail, and she let out a cry of 'Congratulations!' Zeffie screamed as another barrage of coins rained down on her, knocking another 1000 life points loose.

Zeffie: 4800

Sandy: 3700

Zeffie lowered her arms, just in time to see Sandy point right at her.

"Hate to do this, but I wasn't programmed with mercy." He shouted, "Bunny, Slot Machine, attack her directly!"

Zeffie let out another scream as she was knocked to the ground by the barrage of cards and lasers.

Zeffie: 900

Sandy: 3700

"Looks like this duel is over." Sandy smiled.

"It's not over till its over!" Zeffie retorted as she struggled back to her feet, "Zeffie will never give up!"

"That's the spirit!" Red encouraged.

"You might as well give up." Grumbled Sandy, "Take a look at this."

He turned the lone card in his hand toward Zeffie, showing a Magic Cylinder. He placed it into his disk, and it appeared facedown before him.

"Even if you summon something that could beat my mean machine, this will send the attack back at you." He explained.

Zeffie looked over her hand, and started to get worried.

"Don't worry." Red whispered, "There's at least one card in your deck that can blow away his plans."

"But…" Zeffie began.

"Don't worry, just trust your cards." Red coached.

Zeffie nodded, and drew. She smiled, and placed the card into her disk. A fierce windstorm erupted over the entire field!

"Zeffie activates Giant Trunade!" Zeffie shouted as they winds whipped at Sandy's facedown card, "Now all spell and traps go back to our hands!"

Sandy gasped as his Magic Cylinders and 7 Completed vanished from his disk, and reappeared in his hand! Slot Machine (2000/2300) let out a groan as the seven in its window disappeared.

"Next, Zeffie plays D. D. Designator!" Zeffie shouted, placing another card in her disk.

A shimmering portal opened, and out of it stepped a young woman with blond hair. She carried a laser sword, and wore skin-tight silver armor.

"Is that D. D. Warrior Lady?" Sandy asked nervously.

"Yep, and she's here to help Zeffie." Zeffie giggled, "Now Zeffie can name one card, and if it's in your hand, you have to remove it from the game! And since Zeffie just put it there, she guesses Magic Cylinder!"

The interdimensional warrior woman pointed her weapon right at Zeffie's rival. Magic Cylinder was pulled right out of his hand, and into hers. She smiled at Zeffie, and then vanished back into her portal. The portal let out a howl, and slammed shut.

"That…that doesn't mean anything! You still can't beat Slot Machine!" Sandy protested.

"Oh yeah? Zeffie plays Rising Air Currents now!" Zeffie declared.

The winds picked up again, and both duelists were swept up above the city once more.

"Next, Zeffie summons her favorite monster: Chaosrider Gustaph (1900/1100)!" The blond girl continued, "And since he's a wind monster, he gets the bonus from the field.

An engine roar echoed over the metropolis, and out of nowhere road a green skinned man riding a red motorcycle (which was somehow able to ride the air current they were on). He flashed a thumbs-up to Zeffie, who smiled and returned it.

"Finally, Zeffie removes D. D. Designator and Giant Trunade from her graveyard." Zeffie continued, sliding the cards from their slot and watching as they faded away, "That gives Gustaph an extra 300 attack for each one."

The motorcycle's engine revved again, this time louder and more powerful. Gustaph (2500/1100) smirked, and crouched over the handle bars.

"Gustaph, attack the Slot Machine with exhaust rush!" Zeffie ordered.

The motorcycle launched forward, moving toward Sandy's strongest monster. The gambler let out a squeak of fear as Gustaph popped a wheelie at the last second…

And drove his front tire right through the huge mecha's chest. Gustaph spun his bike around, and rode back to Zeffie, while the Slot Machine let out a whirr, and exploded.

Zeffie: 900

Sandy: 3100

"Your turn." Zeffie said with a smile.

Sandy drew, and began to laugh a little. He threw back his head, and started roaring with laughter, completely uncontrollably.

"You made a major mistake Zeffie!" Sandy sneered as he tossed up the silver coin, "You forgot about Bunny's special ability! I call heads…"

The coin landed in his palm…

Showing the tails side. Sandy gasped, and Zeffie let out a cheer.

"Don't celebrate just yet!" Sandy shouted as the bronze colored flame appeared around him again, "I use my deckmaster power again! Heads!"

He threw the coin up, and Red snickered a little.

"You can't leave an entire duel to luck Sandy." Red instructed, "Face facts, if you keep pushing your luck like this, it will eventually…"

The coin landed in Sandy's palm, showing the rabbit tail again.

"…run out." Red finished.

"And you said the house always wins." Zeffie giggled as Bunny slumped a bit.

"Too bad." Bunny sighed.

Sandy screamed as a barrage of plastic poker chips showered down on him.

Zeffie: 900

Sandy: 1100

Sandy was struggling to catch his breath as he moved Bunny's card on his disk.

"I move…Gamble Angel Bunny…to defense mode." He panted as the rabbit girl crouched and shielded herself, "That's all."

Zeffie drew, and let out a triumphant cry as she slapped another card onto her monster zone.

"Zeffie summons her Chain Thrasher (1500/200)!" She called out.

Next to Gustaph appeared a young man wearing traveling clothes, with bandages wrapped around his right arm and leg. His short, blond hair was blown in the breeze, and by the vicious looking chain he swung over his head.

"Chain Thrasher is a creature of wind too, so he gets my field bonus!" Zeffie smiled, "Chain Thrasher, attack Bunny!"

The chain warrior lashed out with his weapon, and Bunny screamed as she was smashed into millions of data bits.

"…And then Gustav, attack directly!" Zeffie finished.

The warrior on wheels blazed forward again, and slammed his fist into Sandy's chest. He didn't even have time to scream, and fell over with out a sound. As he did, the air currents holding them up faded, and the two duelists and Zeffie's monsters were dropped back into the casino.

Zeffie: 900

Sandy: 0

Sandy groaned, and struggled into a sitting position. His duel disk and deck vanished into thin air. Zeffie walked up to him, and held out her hand to help him up.

"Thanks." Sandy grunted as Zeffie pulled him to his feet, "You're really good at this."

"Of course she is, I'm in her deck aren't I?" Red commented.

"Thanks for the help Reddy." Zeffie smiled at the bird.

"No problem, just remember that all of us are ready and able to help." Red stated as he, Gustaph, and Chain Thrasher faded away.

"Looks like you managed to beat the odds this time." Sandy said as he started to walk away, "So follow me for a second…"

Zeffie followed the young magician. He approached an opaque, yellow window set into the wall, and spoke into a small hole set into it.

"Yep, she won." He stated.

Their must have been someone behind the window, because three silver coins and a card were presented from it. Sandy turned back to Zeffie, and held up the prizes.

"First, you get three win points for your victory." He stated as the coins turned into points of light.

The lights floated into Zeffie's disk, and her counter jumped from four to seven.

"And second, you get this rare card for your deck." Sandy smiled, presenting the card to Zeffie.

Zeffie took the card, which showed a giant, green bird. The creature looked to be extremely regal, almost as though it was more than a simple avian creature.

"Simurgh, Bird of Divinity?" Zeffie muttered as she read over the card, "Wow…This is strong!"

"I thought you might like that." Sandy nodded, "Remember Zeffie, keep fighting the odds. But don't push your luck too much, got it?"

"Yep, thanks!" Zeffie smiled.

And with that, she faded away. Sandy smiled, and walked over to a door next to the window. He opened it up, and walked in.

Back out in the city streets, a hiss of static was heard, followed by Sandy's voice.

"Attention Ladies and Gentlemen!" His voice echoed down the street, "Come one, come all! See the most amazing feats of magic you've ever witnessed! All at the Pyramid of Light Casino!"

_**Zeffie doesn't think Sandy was so bad after all. He did give Zeffie a really nice card…**_

_**Want to know what it does? You'll have to wait for Zeffie to use it in a duel**_

**_First, we go to see Joey, Yugi, and Victor again. Victor said he was like a police officer, and now he's going to duel somebody whose monsters belong in jail. See him take on the baddest thieves in all of Duel Monsters._**

_**Zeffie calls this one:**_

_**Law of the Jungle.**_

**_Bye bye! _**

**---**

Original Cards

---

Gamble Angel Bunny

EARTH

Fairy/effect

Four stars

1200 attack

1200 defense

Once per turn you may flip a coin and call it. If you call it right, deal 1000 points of direct damage to your opponent. If you call it wrong, you lose 1000 life points.

_This card was first used by "The Gambler" in Yu-Gi-Oh GX (Japanese title: "Asuka in the Second Love Chance?") All creative credit for this card goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Sand Gambler

LIGHT

Spellcaster

Three stars

300 attack

1600 defense

Winning Streak: Anytime you activate a card effect that requires you to roll one or more dice, flip one or more coins, and/or guess the identity of one or more cards, you may pay 1000 life points to negate the results and replay the card. You can only do this once per turn.

---

Skull Red Bird

WIND

Winged-Beast

Four stars

1550 attack

1200 defense

Surprise Knives: Discard one card from your hand. Decrease the attack of one enemy monster by 100 times its star level. This power may be used on your turn or your opponent's


	17. Law of the Jungle

Disclaimer: We ran out of jokes, so I'll just say it. We don't own the rights to Yu-Gi-Oh.

**_My name is Victor. Victor Greenstone._**

_**I work in law enforcement, and ever since Duel Monsters became big I've had to take down my share of card counterfeiters. Doing so actually got me curious though. Why would anyone go through so much trouble, just to make copies of a card game?**_

**_One day, I decided to pick up a starter deck and a couple of booster packs. Low and behold, the first pack I opened had my most powerful monster in it: Behemoth, the King of All Animals. I couldn't explain the strange link I felt with this card, but I decided to get some of the regulars at the shop to teach me how to play. I became fairly good, and even claimed the title as the Regional Champion of Washington state._**

_**My beast deck rarely fails me in a duel, and now I'm hoping that it keeps up its record.**_

**_Because I've just found another opponent and her monsters are exactly the sort of people that go against the laws I fight to enforce…_**

**Law of the Jungle**

Rei was hard at work on her computer, doing her best to follow the progress of Yugi, Joey, and now Victor as well. Looking over there stats, she thought for a minute.

"_Yugi has seven points, Joey has eight, and this Victor guy is tied with Yugi in terms of points."_ She said to herself, _"And seeing each of their strategies…I think watching any of them pair off for a duel would be an impressive sight!"_

She smiled as she leaned back in her chair, and began to scan around the Virtual World some more. Three blips appeared on her map, and she quickly zoomed in on the area they were appearing.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A quiet, serene beach sat on the edge of the Virtual Continent the duelists had been exploring. The waves were always perfect and beautiful, the sand was a glittering white under the gorgeous sun shine, it seemed to be the sort of place where nothing could ever go wrong…

That is, until three figures plummeted out of the sky and slammed into the ground. Two hit the sand covered shoreline, sending a spray of the silicone powder into the air, while the third screamed as he splashed into the ocean, and came up sopping wet.

"That does it! Kaiba is toast when I see him!" Joey shouted as he waded out of the water, watching as his two companions got to their feet.

Yugi spat out a mouthful of sand in response, struggling to get the taste out of his mouth. Victor didn't seem any happier as he brushed his clothes off.

"I have to admit, we do seem to be getting some rough treatment when it comes to teleporting." Yugi said after scraping some more sand from his tongue.

He then turned to Victor and frowned. Something had been bothering him ever since they first watched Victor's duel, but he had been a bit nervous to ask it.

Still, he couldn't hold back his curiosity forever. Yugi cleared his throat, catching Victor's attention.

"Victor, I…um…I don't mean to be rude but why…?"

"Didn't I let go when I teleported when we first met?" Victor finished for him.

"Yeah, I was curious about that myself." Joey said, nodding his head.

"Well, I had two reasons." Victor confessed, "The first was that I honestly didn't know I'd carry the two of you with me when I jumped, though I was kind of hoping."

"And I'll bet that the second reason was that you wanted to challenge me." Yugi guessed.

Victor snapped his mouth shut, then gave Yugi a sheepish grin.

"I know it seems silly, but you have to admit that the chance to duel someone of your caliber doesn't come along everyday." Victor pointed out, "I guess I should have been honest up front, huh?"

Yugi shrugged, and turned on his disk. The tray whipped into position as the machine beeped to life.

"It's no problem.' Yugi sighed, "I get so many people trying to challenge me back home that I'm almost numb to it by now. Granted, they don't show up as often these days but it's still pretty frequent."

He smiled as he reached for his deck.

"But to be honest, I've never faced someone with a strategy like yours Victor." Yugi said, "Maybe we should have a duel, just for fun."

"For fun huh?" Victor nodded, "No win points on the line you mean?"

"That actually sounds cool." Joey nodded, sitting cross legged, "Think I'll stay and watch that."

Victor reached down to turn on his disk…

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" A familiar voice called out.

Yugi, Joey, and Victor all looked in the direction the voice had come from. A shocked look appeared on each of their faces.

Seto Kaiba was running down the beach, chasing after a girl that couldn't be any older than fourteen. She had brown hair that fell between her shoulder blades, and brown eyes. Her clothes were interesting however: A black tank-top and red pants, along with a silver bracelet on her right wrist and a duel disk strapped to her left.

At the moment she seemed occupied with avoiding Kaiba.

"I said stop!" Kaiba shouted, chasing the girl as she ran toward Yugi's group.

Yugi shut down his disk as the girl reached them, and ran behind Victor who looked at her strangely. Kaiba stopped in front of them, his usual frown much deeper than usual.

"Kaiba." Joey smiled, reaching to turn on his disk, "I was hoping I'd run into you…"

Joey was about to state his challenge, when Seto raised one hand to stop him.

"Save it Wheeler, I actually didn't come here to put you down for once." He growled, "I'm after that fugitive you're hiding."

"Now you listen here!" The girl shouted, "I am no fugitive!"

"_Did you ever get the feeling you missed something really important?" _Yugi asked his other self.

"_To be honest, yes."_ Yami thought, _"And this is one of those times."_

"Care to explain what exactly is going on?" Victor asked, turning to the girl.

"That girl infiltrated this tournament illegally." Kaiba explained, "She picked the pocket of one of my invitees at Kaiba Land LA, and used his invitation to get in."

"Oh come on!" The girl retorted, "That guy was actually dumb enough to go around flashing the invite everywhere he went! Did you really want someone like that in your stupid game?"

"Never the less, he was invited and you weren't." Kaiba responded, "Now kindly come with me to be escorted out of the Virtual World."

"Why not just log her out in the real world?" Joey asked, scratching his head, "Don't you have some sort of emergency eject button or somethin'?"

"That's not your concern Wheeler." Kaiba growled.

"Besides, I didn't steal that invitation, I won it." The girl interrupted, "He bet it in a duel against me and I won. If he said I stole it then he's lying!"

"But seeing as he's the regional champion of Texas and your some random street duelist, who do you think we're going to believe?" Kaiba responded.

"There has to be a fair way to settle this…" Yugi began, turning to the girl, "What's your name, anyway?"

The girl seemed a bit flustered, and smiled as she ran a hand through her hair.

"How rude of me." She said, "My name is Tiffany Hatcher, known at my favorite card shop as the Thief of Hearts!"

"Thief of Hearts?" Joey asked, "Don't tell me your one of those dueling girls that uses her looks to win!'

"Even if I was, I wouldn't tell you." Tiffany explained, "I win solely on my dueling skills, and the boys at my shop always try to get a date out of me afterward."

She sneered and continued.

"But I know that they just want to find out the secret behind my strategy so they can beat me next time." She growled, "That title is just something they gave me to try and flatter me into telling them."

"And I don't care." Kaiba said, grabbing her arm, "You're out of this tournament and the duelist you tricked is coming back in your place!"

"Hey, I already have eight points!" Tiffany shouted, trying to pull free, "I just need one more win for the finals!"

"Wait a minute!" Victor spoke up at last.

Seto and Tiffany stopped struggling as Victor turned on his disk.

"Mr. Kaiba, allow me to duel Tiffany." He said.

"Why should I?" Seto asked, narrowing his eyes at the beast duelist.

"I work in law enforcement, and make it my business to punish trouble makers like Tiffany here." Victor explained, "But if you just kick her out of the tournament she'll probably head right to the press and tell them about how she was 'wrongfully excluded' from your competition. After all, you only have one witness to the crime that she's being accused of. I've seen bad press like that get spread before when police officers make an arrest without enough evidence."

"He's right." Yugi nodded, "Kicking her out might cause more trouble than it stops. But how would a duel help?"

"Easy. Tiffany and I will each bet all of our win points." Victor explained, "The winner goes to the finals with no troubles, and the loser is eliminated. So if I win, she can't go to the press about unfair treatment…"

"Because the tournament records will say she was taken out." Joey realized.

Seto thought for a minute.

"You realize that if she wins, it won't solve my problem with her being here." Grumbled the young tycoon.

"Then I just won't lose." Victor declared, "What do you say Tiffany?"

Tiffany thought for a minute, and then smiled.

"If Kaiba is willing to go through with it, I'll take you down to China Town!" She declared, pulling her arm from Kaiba's grip.

Kaiba scowled and stomped past Victor.

"You'd better not screw this up." He hissed.

Yugi and Joey stepped aside along with Seto, and watched as Tiffany flicked her disk into the starting position.

"Get ready then…um…" Tiffany looked embarrassed, "I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name."

"It's Victor." Responded the beast dueler, "Now choose your deckmaster and let's get started!"

-------------------------------------

Rei looked at her screen in interest as Kaiba, Joey, and Yugi walked to the side. Smiling, she enlarged the image so it covered her entire screen.

"_This should be fun to watch."_ She thought with a smile, _"Let's see what this girl can do…"_

---------------------------------------

Tiffany grinned as she slammed her finger down on her deckmaster choice.

"Get ready pops, because with my deckmaster I can't be beat." She said with a smile, "I pick Great Phantom Thief!"

A mysterious man, dressed in a tuxedo and wearing a deep-blue cape and top hat, emerged behind Tiffany, who smiled as she drew five cards.

Victor looked at his Trojan Horse card, thought for a minute…

And then went over it. He pressed down on another monster instead.

"Alright then Tiffany. I choose my favorite monster as my deckmaster." Victor declared as a howl echoed across the beach.

Out of the beach burst a familiar looking monster, standing at least ten feet from ground to shoulder and covered with shaggy, purple fur.

"Meet Behemoth, the King of all Animals!" Victor shouted.

He stopped for a minute, and looked up at his monster. He smiled as he heard the creature's voice.

"Got it." He nodded as he drew five cards, then turned to his opponent, "I'll allow you the first move."

Tiffany shrugged, and drew her sixth card.

Tiffany: 8000

Victor: 8000

Tiffany didn't take long to select her first card and place it onto her disk.

"I'll open with a monster in defense mode." She stated, a card appearing in front of her, "And then I'll pass it to you."

Victor drew now, and smiled as he played his first monster.

"I think I'll start with Mad Dog of Darkness (1900/1400)." He declared.

Behemoth let out a howl, and out of the sand burst the giant, orange dog. It focused its red eyes right on the facedown monster, and let out a low growl.

"Fetch me that facedown card!" Victor ordered, "Frenzied rush attack!"

The rabid canine jumped forward, and slammed both of its front paws onto Tiffany's hidden monster. It flipped over, revealing a strange looking monk carrying a golden staff. Even as the dog bit into his chest, the monk tapped his weapon on the ground, causing a spark of light to emanate over the field.

When it cleared away, both monsters were gone!

"What?" Victor asked, looking around.

"That was my Mysterious Guard (800/1200)." Tiffany explained with a grin, "When he's flipped, I send one monster you control to the top of your deck. And since you only had one monster, it looks like he got the last laugh."

"No, I did." Victor said as his deckmaster shimmered with violet flames, "Now that I bested one of your monsters in battle, my deckmaster's power goes to work: Survival of the Fittest!"

The purple flames leapt up around Victor, who inhaled deeply.

"Whenever a Beast-type I control destroys an enemy monster in battle, half of the destroyed monster's original attack is added back to my life points."

Tiffany: 8000

Victor: 8400

"However, that's all that I can do on this turn." Victor confessed, "It's your move."

Tiffany quickly drew her card, and smiled as she placed it onto her disk.

"I summon Familiar Knight (1200/1400) in attack mode." She announced, waving her arm over the field.

The Great Phantom Thief swept his cape over the spot Tiffany had indicated, and out of it emerged a warrior in silver armor and a red cape, with red eyes glowing behind a silver faceguard.

"Attack directly!" Tiffany ordered.

The knight unsheathed a steel blade from his side, and jumped forward, drawing the weapon across Victor's chest. He gasped, and struggled to remain upright.

Tiffany: 8000

Victor: 7200

The knight let out a hollow laugh as Tiffany set down a card behind it.

"And then this facedown card." She said, the spell or trap appearing behind her monster, "That's my turn."

Victor drew, knowing full well what he would get. He smiled as he placed it down onto his disk.

"I summon Mad Dog of Darkness (1900/1400) again!" He called out, the vicious hound reappearing on the field.

It growled angrily as Familiar Knight prepared to intercept the blow.

"Attack her knight!" Victor ordered.

The dog jumped forward, and sank its fangs into the warrior's sword. A brief struggle took place, until the weapon shattered in the dog's jaws. Familiar Knight looked at his sword in shock, just before his foe knocked him to the ground and tore his throat out.

Yugi and Joey both looked sick at the sight of Victor's bloodthirsty monster.

"What kind of sicko programmed that!" Joey shouted, turning to Kaiba.

"Not sure, but the detail is amazing." Kaiba said with an appreciative tone to his voice.

Yugi and Joey just gave Kaiba a sickened look as the duel continued with Tiffany snickering a bit.

"Thanks for that." She said as she selected another card from her hand, "When you destroy Familiar Knight in battle, we each get to special summon any level four or lower monster we want from our hands."

Tiffany smacked her card into place, and out of nowhere leapt a young woman. One might be tempted to say that she looked like an older version of Tiffany herself: Same colored hair and clothes, same smug grin. But a few things were sharply different. First off, the woman had red eyes rather than brown, and her clothes seemed to be made of leather. She wore black, leather armlets, and a red scarf around her neck. Tattooed on the upper portion of her right arm was a black scorpion, and she carried a dangerous looking whip covered in spikes.

"I choose Dark Scorpion-Menae the Thorn (1000/1800)!" Tiffany declared.

Victor's eyes narrowed as he chose a card of his own.

"Then I'll choose my Berserk Gorilla (2000/1000)." He stated, an explosion of sand bursting from the ground next to his dog.

Out of the sand emerged a red furred gorilla, angrily pounding on its chest with fire streaming from either nostril.

"I was hoping you'd summon something big." Tiffany said as her facedown card lifted, "That lets me activate my trap card: Bottomless Trap Hole!"

As could be expected, a large hole appeared in the ground beneath the enraged simian, which howled in anguish as it was pulled down into the depths of the earth.

"Drat." Victor muttered.

"Guess you knew that my trap there removes any monster with 1500 attack or more from play as soon as it's summoned." Tiffany smiled, "You wasted your summoning."

"Yes, but your monster is too weak to beat mine." Victor pointed out, "I end my turn. But don't forget that I get 600 life points since my beast destroyed your knight."

Tiffany: 7300

Victor: 7800

"Relax, I remember." Tiffany said as she drew her card, "Hmm…These cards won't help."

She smiled as he deckmaster was suddenly surrounded by black flames.

"But thankfully, I have my deckmaster to help." She said as she held up two cards, "If I discard two cards of the same kind from my hand…"

She was holding up another Mysterious Guard, and a monster called Mataza the Zapper.

"…Then I can search my deck for one card of that type and add it to my hand." She said as she discarded the two monsters.

A grid of cards appeared before her, and she quickly grabbed one of them. The other cards disappeared, along with the thief's aura.

"It's called prepping for action, because if you don't prepare for your plans they'll never work." Tiffany explained as she placed down the monster she had searched for, "Now allow me to introduce the number one guy in Meanae's life: Don Zaloog (1400/1500)!"

Out from behind Tiffany flipped a man, dressed in the same outfit as Meanae. He had lavender hair, an eye patch over his right eye, and an ammunition belt strapped across his chest. In either hand he wielded a golden pistol.

"Hey Yugi, did you notice that Tiffany dresses just like her monsters?" Joey asked, nudging his friend.

"Yeah." Yugi nodded, "My guess is that Don and Meanae are the driving forces of her deck!"

"Not just them." Kaiba muttered, "I heard that Pegasus produced a set of thieves in this game. They're known as the Dark Scorpions…And there are five official members."

"So she has three more of those guys?' Joey guessed.

"That's right!" Tiffany said, having overheard the conversation, "And I'm not half done yet. I equip Don Zaloog with the Fusion Sword Murasame Blade, giving him an extra 800 attack points."

Don holstered his weapons, and smiled as a black sword appeared in his hands. It shimmered with a purple aura, boosting his stats to (2200/1500).

"Oh boy…" Victor said.

"Don, put his puppy to sleep for good!" Tiffany shouted, "Soul slash!"

The thieving monster jumped forward, and cut down the dog easily. It fell over with a pathetic whimper before shattering into pieces.

"And since he damaged your life points, Don can now use one of two effects." Tiffany explained, "And I'll use the one that makes you discard a card from your hand."

Don grabbed a card from Vic's hand, and shoved it into his graveyard. Menae tensed her weapon in the meantime…

"Meanae, you're up." Tiffany smiled, "Thorn whip!"

With a gleeful cry, the young woman jumped into the air and swung her whip. Victor let out a grunt of surprise as it struck him across the shoulder, dropping his life points.

"And since Meanae damaged your life points, I can search my deck or graveyard for any card that has the words 'Dark Scorpion' in its name, and put it in my hand." Tiffany said as the grid reappeared, "And I choose this one from my deck."

She snapped up the card with a grin, the grid vanishing once more.

"Your turn." She offered.

Tiffany: 7300

Victor: 6500

Victor drew, bringing his hand back to four cards.

"Then I'll set one monster in defense mode." He declared, placing three cards onto his disk, "Along with two facedown cards."

The three hidden cards appeared in front of Victor, who nodded to Tiffany. The girl drew her third card, then placed one onto her disk.

"Time for me to introduce the next member of the team." Tiffany smiled, "He six feet tall when he jumps straight up…Dark Scorpion-Chick the Yellow (1000/1000)!"

Next to Don and Meanae rose a boy wearing the same outfit and tattoo as them. He had yellow hair, which looked like a wheat field due to the fact that it was being held up by a red headband. A large mallet was strapped to his back, and he looked nervous.

"You never bothered with those facedown cards before, so I'll bet that they're bluffs." Tiffany smiled, "Don, take out his hidden monster!"

Don leapt forward, and swung his sword once more. The facedown card was revealed to be his Enraged Battle Ox (1700/1000), which blasted steam from its nostrils before smashing into bits. As it did though, Victor's facedown card lifted.

"Hold it Tiffany, I activate Animal Trail." Victor announced, his deck beginning to glow.

The trap showed a trail of paw prints leading into some thick bushes. The picture on the card suddenly came to life, and the bushes shook a little.

"This trap lets me add any beast monster I want to my hand, but I have to lose a monster in battle first." Victor explained as he selected a card from his deck.

The trap faded and Tiffany smiled.

"To your hand, not the field." She pointed out, "So that means that Chick and Meanae can tear you apart!"

The two warriors dashed forward, when Victor's other card lifted.

"I didn't bother with these traps before because I didn't think you'd summon anything that could beat my monsters." Victor explained as he took a card from his hand, "Now that I see otherwise, I decided to use them. Like my A Rival Appears! trap card."

The card showed Pikeru and Curran fighting each other (over what was unclear). Victor smiled as he placed the card he had chosen onto his disk.

"This trap lets me summon one monster that's the same level as one of yours." He said simply, "And the one I choose is my four star Soul Tiger (0/2100) in defense mode."

A tiger, made completely out of blue fire, emerged from the trap and crouched into a defensive posture. Tiffany cursed under her breath as she held up one hand.

"I call off my attack." She said, "Pretty clever searching for some monster to use as a shield."

She pointed her thumb straight down, and grinned again.

"But on my next turn it's going down." She stated, "Until then…"

Leaving that to hang in the air, Victor drew his next card. He turned it around, to show that it was Pot of Greed.

"You know what happens now." Victor said as the green pot rose up next to him.

He swiftly drew two cards, and the pot burst into fragments.

"And as for destroying Soul Tiger, I think I can manage that myself." Victor stated as he removed the monster's card from his disk, "I tribute Soul Tiger to summon my Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000)!"

The tiger burst into licks of blue fire, which swiftly turned red. Tiffany began to sweat as the flames coalesced into the massive form of a lion, with a scorpion tail and eagle wings. It stood on its hind legs, and let out a ferocious snarl at the warriors it was facing.

"Alright!" Joey cheered, "That's the monster he used to beat Bronn!"

"And don't forget Joey, he received another copy of it after winning that duel." Yugi smiled, "With its special power, it could become indestructible!"

"We'll soon see." Kaiba nodded.

Vic smiled as he pointed right at Don Zaloog.

"Manticore, wipe him out with Hell breath of death!" He commanded.

The monster breathed in sharply, and then unleashed a wave of flames from its mouth. Don screamed as he was struck by the flames, and vaporized in an instant.

Tiffany: 7200

Victor: 6500

"Too bad my monster is a beast-warrior type." Victor sighed, "Otherwise I could have gained 700 life points there."

"Too bad it won't be on the field much longer if I have anything to say about it." Tiffany responded, "Is it my turn?"

"Go ahead." Victor nodded, "And it wouldn't kill you to be polite…"

Tiffany ignored that comment as she drew again, frowning at the card in her hand.

"I'll set this in defense mode, and switch Meanae and Chick to defense as well." She sighed.

A facedown monster appeared, and both Chick and Meanae fell to their knees.

"And that's all." She said with a frown.

Victor drew now, and placed another monster down without pausing to think.

"Time to augment my forces." He said as the ground trembled again, "I summon Exarion Universe (1800/1900)."

A column of purple light burst from the ground, blowing sand in every direction once more. Everyone covered their eyes to avoid getting the grainy particles in them, and when they opened them again a new monster stood on the field.

It looked like a centaur, but its entire upper torso was covered in a strange, black and blue armor, making it hard to be sure that part was human. He carried a spear, with two sharp blades on it (one on either end), and was lazily spinning it in one hand.

"Okay…That's different." Tiffany commented.

"He may look strange, but he's useful." Victor grinned, "Exarion Universe can give up 400 of his attack points when he attacks, and in exchange he gains the powers of a Fairy Meteor Crush card."

"You mean…?" Gulped Tiffany.

"That's right." Victor nodded, "He'll damage you, even when your monsters are in defense mode."

"That's some impressive monster." Yugi said.

"Yeah...I wonder where I can get one of those." Joey muttered, "Might come in handy sometime…"

"Manticore, wipe out Meanae!" Came Victor's order.

The fearsome monster fired a gout of flames from its mouth, and Meanae screamed in horror as she was reduced to ashes.

"Exarion (1400/1900), give up some of your attack strength and attack Chick!" Came the next command, "Stardust rain!"

Exarion's weapon disappeared, transforming into an orb of black energy in his hands. The monster held the orb over his head, and fired a barrage of silver dust at the cowering thief. He choked before shattering into pieces, and Tiffany coughed as the remainder of the attack struck her as well.

Tiffany: 6800

Victor: 6500

"And that's all." Victor declared as Exarion's stats returned to normal, "Show me what you've got."

Tiffany drew, and let out a relieved sigh at the sight of her new card.

"I'm going to flip over my facedown monster." She declared, turning over the sole card on her disk, "Say hello to Avatar of the Pot (1200/1300)."

A figure that stood about six feet tall jumped onto the field. He wore a red and blue kilt, and had skin the color of marble. What was truly odd though was that a Pot of Greed sat on his shoulders, right where his head belonged.

"This fellow is the monster version of the popular spell." Tiffany explained as she held up a Pot of Greed of her own, "If I just discard my own Pot of Greed, I can draw three cards instead of two."

She dropped the card into her grave, and the avatar began to blaze with blue fire. Tiffany smiled as three cards loosened from her deck, and she added them to her hand.

"And since I don't need him anymore, I'll sacrifice Avatar of the Pot for a new monster." Tiffany declared, swapping the card on her disk for one in her hand, "Meet the muscle behind the Dark Scorpions! Gorg the Strong (1800/1500)!"

The jar genie shattered into bits, his head giving a chilling laugh before it smashed on the ground. A plume of smoke rose up where he had fallen, and out of it emerged a man that reminded the three spectators a great deal of Mr. Gold.

He was dressed in the same black shirt and red pants, with matching armlets like his teammates. Unlike Mr. Gold, this warrior was completely bald and had a huge scar crossing over his right eye and all the way down his cheek. He hefted a giant mace in both hands, and gave Victor's monsters a threatening look.

"And I'll also play Premature Burial." Tiffany said, placing the card into her disk, "I'll pay the 800 life points to revive Meanae the Thorn (1000/1800)!"

A circle of red light materialized on the ground, and Meanae burst out of it. Her hair was an absolute mess, and the right strap on her top was close to breaking. She didn't seem worried though as she pulled her whip out of the sand and spat out a mouthful of the granulated rock.

"Why bother bringing back those two?" Victor asked, "Gorg is only strong enough to tie with Exarion Universe."

"Unless I have another equipment spell, which I do." Tiffany said as she placed a third spell into her disk, "I equip Gorg with Sword of Dark Destruction!"

Gorg's hammer disappeared into thin air, and was replaced by a slim, red blade. It pulsed with dark energy as the muscular bandit swung it a couple times.

"I see…" Victor muttered, "That spell gives your monster 400 attack, but steals away 200 defense, is that right?"

"You got it." Tiffany laughed, "Gorg (2200/1300), your target is the Exa…Exo…The centaur thing! Slice it up!"

Gorg charged forward, and swept his new weapon right through Victor's monster. Exarion Universe fell over, and shattered into fragments of data that dispersed throughout the area.

"And thanks to his special ability, Gorg can now put that Maniticore back on top of your deck." Tiffany smiled as her strongman grabbed hold of the beast and tossed it into the sky.

It let out a confused roar, before turning vanishing back into its card and placing itself onto Victor's deck.

"And now Meanae can attack again." Tiffany smiled, "Thorn whip!"

Victor let out another shout of pain as Meanae cracked her whip across his chest, causing is life points to drop again.

Tiffany: 6000

Victor: 5100

"And now I'll use Meanae's effect to bring Don Zaloog out of the graveyard, and back to my hand." Tiffany declared.

Meanae cracked her whip at Tiffany's disk, and the thief leader's card was quickly ejected. Tiffany placed it into her hand with a smile. Yugi just nodded.

"Good strategy." He commented as Tiffany gave the card a smile.

"What are you talking about?" Joey asked, "If it were me I would've brought back that Don Zaloog guy."

"And that's why you don't run these cards." Kaiba stated, "That's exactly the wrong trick to use. If she had brought back Don, she'd have no way to retrieve the other two Dark Scorpions from her graveyard. But since she took Meanae back, she can keep using her effect to retrieve any other Dark Scorpions that she needs."

Joey nodded, now seeing the wisdom of the move.

"Guess that was pretty good then." He admitted, "We ain't dealing with an amateur, that's for sure."

"Your turn." Tiffany said, "Though it's not like you'll draw anything useful."

Victor drew, and looked worriedly at his Manticore.

"_She's right."_ He thought, _"Manticore of Darkness is now my only monster. Even if she uses Don's effect to make me discard it, I won't be able to revive it"_

He looked at the other three cards in his hand, and sighed.

"_I'd rather not give these up, but I can at least use them to buy myself some time."_ He reasoned as he placed them into his disk.

"I set these two cards facedown." Victor stated as the cards appeared, "But then I'll offer both of them to my Emergency Provisions card, gaining 1000 life points for each one."

A hungry looking mouth emerged from nowhere, and gobbled up the two cards (Which were revealed to be Poison Fangs and Big March of Animals). A spray of light covered Victor, who took a deep breath as his life points jumped.

"I'll end my turn. Do your worst." Victor challenged.

"_I'm starting to think I'm never going to have a chance to use those two cards."_ He lamented, recalling that he had discarded them in his last duel.

Tiffany: 6000

Victor: 7100

"_Dumb move, now I know exactly what's in his hand."_ Tiffany thought with a smile.

"My worst you say?" She taunted as she drew, "Well if you insist…I summon Don Zaloog (1400/1500) again!"

Once more, the purple haired leader of the Dark Scorpions flipped into view, with a smile on his face.

"Alright everybody, on my mark!" Tiffany shouted.

Victor crossed her arms in front of himself, and braced for impact.

"GET HIM!" Came the command.

Don fired off another pair of bullets, tearing straight through Victor and knocking Manticore of Darkness out of his hand! Gorg bull rushed him and slammed his sword into Vic's ribs, while Meanae flipped behind him and lashed him across the back with her whip!

Tiffany: 6000

Victor: 2500

"Now then, I already used Don's power to discard the last card in your hand." Tiffany pointed out, "When it comes to the other two, I don't have much of a choice though. I'll use Gorg's second ability to discard the top card of your deck…"

Gorg snatched up the card, revealing it to be Victor's Premature Burial before shoving it into his graveyard.

"…And since I don't like to leave team mates behind, I'll have Meanae rescue Chick from the cemetery." Tiffany concluded.

Chick's card was immediately released from its resting spot, and its owner picked it up with a smirk. She then nodded, and Victor drew his next card.

Looking at it, he set it into his disk. It immediately appeared in front of him.

"That's all that I can do." He admitted with a shrug, "Your move."

Tiffany drew, but before she could make a move Victor slammed down on the button on his disk.

"I activate Thunder of Ruler!" He shouted, and huge blast of roaring thunder shaking the beach, while lightning flashed behind him, "Now you don't get a battle phase this turn."

Tiffany's monsters all gasped and stumbled back, the looks of fear on their faces obvious. Even Gorg seemed shaken after the light show!

"Fine then." Tiffany shrugged as she placed another three cards onto her disk, "I'll just give you something else to worry about by summoning Chick the Yellow (1000/1000) and setting another two cards facedown before I end my turn."

The timid teenager showed up once more, hefting his mallet as the hidden cards appeared behind him. Victor drew, and smiled as he looked right at his opponent.

"I think we've played around enough Tiffany." He commented coolly as he fingered the card he held.

"What are you talking about?" Tiffany asked, staring at him.

"I mean, you've decided to go up against me with a group of thieves, and I happen to be in law enforcement." Victor continued as he placed the card in his disk, "And like the old song goes, when you fight the law, the law wins."

A flash of golden light illuminated the beach, and Victor spread his arms over his head as coins rained from the sky.

"I activate Card of Sanctity!" He called out, "So we each get to hold six cards now."

Tiffany gasped as Victor pulled six cards from his deck.

"How could you possibly be so lucky?" She shouted.

"It's called karma." Victor explained, "I've never been much of a big follower when it came to religious views on good and evil, but I do believe that those who do good will be rewarded in the end."

Tiffany drew four cards with a scowl.

"Yeah, well…just because you got six cards doesn't mean they'll help!" She pointed out.

"I beg to differ." Victor argued as he placed another card onto his disk, "I summon Gyaku-Gire Panda (800/1600)!"

Yugi, Joey, and Kaiba all gave looks of disbelief as a rather cuddly looking panda plodded out onto the field. It was munching on a piece of bamboo, like it didn't have a care in the world.

"A _panda bear!"_ Tiffany laughed, "You have to kidding me! That monster is pathetic!"

"First off, pandas are not bears." Victor explained as his monster stopped and stared at the Dark Scorpions, "They're actually closer to raccoons. And second, Gyaku-Gire Panda is only cute and cuddly when you don't have any monsters."

"Say what?" Tiffany asked.

"For each monster you control, my panda gains 500 attack points." Victor grinned, "And if I know it as well as I think, it hates thieves and burglars as much as I do…"

The panda got up onto its hind legs, and grasped its bamboo in both paws like a sword. It let out a threatening growl as its fur became wild and matted, its eyes turned red, and its teeth and claws extended into nature's own instruments of untimely death. Its stats leapt all the way to (2800/1600), while each of Tiffany's monsters looked close to wetting themselves.

"Gyaku-Gire Panda…" Victor called out, "Attack Gorg the Strong with bamboo breakdown!"

"Go trap card!" Tiffany yelled, her card flipping up, "Negate Attack!"

The panda charged forward, only to find its progress blocked by a barrier of whirling energy. It growled again as it slashed fruitlessly at the barrier keeping it at bay. The scorpions huddled behind the force field, shivering in fear.

"Alright then." Victor declared as he placed two more cards into his disk, "I'll set these cards facedown and end my turn."

The cards appeared just as Tiffany drew her seventh cards. Frowning, she held up another two monsters (Mystic Tomato and Sangan).

"Alright, I can't wait for the last member of the team." She declared, "So I'll use my deckmaster and discard these two monsters…"

Great Phantom Thief, swished his cape, Tiffany pulled another card from the grid that appeared.

"…And now I'll summon the monster I searched for." She stated, "Go Cliff the Trap Remover (1200/1000)!"

A fifth warrior jumped onto the field. He wore the same black and red outfit, had the same scorpion tattoo, and wore a pair of glasses. He had dirty blond hair, and was brandishing a dagger in one hand. Upon seeing another monster on its foe's field, Gyaku-Gire Panda (3300/1600) began to foam at the mouth with rage.

"Any reason you decided to make my panda even stronger?" Victor asked, scratching his head, "Last I checked that was usually a bad idea."

"Not once I've activated my last facedown card." Tiffany grinned, "Dark Scorpion Combination!"

The trap card lifted, and all five thieves prepared their weapons. Victor looked worried as Tiffany pointed at him.

"This trap only works when I have all five members of the Dark Scorpions on the field. Now all five of my monsters can attack you directly…" She explained, "And they'll do it right now! Gorg, Destructive slash!"

The largest of the team lunged forward, and slammed Victor to the ground with his sword.

"Double barrel!"

Don Zaloog fired off both of his pistols as Victor got up, nailing him right in the chest.

"Mallet mash!"

Chick sprang into the air, and clocked Victor on top of his head with his oversized hammer.

"Scorpion slash!"

Cliff eagerly slid forward, and drove his dagger into Victor's stomach, causing him to cry out in pain.

"And finally, thorn lash!" Tiffany concluded.

Meanae's whip slashed across Victor's face, and he laid sprawled out on the ground.

"Guess that plan was a bust…" Kaiba grumbled.

"Don't be to sure." Yugi said, "Look at the life points."

Kaiba looked at both duelists' readouts, and blinked in surprise.

Tiffany: 6000

Victor: 500

"Didn't she say that her trap let those monsters attack directly?" He asked.

"Yes, but they each only do 400 damage when they attack." Tiffany admitted as Victor got to his feet, "The real kicker to this card…"

"Is that I need to put up with all of their effects now." Victor guessed, getting to his feet.

"Bingo." Tiffany nodded, "So first, I'll use Gorg to send a monster on your field to the top of your deck."

Gyaku-Gire Panda roared with anger as Gorg flung it into the sky.

"Then I'll have Don Zaloog send the top two cards of your deck to the graveyard." She continued.

Victor watched as the two cards vanished from the top of his deck, and slid themselves into his grave. He gave one of them an interested look…

"Then, Chick will send one of those facedown cards back to your hand."

The facedown card to Victor's right faded away, and rematerialized in his hand.

"And Cliff will send another two cards from your deck to the graveyard."

Two more cards faded from the top of Victor's deck in a flash.

"And last, but certainly not least." Tiffany said as Meanae's whip cracked again, "I'll use Meanae to retrieve the Dark Scorpion Combination card I just used."

The card fell out of her grave slot, and Tiffany picked it up with a smile. The five thieves all readied their weapons and smiled at each other.

"So I'll set this facedown again and end my turn." She said, "And on my next turn I'll use this trap again to finish you off!"

The Victor began chuckling.

Tiffany gave him an odd look as he held up a card from his hand.

"You know Tiffany, if you hadn't used Don and Cliff's effects on my deck, you might have won this duel." He stated, "But unless your monsters have a way to attack me on my turn, then I'll turn this right around!"

"How?" Tiffany challenged as Victor placed his card (Nin-Ken Dog) into his graveyard.

"Easy, one of the cards I lost from Don…" Victor began.

A plume of fire shot down from the sky, and Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000) emerged from it with a terrible roar!

"Was his second Manticore of Darkness!" Yugi cheered.

"Show her whose boss Victor!" Joey shouted.

"Crud…" Tiffany squeaked as she and her monsters drew back in fear.

"Oh, it gets better." Victor explained as his other facedown card lifted, "You see the card you failed to send back to my hand was my Call of the Haunted trap card, and I'll use it to revive Gyaku-Gire Panda (3300/1600)!"

Tiffany just pulled back again as the enraged panda emerged back on to the field, snarling and foaming as it had before.

"Now I'll draw." Victor said as he did so, then sliding the card he had onto his disk, "And I'll summon Chiron the Mage (1800/1000)."

Another centaur galloped into the battle zone, this one with flowing blond hair and wearing steel armor. He carried a staff tipped with a glowing red jewel, and smiled as he stood along side his fellows. Behemoth, still standing behind Victor, let out a triumphant roar.

"Now to attack!" Victor shouted, "Gyaku-Gire Panda, you take out Gorg!"

The panda lunged forward, and stabbed its bamboo sword right into the largest warrior's chest. He gasped as he vanished in a burst of sparks, and the panda (2800/1600) calmed down slightly.

"Chiron, you take out Chick! Magical staff smash!"

The blond centaur waved his staff, and a blast of red energy flew from the tip. It quickly wiped out Chick, and removed him from the field before he could scream.

"Manticore, you handle Cliff with Hell breath of death!"

The monstrous beast-warrior blasted out a gout of flames, and Cliff was vaporized in an instant. Tiffany groaned as her life points dropped quickly. At the same time, Victor's points were boosted by his deckmaster's power. Gyaku-Gire Panda (1800/1600) was much more docile now, though its claws still seemed to be quite sharp.

Tiffany: 3000

Victor: 1400

"And now, just to be sure you can't recover any of her teammates," Victor concluded, dropping another Poison Fangs card from his hand, "I'll discard a spell to activate Chiron's effect, and wipe out any spell or trap I choose."

"But I only have one spell on the field that will do any good!" Tiffany protested.

"Then that's the one I'll destroy." Victor responded as Chiron waved his staff once more.

Meanae screamed as the red circle that had brought her back vanished from underneath her. She immediately burst into dust, and Don Zaloog looked around with a saddened look on his face. The panda (1300/1600) had weakened considerably, and was now calmly munching on his bamboo once more. Its red eyes were centered on Don however.

"Now that the rest of the team is gone, your trap is just dead-weight." Victor smiled, "Let's see you escape from this."

"Fine then." Tiffany said as she drew her card, "I've actually had a back-up plan waiting in my hand this whole time…"

Slapping down a card, a gray, fuzzy ball wiggled out of the sand. It quickly uncurled, revealing itself to be a raccoon with the black scorpion mark on its furry, white chest. It shook a tiny fist at the other beasts across from it, all of which growled at him in response.

Gyaku-Gire Panda (1800/1600) looked especially angered by this intrusion as it hefted its bamboo sword again.

"Say hello to the first of the Dark Scorpion's pets!" Tiffany laughed, "Raccoon Burglar: Bandit (300/300)!"

"The Dark Scorpions have pets?" Yugi asked, turning to Kaiba.

"Don't look at me. I never heard of this one either." Seto stated.

"That's because this monster is very new. Created by Pegasus, and released in a limited quantity, word of it got around the dueling underground." Tiffany explained as the 'coon began to clean off his face, "Some rich snob in my neighborhood got his hands on a copy somehow, and decided to entertain himself by having a tournament. He offered Bandit here as the prize, along with another limited edition card that goes with him."

"And you won that tournament?" Victor guessed, looking at the raccoon.

"Yep. But I don't have the right card to bring out my other secret weapon yet." Tiffany responded as she moved Bandit's card on her disk, "So I'll use Bandit's special ability. He's a union monster that can only equip to Don Zaloog!"

The raccoon looked up at the thief, who smiled and knelt down. Bandit scampered up his arm and alighted on his shoulder, then bared its teeth at Victor. Gyaku-Gire Panda (1300/1600) calmed down again, now that Bandit was no longer considered a monster.

"You see, Don Zaloog here found poor Bandit when he was lost and injured. Seems he has a soft spot for helpless animals, because he nursed the little guy back to health. Bandit was so appreciative, he stayed with the scorpions and started helping them on their jobs, and he was especially helpful to Don." Tiffany explained as Don's stats (1700/1500) jumped, "In game terms, as long as Bandit is equipped to Don, he gains 300 attack points. Don, attack that overstuffed panda with raccoon revolver!"

Bandit jumped off of his master's shoulder, and ran between the panda's legs. It turned around, curiously following the smaller creature, when Don Zaloog pulled a dagger from his boot and jumped onto the poor creature's back! He jammed the knife into its neck, and the panda fell over with a groan, and then vanished in a flurry of triangles.

Tiffany: 3000

Victor: 1000

"And now Bandit's second effect activates." Tiffany declared, her smile slowly growing, "When he's on Don Zaloog, and they manage to damage your life points, I get to use both of Don's effects!"

Don quickly ran over to Victor and snatched his Graceful Charity out of his hand. Bandit leapt onto Victor's disk and slid two cards (another Enraged Battle Ox and Berserk Gorilla) into his graveyard.

"Drat." Victor grumbled, "But your monster is still weaker than both of mine."

"I'll set one card facedown." Tiffany declared, ignoring Victor, "Make your move."

The card appeared behind Don as Victor drew. He looked to the two facedown cards his opponent had.

"_One of those is her Dark Scorpion Combination." _He remembered, _"The other one could be anything. But if I take a chance then I can win this…"_

Seeing the card he had just drawn, Victor smiled and plugged it into his disk.

"I activate Wild Nature's Release!" He shouted, pointing at his Manticore, "And I'll use it on the Manticore of Darkness, adding its defense to its attack for one turn."

Behemoth let out an enraged howl, and the lion hybrid answered. Its fur turned a flaming red-orange color, its muscles bulging with strength and its fangs lengthening.

"Attack Don Zaloog with Hell breath release!" Victor shouted.

The beast-warrior (3300/1000) let loose a mighty blast of fire, and Tiffany reached for her disk…

"If this works, he'll win!" Yugi cheered.

"But it won't work!" Tiffany shouted back, "I activate Waboku!"

A trap with the image of three priestesses lifted. A yellow glow surrounded Don Zaloog, who smirked as the fire hit him…

Or so it seemed. The flames dispersed a second before they could actually make contact.

"Now your monsters can't do any damage this turn." Tiffany explained as Don smirked, "So attack with Chiron if you'd like, the results will be the same."

"You know, if Bandit is a union monster, he could have protected the monster he was equipped to." Victor stated.

"He could?" Joey asked from the sidelines.

"It's the first rule of union monsters." Kaiba growled, "When a creature with a union monster is attacked, the union monster is destroyed in its place."

"Well excuse me if I'm not an expert on union monsters." Joey responded, "I've never even seen 'em before today."

"Besides, if I hadn't used my trap, I'd have lost both of my monsters." Tiffany said, "This way I didn't lose either one, and they still protect my life points."

Victor thought for a minute. She did have a point. Thanks to the trap she had saved herself and her monsters.

Tiffany: 3000

Victor: 1000

"Well, now that I end my turn, Manticore of Darkness is destroyed by the second effect of Wild Nature's Release." Victor stated as the lion shattered, "But I'll tribute Chiron to bring him right back!"

The column of fire shot up once more, this time consuming Chiron the Mage as it did so. Out of the sand once again burst the Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000), now returned to its original power level. Tiffany drew her card, and smiled one more time.

"This fight is as good as done." She said as she moved Bandit's card again, "I de-equip Bandit from Don Zaloog, putting him back onto the field."

The raccoon jumped from the thief's shoulder, and moved into a battle-ready position.

"But now I'm going to show you the second card I won in that tournament." Tiffany smiled as she held up another card from her hand, "Go, Polymerization!"

Don Zaloog and Bandit both jumped into the air, and swirled together into a blob of darkness. Victor and the others watched in fascination as the blob shifted, and a new form dropped out of it…

It was an anthropomorphic raccoon. Yugi and Joey both gave it a strange look as the new monster smiled at them.

He wore a blue sweat shirt, boots, and hat, and (judging by the strips of cloth trailing behind his head) was wearing an actual black mask around his eyes. He carried a wooden cane, tipped with a golden hook, and he turned toward Victor's Manticore with a look of determination.

"Allow me to present the star of my favorite video game." Tiffany cheered, "Master Thief - Sly Cooper (1900/800)!"

The raccoon took a bow, and Kaiba seemed confused.

"Wait, Pegasus modeled a card after some video game character?" He asked.

"I knew he did that with the Gradius series…" Yugi started.

"Hey, I was just as surprised as you guys were." Tiffany said as she held up the fusion-monster's card, "But it seems Pegasus is a fan of the Sly Cooper series as well. So much so, that he made this limited release card, which was my second prize from that rich snob's tournament."

Tiffany giggled a bit as she continued her story.

"I had to take down that stuck-up jerk in a duel before he'd cough up the prize." She sighed, "Too bad he ran Muka Muka, and a lot of my monsters focus on making my enemy discard stuff."

"Ouch." Yugi commented.

"But this guy isn't much stronger than Don Zaloog was." Victor pointed out.

"True, but Don Zaloog couldn't do this!" Tiffany responded, "Sly, ninja spire jump attack!"

Sly smirked and leapt high into the air. He landed right on top of the manticore's head, and then jumped off and landed in front of Victor.

"What the…!" Victor gasped.

Sly swung his cane at Victor's feet, knocking him to the ground. The raccoon chuckled, and then back-flipped to his starting position.

"While Sly is on the field, he can bypass your monsters and attack directly, but he'll only do half the expected damage." Tiffany explained, "And before I forget, he's also immune to trap cards. He can just sneak right by them like he does in the game."

Tiffany: 3000

Victor: 50

"And now I'll just lay this card facedown." Tiffany stated.

Victor drew, and Sly just tapped his cane against the ground. Victor's eyes narrowed as he saw his only monster required a second sacrifice. Not that he really needed it to get rid of Sly.

"Manticore, destroy Sly with Hell breath of death!" Victor called out.

The fire-attribute monster belched out its flames again, and Sly screamed as he was consumed. Tiffany just waved a hand over her disk with a smile, and her trap lifted.

Tiffany: 2500

Victor: 50

"Not that easy Vic old boy." Tiffany taunted, "My Call of the Haunted trap will bring Sly right back!"

Purple smoke poured out of the trap, and reformed into the raccoon-thief. He adjusted his hat, and then looked around. He suddenly reached back into the trap that had revived him, and pulled out his cane out with a smile.

"Then I set a facedown card." Victor said, laying down one card from his hand, "Your turn."

"Then I'll end the duel right now!" Tiffany responded as she drew her card, "Sly, get him!"

The thief leapt high into the air once again, when Victor looked up with a grin.

"Got ya." He said as his facedown card lifted, "I activate De-Fusion!"

Sly seemed frightened, as a beam of magical energy flew out of the quick-play spell card and slammed into him. Sly burst into two orbs of black energy, which floated back down to the ground.

"Why would you have a De-Fusion card!" Tiffany shouted, glaring at her foe.

"There's no rule that I have to tell you." Victor responded, "Now feel free to summon your monsters."

Tiffany growled as Don Zaloog (1400/1500) and Bandit (300/300) both rematerialized on the field. Both of them were crouched in defense mode, and neither one looked very pleased with the situation.

"_Oooh…when I draw another spell he is _so _going to get it!"_ Tiffany thought angrily, _"I already have four other, currently useless, spells here in my hand. If I draw one on my next turn, I can discard two to get my Spell Reproduction, and then use the other two to get back Premature Burial."_

"Nothing I can do." Tiffany sighed, "It's your turn."

Victor drew, and smiled as he saw the monster in his hand.

"Now I'll show you why I use De-Fusion." He stated, sliding a card into his disk, "I activate Polymerization!"

The swirling energy appeared, and two monsters were pulled into it as Victor held up the last two cards in his hand.

"Now I'll fuse Big Koala with Des Kangaroo, to make the ruler of the outback…" Victor intoned.

Out of the vortex dropped a twenty-foot tall koala, with green fur. It had a long, thick tail like a kangaroo, and wore a purple vest with red boxing gloves.

"Master of Oz (4200/3700)!" Victor presented.

Tiffany stared up at the creature, and trembled in fear. Victor smiled as Yugi and the others stared up at the monster as well.

"Woah…that's almost as strong as your Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!" Yugi said, turning to Seto.

"The key word there is almost." Said the young CEO.

"Master of Oz, wipe out Don Zaloog with Ayer's Rock haymaker!" Victor shouted.

The giant monster leapt forward, and caught the thief with a powerful uppercut. Tiffany screamed as her monster was blasted into pieces.

"Manticore, obliterate her raccoon!" Victor commanded.

The raccoon squeaked in terror, just before it was incinerated.

"Your move now Tiffany." Victor invited, as Behemoth boosted his life points again, "Oh, and before I forget, Master of Oz is a beast-type."

Tiffany: 2500

Victor: 750

Tiffany was shaking as she drew her card. Upon seeing it, she began to calm down.

"_My Mirror Force trap card!"_ She realized, trying not to smile, _"If he tries to attack this, I'll blow that monster of his back to Australia."_

"I set this facedown and end my turn." Tiffany stated, sliding the card into her disk.

Victor drew, and held up his card with a sigh of relief.

"Mystical Space Typhoon." He said simply, a blast of wind lashing out and obliterating Tiffany's final defense.

"NO!" Tiffany screamed, dropping her hand of cards.

"Attack her directly my beasts!" Victor ordered.

Tiffany screamed bloody murder, as the two monsters were set loose, tearing out the remainder of her life points.

Tiffany: 0

Victor: 750

Both disks shut down, and Tiffany groaned as she fell to her knees. The two monsters that had just been ripping her to shreds disappeared, along with the deckmasters.

"And that's all she wrote." Victor said as eight lights flew from Tiffany's disk and into his.

The number in Victor's disk leapt to a ten, and then turned into a golden nine. He looked at it, realizing he must be the ninth finalist.

"_I wonder who the first eight are."_ He said to himself.

Tiffany struggled to her feet, just in time for Kaiba to stride toward her.

"Time for you to go Tiffany." He said, taking her arm, "I believe you caused enough trouble."

"Oh fine." The girl sighed, "It was fun while it lasted."

She turned to Victor and flashed him a smile.

"Thanks for the duel Victor." She said, "It was actually…refreshing to lose. Those amateurs out at my card shop just can't compare to you."

"You're just saying that so I'll bail you out of this." Victor said, crossing his arms.

"Well…Yeah, yeah I am." Tiffany confessed, "Okay then, let's go Mr. Kaiba."

A ring of light descended around Kaiba and the thief, both of whom vanished. Victor smiled as his body began to fade, and Yugi and Joey grabbed his shoulders.

"Huh?" He gasped, turning to the boys.

"Hey, we didn't get to duel yet." Yugi pointed out.

"And I doubt you'll get a chance until the finals." A female voice echoed over them.

"Another programmer?" Joey sighed, "What now?"

"Duelists that haven't earned ten points yet that try to jump with someone that has are dropped in a different place." The voice continued, "It was something to keep the finalists from being challenged and losing their points."

"So wait, we can't jump with Victor then?" Yugi realized.

"Guess we'll have to meet in the finals." Victor said as the trio faded away, "I'm sure I'll see you both there…"

The beach was suddenly empty, with no trace of any duelists.

-------------------------------------

Rei shut off her headset and sighed.

It had been an enjoyable duel to watch…

But she had really been hoping to see Yugi and Victor go at it at least once.

"Maybe in the finals." She muttered to herself, trying to ignore Jackson and Sota as they began another betting pool.

_**I hope I will see Tiffany again, but not too soon. I think I'd rather see her parents to tell them exactly what sort of a girl they're raising…**_

**_Until then dueling fans, we have another chapter lined up for you. Yugi and Joey land in ancient castle, and set off looking for a challenge. And the one they find will not disappoint, as Yugi goes up against a foe he never would have expected._**

_**We call it**_

_**A Mirror Darkly**_

**_And before anyone makes a guess, I'm not talking about Arkana._**

---

Original Cards

---

Raccoon Burglar-Bandit

Beast/Union

DARK

Two stars

300 attack

300 defense

This monster may only be equipped to "Don Zaloog." A monster equipped with this card gains 300 attack and defense points. When a "Don Zaloog" equipped with this card deals damage to your opponent's life points, you may activate both of its effects. Once per turn, you may either equip this monster to "Don Zaloog," or unequip it and special summon it to the field in attack mode. (No monster may be equipped with more than one union monster at a time.)

---

Master Thief-Sly Cooper

Beast-Warrior/Fusion/Effect

DARK

Six stars

1950 attack

800 defense

Don Zaloog + Raccoon Burglar-Bandit

This monster may only be fusion summoned using the above fusion material monsters. This monster may attack your opponent's life points directly. If it does, any battle damage it deals is cut in half. This monster is immune to the effects of trap cards.

_Sly Cooper's copyright belongs to the fine folks at Sucker Punch Studios, and Sony. We don't own him in any way, shape, or form_

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Great Phantom Thief

Warrior

EARTH

Three stars

1000 attack

1000 defense

Prepping for Action: Once per turn, you may discard two cards of the same type (Spell, Trap, or Monster) from your hand to search your deck for a card of the same type. Add the selected card to your hand, then shuffle your deck.

---

Behemoth, the King of All Animals

Beast

EARTH

Seven stars

2700 attack

1500 defense

Survival of the Fittest: Whenever a Beast-type monster you control destroys an enemy monster in battle, you gain life points equal to half of the destroyed monster's original attack.


	18. A Mirror Darkly

Disclaimer: We bet you can't wait for the day that we own Yu-Gi-Oh. Sadly, that day has yet to come.

_**Anyone who knows dueling knows who my favorite monster is.**_

_**He's helped to bail me and Yami out of plenty of bad situations. No matter how bad things seem, one form of him or another always shows up to help us out.**_

**_So you can only imagine how shocking it was for me when, during Battle City, I met another duelist who had _two _copies of this creature. Unfortunately for him, he didn't treat it with the same respect and lost as a consequence._**

**_But now I'm about to face off with someone who can appreciate Dark Magician's talents a little more._**

_**And he may be even more skilled at using him than I am…**_

**A Mirror Darkly**

Yugi and Joey felt the ground under their feet solidify once again. The taller of the two clutched his stomach, and placed a hand over his mouth. As promised, Victor was missing, having been transported who-knows-where.

"Oh man, I'm really getting sick of teleporting." Joey moaned as he fought off a wave of naseau.

"Hang in there Joey." Yugi encouraged, "We're each only two win points away from the finals, so let's find an opponent. That'll make you feel better, and then we can meet with Victor and the others."

Joey nodded, and stood up.

"You're right Yug." Joey nodded, "I ain't get gonna let a little upset stomach keep me from duelin'!"

Looking around, the dynamic duo noticed that they were in some sort of large castle or manor. More specifically, they were in a grand entrance hall. The walls were lined with portraits of monsters in the midst of launching powerful attacks, and suits of armor stood nearby. A large staircase covered with a red carpet extended before them, although it didn't seem to lead anywhere. Behind them was a huge set of double doors, which had a large bolt holding them shut.

"Guess we aren't allowed to leave this place ourselves." Yugi observed as he pointed out the bolts.

"Great, I wonder if Kaiba does this to all his guests, or if he's treatin' us special." Joey grumbled.

"We'll worry about that later." Yugi said, looking around, "For now, let's focus on finding a way out of here. I just hope Victor wound up in a better place then us…"

Looking up the stairs to nowhere, Yugi scratched his chin. From what he could see, the stairs just stopped at a section of the stone wall.

"Hey, maybe there's some sort of hidden passage up there." He suggested, pointing up the steps.

"Well what are we waiting for?" Joey asked as he ran up the staircase, "Charge!"

"Um…Joey…" Yugi began.

He couldn't get any farther before his blond buddy ran face first into a very solid wall. Joey slowly peeled off, and Yugi ran up the stairs to catch him before he fell.

"Okay, maybe it's a real wall." Yugi guessed as Joey let out a low moan.

"Next time, you test the wall." Joey requested as he pulled himself up again.

Before either of them had a chance to do anything else though, a loud grinding noise filled the area. The two friends covered their ears as the flight of steps began to turn slowly, as though it was on a record player! Struggling to keep their balance, the two held onto the railings as the stairs shifted a full ninety degrees to the left and stopped. Noticing the noise had stopped (aside from the ringing in his ears) Yugi looked up the now motionless stairs.

"Hey Joey, look!" Yugi exclaimed.

Joey uncovered his ears, and gasped. The stairs now led to a brightly lit hallway, with a red carpet matching the one they currently stood on. A trail of glowing orbs of light hovered six feet above the floor on either side of the hall.

"Wow." Joey said simply, "Think we should try this hall?"

"I don't see anywhere else we can go." Yugi stated.

With no further words between them, the pair started down the path before them.

-------------------------------------------------------

Outside the virtual world, Mokuba was sitting in front of his computer terminal. He had been doing a routine check on the status of the competitors, and was now busy checking for who was in the lead.

"Let's see…" He muttered, "So far, it looks like Joey and Yugi are the closest to reaching the finals. Then there's...Hmm, the Elemental Duelists, though Celeste seems a bit ahead, and Brian and Tim are behind. Wonder where they are now?"

Tapping a few buttons, a map of the Virtual World and its different areas appeared. Mokuba typed in a few more keystrokes, and several squares appeared on the screen.

"Alright, looks like Yugi and Joey are in…!" Mokuba gasped.

The boxes marked 'Joey Wheeler' and 'Yugi Mutoh' were both pointing to the castle marked 'Spell Sanctuary.'

"_Well, if Yugi's not careful he might get a nasty surprise_._"_ Mokuba thought, _"The Spell Sanctuary is where we housed one of our most skilled Eliminator programs."_

--------------------------------------------------------

In the meantime, Yugi and Joey had reached the end of the hall. In front of them was a wooden door with a pentagram on it. There was some sort of writing inside the pentagram, but it was impossible to read. None of the characters matched any letters Yugi or Joey were familiar with.

"So can we just go in or what?" Joey asked.

"I don't know." Yugi admitted, "These letters might be a warning…"

"Yug, if they were supposed to be a warning then they'd be written in a language someone could actually _read_." Joey argued.

Yugi thought for a second, and then shrugged. Joey had made a good point with that. He gently pushed the door open…

Inside was a classroom. There were several rows of seats, and at the front of the room was a figure dressed in purple robes. He held a green staff tipped with a jewel, and had a large purple headdress.

Yugi's eyes practically bugged out of his skull when he saw the figure.

"_Dark Magician?" _He thought, recognizing his favorite monster.

The sorcerer was currently using his staff to make marks on a large chalkboard behind him. Sitting near the front of the class were several more familiar monsters. Dark Magician Girl was in the very front row, listening intently. Behind her sat another girl, dressed very much like her but with a shorter skirt and brown hair. In the seat next to the Dark Magician girl was another sorceress, this one with purple hair and blue robes.

Scattered around the room were other people, all of them seemed to be Spellcasters of one kind or another. A Tsukuyomi and Otohime were copying notes in the corner. Neo the Magic Swordsman was passing a slip of paper to a Fairy's Gift, and a trim little Pixie Knight was watching. There were many others, more than could be described here…

All of them were paying close attention to the Dark Magician as he spoke.

"Now then, the one thing you must keep in mind while performing your magic is to remain focused." He instructed, "The last thing you'll need in the midst of a battle is any unintended explosions."

"Looks like we walked into a classroom." Joey commented, "And your favorite monster's the teacher!"

The famous Spellcaster looked up, and smiled as he saw Yugi and Joey at the back of the room.

"Well, it seems we have some guest speakers today." He said, gesturing toward them, "Welcome guests, are you enjoying my lecture?"

"Umm…well…the thing is…" Joey stammered.

"It's really you isn't it?" Yugi gasped, "You really are Dark Magician!"

"I was the last time I checked." DM responded with a worried look, "What, did one of my students decided to practice a new spell without my knowledge?"

He turned to the other spellcasters in front of him, who drew back.

"Don't worry, we've been behaving sir." Dark Magician Girl assured him, "I think it's just a shock to these two for some reason."

"I think I know why." The brown haired girl commented.

"Or really Valkyria? Care to enlighten us?" DM asked.

"If I were to guess, I'd say that these two are duelists." Valkyria responded, "What's more, I'm sure that spiky headed one is Yugi Mutoh!"

The other students turned to the two companions, and began to whisper excitedly to each other. Dark Magician nodded, and swiftly walked over to the confused lad.

"Well I'll be, I must say that's it's an honor Mr. Mutoh!" The wizard said as he shook Yugi's hand, "I never expected that you of all people would find their way to my classroom."

"The honor's mine." Yugi said, breaking into a grin, "I never would have guessed Kaiba would put my favorite monster as a character in this world!"

Dark Magician laughed, and turned back toward his students. Valkyria had a smug smile on her face, and the Dark Magician Girl gave Yugi a shy wave hello. The girl next to her (Yugi could now recognize her as Magician of Faith) began to whisper excitedly to her neighbors (Breaker the Magical Warrior and Illusory Gentleman).

"So just what is going on in here?" Joey asked, finally finding his voice.

"My weekly lecture of course." Dark Magician explained, pointing at the board.

Written on it in glowing white letters was 'Spellcasting 202: Advanced Magic and Sorcery.'

"So then these other guys are all your students?" Joey guessed.

"Exactly." Dark Magician nodded, "And they're one of the best classes I've had yet!"

The enchanter smiled and walked back to the front of the room.

"In fact, I think it's about time for a little pop quiz." He said with a sly grin, pulling out a slim package wrapped in blue cloth.

He removed the cloth, revealing a small stack of Duel Monsters cards! Yugi blinked in astonishment, wondering what it meant. Joey noticed that most of the students actually seemed excited about the prospect of a pop quiz, rather than appalled.

"What do you say, either one of you want to be the exam proctor?" Dark Magician asked.

It quickly clicked with Yugi.

"Wait, are you challenging us to a duel?" Yugi asked, "How is that a quiz for the students?"

"I'm afraid I can only show you if you accept my challenge." Dark Magician explained, "Of course, you're welcome to turn down the offer if you don't want to play. It's entirely your choice."

"Some choice." Joey grumbled, "There's nothing back out the way we came, and we don't know how to move the stairs again."

"_That's a good point."_ Yami chimed in.

"_Yami?"_ Yugi thought.

"_I'm not here to offer dueling advice, don't worry."_ Yami assured his partner, _"But Joey's made a good argument. If neither one of you accepts his challenge, your best chance of leaving is to duel each other. Then who ever loses will have to play against the Dark Magician anyway. They wouldn't have enough time to grab the other."_

Yugi frowned, realizing the ancient spirit was right. He looked at Joey, who gave him a thumbs up.

"Hey, you can take this guy if you want." Joey offered, "After all, he's your favorite."

Yugi smiled, and turned on his disk.

"Alright, let's see how good a teacher you are!" Yugi shouted.

"Wonderful! Class, exam positions please." Dark Magician requested.

The students all stood up and pushed their desks and chairs aside. They all lined up in front of their teacher, who waved his staff over them…

Causing them to vanish! His stack of cards immediately grew, as several cards added themselves to his deck.

"Whoa!" Yugi gasped.

"You see Yugi, the perfect test for my students is to see how well they perform in battle." Dark Magician explained, "As such, they will serve as the monsters in my deck."

"Alright then Dark Magician…" Yugi started.

"Please, call me 'Teach' for this duel." The warlock requested.

"Oh…Okay. Teah, let's duel!" Yugi shouted.

A green and purple disk materialized on Teach's arm, and he loaded his cards in. At the same time, a grid of cards began to float before Yugi.

"Time to choose your deckmaster then." Teach declared, "And just so you know, I'll be serving as my own deckmaster for this duel."

Yugi looked over the cards, considering his own Dark Magician for a minute.

"_If I were to guess based on the students, he's using a Spellcaster deck."_ Yugi reasoned, _"The only question is, which monster is the best one to combat him? I still know how his power works…"_

Yugi reached forward and selected a card. A shimmering figure floated from his card, and hovered behind him for a second. The form then solidified into a peaceful elf maiden with blue skin, wearing floor length green robes.

"I'll duel magic with magic." Yugi declared, "I choose Mystical Elf as my deckmaster!"

"Interesting choice." Teach commented, "Well, let's start. You can have the first move."

Joey moved to the side, sitting on one of the desks against the wall, as Yugi and Teach drew their first five cards.

Yugi: 8000

Teach: 8000

Yugi drew his first card of the game, and began to contemplate his opening move. As he did, a serenely peaceful voice entered his mind.

"_Yugi." _The voice said, _"I'm so glad that I have a chance to help you once again."_

Yugi looked around confused, and then felt a hand rest on his shoulder. Turning around, he sighed with relief, realizing it was his deckmaster communicating with him.

"_I was worried that Yami had found a girlfriend for a second."_ He thought, _"So what can you do?"_

"_My ability is elven blessing."_ Came the answer, _"If you discard two cards from your hand, I can give you 300 extra life points for every monster in play."_

Yugi smiled, and looked over his hand once again.

"Alright, I'll open with one monster in defense mode." Yugi declared, placing his first card onto the tray, "And that will do it for now."

A horizontal card projected in front of Yugi. Teach drew his card, and smiled.

"Let's see…I guess we'll start with you." Teach declared, placing a card onto his disk, "Neo the Magic Swordsman (1700/1000)!"

A flash of light filled the field, and a young man with blond hair appeared. He wore steel armor, and carried a sword with a glowing tip.

"Time to see how much you kids have really learned." Teach stated, "Attack his facedown monster with blade of bewitchment!"

Neo nodded, and pointed his weapon at Yugi's monster. A bolt of blue energy flew off, and struck the back of the card. It turned over, revealing a humanoid creature made of stone, in a crouching position.

"Sorry, but Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000) is a bit too tough for your pupil." Yugi commented.

Yugi: 8000

Teach: 7700

Neo hung his head, very depressed, and Teach smiled.

"It's okay, we'll get him with the next one." Teach assured his student, "Until then, I'll play one card facedown."

The back of another card sprung up behind Neo, and Teach waved to end his turn. Yugi drew, and immediately placed another card onto his disk. In front of him appeared a teenage sorcerer in black robes, carrying an iron staff. Three orbs shimmered on his shoulders and chest as he swung his weapon around.

"I summon Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700) in attack mode." Yugi declared, "Now, attack Neo with dark magic blast!"

The young Spellcaster pointed his rod at Neo, who drew back in fear. A bolt of black energy flew at the wizard, but a trio of robed priestesses jumped in the way, and deflected the blast.

"A bit too hasty there Yugi." Teach sighed, "My Waboku card repelled your attack and saved my student."

"Rats." Yugi muttered as he checked his remaining cards, "Nothing more I can do, I end my turn."

Teach drew, and smiled as he saw what was now in his hand.

"Well, time to move down the roll call a bit. I summon Maha Vailo (1550/1400) to the field!" Teach announced, sliding another card into place.

From the floor rose a young woman wearing deep-blue robes. Her blond hair stuck out in a series of prongs, and a pair of red jewels hung from it. Teach smiled and placed another card into his disk, causing a large book to float down in front of the new monster.

"Now, Ms. Vailo is one of the quickest studies I have in my class, and I've just given her a new piece of reading material: The Book of Secret Arts." Teach explained, "I'm trusting you know what that does."

"It gives any Spellcaster an extra 300 attack points." Yugi nodded, then frowned, "And Maha Vailo's effect gives her an extra 500 points for every spell attached to her…oh boy."

Vailo (2350/1400) took the tome under her arm, and smiled.

"Now then, Ms. Vailo, show me what you learned and destroy his Skilled Dark Magician with thunder crash." Teach ordered.

The sorceress held up one hand, and a blast of lightning shot from the ceiling. It crashed against Yugi's magician, who consequently shattered into a million bits and pieces.

Yugi: 7550

Teach: 7700

"Nicely done! You get an A+." Teach congratulated.

Vailo clapped her hands, and smiled. Neo looked at her, a little jealousy showing on his face.

"Don't worry, you'll get your chance." Teach stated, "But for now, it's Yugi's turn."

Drawing, Yugi looked a tad worried. He perked up a bit as he saw his monster though, and he quickly placed it horizontally onto his disk. Its holographic representation materialized next to the Soldier of Stone, and a card appeared behind both of them.

"I'll just set one monster in defense mode, and one card facedown." Yugi declared, "That ends my turn."

Teach drew, and thought for a second. He tapped his disk, and the field slot swung open.

"Okay, time for a little field trip." Teach smirked as he inserted a card, "Courtesy of my Yami field spell."

The classroom began to warp, and the shadows of the desks and chairs started to rise up. They covered the walls and the furniture of the room, leaving nothing but inky darkness (and a very confused Joey sitting in midair.)

"Now then, this field gives all Spellcaster-type monsters a bonus 200 points to their attack and defense." Teach explained, "Amazing what a little change of scenery can do, isn't it?"

Neo (1900/1200) and Maha Vailo (2550/1600) both began to crackle with excess energy.

"Maha, attack his Giant Soldier of Stone!" The instructor commanded.

Maha raised her hand again, and fired another bolt of lightning. This one, however, was intercepted by a silver shield, which released a pulse of light over Yugi's body.

"Sorry Teach, but my new Draining Shield card stops your attack, and adds your monster's attack points to my life points." Yugi explained with a smile as his life points sky rocketed.

Yugi: 10100

Teach: 7700

"Okay then…Neo, attack his facedown monster!" Teach shouted.

Neo fired another bolt from his sword, only to watch it ricochet into the distance. On the facedown card appeared an elven warrior wearing a green cape and carrying a steel blade.

"Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (1400/1200) may not be the strongest, but he can't be destroyed by a monster with 1900 attack or more." Yugi explained with a chuckle, "Looks like your own field spell hinders you this time."

Neo seemed quite peeved now, and Teach patted his shoulder.

"Don't worry, that was my fault. I'll give you some extra credit on this one." He promised, "Until then, there's nothing else I can do."

"Geez, looks like Kaiba decided to insult yah Yug." Joey commented, "Your favorite monster isn't very good at this."

Neo and Maha both shot ugly glares at Joey, who fell off his non-existent perch with a crash.

"Uh, nevermind." Joey muttered, watching as Yugi drew.

"Okay Teach." Yugi smiled, "I tribute my Giant Soldier…"

The rock-type shimmered, and faded away.

"To call forth Summoned Skull (2700/1400)!" Yugi called out.

In place of the statue, there was now a demonic skeleton with a visible muscle structure. Both of Teach's students gasped in fright at the visage of the fiend.

"Looks like your field backfired on you again, because Yami also powers up fiend-types like my skull." Yugi stated, "Skull, attack Maha Vailo with lightning strike!"

Yugi's monster began to crackle with electricity, and a bolt of lightning flew from its body. Maha screamed as the lightning struck her, and she vanished in a blaze of heat and light.

Yugi: 10100

Teach: 7550

"Well, guess I overestimated her abilities a bit." Teach muttered, "I'd say she gets a C+ for her performance."

"It's your turn." Yugi declared.

Teach drew, and a smile lit up his features.

"Well, I just drew my Pot of Greed, so I'll play it now." He declared.

A grinning green jar rose from the shadowy floor, and cackled. Teach drew two cards, and the jar vanished.

"And now I activate my deckmaster power: master of magic!" Teach announced as his body lit up with a purple light.

The green jar appeared once again, and Teach drew another two cards.

"If I just pay 1000 life points, I can duplicate the effect of any normal or quickplay spell I just played." Teach explained as he held up his seven card hand, "Now let's see who has moved to the head of the class…"

"_Just like I remember."_ Yugi thought, _"I'd better be careful, those cards could be anything and I haven't seen much of his strategy yet."_

Yugi: 10100

Teach: 6550

He placed a card down, and a young female with purple hair and robes faded into view. She held a small hand mirror, and she was see-through.

"Tsukuyomi (1300/1600) is highly talented at illusions." Teach explained, "As such…"

"I know," Yugi grimaced, "A friend of mine used her before. She changes one monster to facedown defense mode."

"Very good Yugi." The head wizard smiled, "And I'll use her effect on your Summoned Skull."

Tsukuyomi held up her mirror, and a beam of light flew from it. Summoned Skull was struck, and vanished, replaced by a defensive monster.

"Now then Neo has been very patient, so it's time for him to show his stuff! Neo, attack his facedown skull." Teach ordered.

The blond wizard/warrior swung his weapon, and a bolt of energy flew off. Summoned Skull reappeared on the card, only to vanish in a burst of data.

"And since she's strong enough to beat your guardian without activating his effect…Tsukuyomi, destroy his elf!" Teach continued.

The moon maiden raised her mirror, and fired a sparkling beam of magic from it. Yugi's monster groaned under the assault, and disappeared.

"And I'll end my turn with a facedown card." Teach finished, "And since Tsukuyomi is a spirit monster, she disappears back to my hand now."

True to word, a facedown card sprang to existence behind Neo, and Tsukuyomi vanished completely. Yugi drew, and winced.

"_Uh oh, no monsters I can summon!" _He fretted.

"I have to pass." Yugi sighed.

"_That's probably not good." _Joey thought, his eyes going wide at this news.

Teach drew, and smiled. He placed a card onto his disk, and a shimmering form appeared in front of him.

"I got a pretty good draw here Yugi, let me show you just how good it is." Teach invited as he waved his hand, "First, I summon Pixie Knight (1500/400) in attack mode."

The light coalesced, and a _very _small girl dressed in blue traveling gear and wearing a blue hat appeared. She had tiny, fluttering wings, and a small dagger strapped to her waist. She giggled, and waved at Yugi.

"Then, I activate Double Attack!" Teach announced, playing another card, "I just discard a monster, like Tsukuyomi…"

As her card was placed in the cemetery, Tsukyomi materialized behind Pixie Knight. The sprit maiden gave a reassuring nod to the sprite, before disappearing. Pixie Knight drew her dagger, and held it out in front of her.

"…And one of my monsters can attack twice this turn, so long as they're a lower level than the discarded monster." Teach smiled as his aura flared again, "And since it's so useful, I'll use my deckmaster power to use it a second time."

Teach placed another card into his graveyard, and Yugi gasped as the image of Dark Magician Girl jumped up behind Neo. She leaned down, and gave the swordfighter a kiss on the cheek, causing him to blush as he adjusted his grip on his weapon.

"As you no doubt guessed, I discarded Dark magician Girl for the second play." Teach elaborated as he placed yet another card into his disk, "But now I'll bring her right back with my Premature Burial card!"

A circle of red light appeared on the ground, and out of it rose the buxom form of the Dark Magician Girl (2200/1900). Her usual blue outfit had some smears of dirt on it, and her boots and staff looked worn, but other than that she was her usual, happy self.

"Hey, I thought teachers weren't supposed to play favorites!" Joey protested from the sidelines.

"Does it look like I'm playing favorites?" Teach challenged, "I did discard her, and if I lose Premature Burial I lose her. But Maggie is the top of the class, and she works very well with her schoolmates. I think that elicits a bit of an award."

"Maggie?" Yugi asked.

"That's my name of course!" Dark Magician Girl smiled.

"Maggie, this is an exam." Teach scolded, "You're not supposed to talk, just chant spells."

"Sorry." Maggie muttered with a sheepish look.

"Alright students, let's see what you've learned." Teach smiled, "Maggie, attack directly! Then Neo and Pixie can both go in for their double attacks!"

Maggie raised her staff, and pointed it at Yugi's chest.

"Dark burning attack!" She shouted.

Yugi screamed as a blast of pink energy flew off and struck him! Neo and Pixie closed in, each of them slashing at Yugi twice with their weapons. Yugi moaned, and fell to his knees as the virtual pain settled over him.

Yugi: 1100

Teach: 4750

"_No way! He went from over ten-thousand points to just over one-thousand!" _Joey thought with a gasp.

"That's my turn Yugi, now let's see what you can do." Teach invited.

His students were already setting up their weapons for another strike as Yugi drew.

"_Here's something I can use." _Yugi thought as he played a card.

"I activate Card Destruction." Yugi declared, "Now we each discard our hands, and draw new card equal to the amount we discarded."

The Dark Magician shrugged, and dropped his hand along with Yugi. Yugi swiftly drew four cards, while teach picked up three.

"Now, I'll set one monster in defense mode." Yugi announced as he put a pair of cards on his disk, "And I'll also set one card facedown."

Two cards, perpendicular to one another, sprang into being before Yugi.

"And then, I discard my last two cards to activate Mystical Elf's deckmaster power." Yugi announced, "She'll give me 300 life points for every monster on the field."

The elf maiden began to chant, and a shimmering wave of light fell over Yugi as he pitched his last two cards.

Yugi: 2300

Teach: 4750

"That's my turn." Yugi sighed.

"Then this is where the duel will end." Teach declared as he drew, "Maggie, lead the way!"

The student spellcaster swung her staff, pointing it at the facedown monster…

"Go, magical Mirror Force!" Yugi shouted.

A barrier of blue energy warped over his monster, and Maggie gasped as her attack was fired back at her! Maggie, Pixie, and Neo all screamed as they were wiped out in the blink of an eye. Teach gasped, and raised a barrier to deflect the remnants of the attack.

"Walked into that one." He grumbled, "I'll end my turn, but you'll have to get really lucky to beat me."

Yugi drew, and smiled as he played the card he had drawn.

"Luck doesn't have anything to do with it." He declared, "I believe in myself and in my deck, so it always comes through for me."

A shimmering portal of red light sprang up before Yugi.

"I play my own Premature Burial, giving up 800 life points to revive…" Yugi intoned.

From the portal issued a wave of black energy. Out of that energy stepped an exact duplicate of Yugi's opponent. Teach gasped as Yugi finished his statement.

"My own Dark Magician (2700/2300)! And your field is still active…" Yugi shouted, "Dark Magic Attack!"

Yugi's monster pointed his staff right at his counterpart, and launched forth a blast of dark energy surrounded Teach. He screamed as his vision went photo-negative for a second, and then fell to his knees.

Yugi: 1500

Teach: 2050

"But how?" Teach gasped, "I never destroyed your Dark Magician."

"No, but I discarded him when I played Card Destruction." Yugi explained, "Making him easier to summon."

Teach grimaced, and reached for his cards.

"Seeing as you have nothing left in your hand, I'm guessing it's my turn." He said, drawing a card.

Frowning, he placed a card onto his disk. A hidden monster appeared, and teach waved to signal Yugi could go.

Yugi picked up another card, and smiled as he placed it onto his disk.

"I summon Gamma the Magnet Warrior (1500/1800)." He proclaimed.

A barrage of metallic, pink stones plummeted from the unseen ceiling. They quickly joined into a blocky, pink figure, with a pair of wings and a magnet for a collar.

"Dark Magician, attack his facedown monster!" Yugi commanded.

The black magic shot forward, and struck the card, revealing a laughing harlequin in loud clothing, with white and black makeup.

"And there's my favorite class clown." Teach smiled as he took the card from his disk, "Peten the Dark Clown (900/1400) is an incorrigible class disrupter, but no one is better at duplication magic."

"Duplication magic?" Joey asked, "What are you talking about?"

"In game terms, when Peten is destroyed, Teach can remove his card from the graveyard to summon another Peten in defense mode." Yugi explained, "Kaiba used this guy against me before."

A second card floated from Teach's deck, and settled in defense mode. In front of Teac h appeared another clown, crouching in a protective position.

"Gamma, destroy the second Peten." Yugi called out.

Gamma lunged forward, and drove its fist into the stomach of the jester. Peten laughed before vanishing…

And a third one floated out of the deck. The final Peten appeared in front of Teach, blowing a raspberry at Yugi.

"Well that's annoying." Joey commented.

"_He put up quite a wall." _Mystical Elf observed.

"_But it's almost down."_ Yugi thought.

"I end my turn." He declared.

Teach drew, and quickly played his card.

"I activate Graceful Charity." He stated as the angel floated over his head.

He drew three cards, and smiled as he placed two into his graveyard. He then snapped his fingers, and another card appeared on his disk.

"Well, my students have made an excellent demonstration of their abilities, A+ all around." Teach exclaimed as he stepped forward, "But now, it's time for me to wrap up this lesson."

Teach moved forward, and stood right next to Peten.

"I move my deckmaster, in this case myself, onto the field!" He shouted.

"You can do that?" Joey exclaimed, his eyes going wide.

"I may be an eliminator, but I'm still a Duel Monster." Teach replied, "So I can make use of the rules as well."

"So you are an eliminator. I had a feeling." Yugi said.

"I didn't mention that before?" Teach asked, looking puzzled.

Peten, Joey, and Yugi all shook their heads.

"Could of sworn that I did…Ah well, let it go." Teach mumbled, "Anyway, you probably know that you can't sacrifice your deckmaster for card effects and such."

Yugi and Joey both nodded, stunned into silence at the moment.

"But you can transform your deckmaster through a fusion or card effect." Teach continued, "And that's just what I intend to do!"

Teach removed his own card from the disk, and placed one from his hand down. His body was immediately wrapped in a vortex of purple and red energy. Peten backed away, and Yugi braced himself as the vortex died down.

Teach stood in the same place, but now he wore much fancier raiment. It looked like black armor, with a purple cape. He carried a large, two-pronged staff, and his cards now floated over his head.

"I am now the Dark Eradicator Warlock (2700/2300)!" He announced, "But as per the rules of the deckmaster system, my decmaster power hasn't changed. Though I do have access to any abilities this new form grants me."

"But you're no stronger than my Dark Magician." Yugi pointed out.

"True, but I'm much stronger than Gamma." Teach explained, pointed his weapon at the magnetic stone, "Black execution attack!"

A scythe of dark energy launched from the stave, and sliced cleanly through the pink rock. Gamma fell to the floor in two halves, and shattered.

Yugi: 300

Teach: 2050

Yugi cringed as his monster was destroyed, and Teach smiled as two of the cards over his head vanished, and reappeared behind him.

"Now I'll set these facedown, and end my turn." He explained with a smile.

Yugi drew and smiled as he held the card up.

"Perfect, I drew my Magic Formula card." Yugi declared as he played it, "So I'll equip it to my Dark Magician, giving him a bonus 700 attack points."

An ancient tome floated down into the waiting hands of Yugi's favorite monster. Dark Magician (3400/2300) grasped the book, and his staff began to shimmer with green light.

"Now then, the rules say that when your deckmaster is destroyed you lose, so let's end this." Yugi stated, pointing right at Teach, "Now, dark magic attack!"

Yugi's Dark Magician swung his staff right at Teach, who waved his weapon over his head. The two cards behind him lifted up, and a glowing barrier of light flowed around him.

"Not that easy my friend. I activate both of my facedown cards." The warlock explained, "The first is called Astral Barrier, which lets me change any attack into a direct attack on my life points."

"Why would you do that?" Joey shouted, "You'll lose anyway!"

"Not with my other card: Spirit Barrier." Teach explained, "With this one, I don't take any battle damage so long as I have a monster in play. Both myself and Peten count, so…"

The attack began to fly in circles around Teach, and then faded away.

"You can't touch me." Teach concluded.

Yugi grimaced, and waved to end his turn.

As Teach drew, he smiled.

"_All I need is a normal spell, and this is over."_ He thought, _"My special ability as the Dark Eradicator Warlock will deal him 1000 points of damage when a normal spell activates, and he'll lose!"_

Teach looked over his hand, and frowned.

"_No normal spells? I'll have to wait till next turn."_ He fretted.

"I pass this turn." The eliminator sighed.

Yugi drew, and breathed a small sigh of relief.

"I play Mystical Space Typhoon!" He shouted as he held the card over his head.

"Wait, what?" Teach gasped.

"Now I can destroy any spell or trap I choose." Yugi declared, "And I choose Spirit Barrier!"

A blast of wind shot forward, and wiped out the trap behind Teach. The duel Monster nervously glanced over his shoulder, and gulped.

"You have a choice now, either direct this attack to your life points, or be destroyed and lose anyway." Yugi stated, "Dark Magician…"

"STOP!" Teach screamed, moving a hand over his deck, "I know when I'm beat! I surrender."

----------------------------

"Did we program the eliminators to give up?" Rei asked, turning to her friends.

"Only if there's over five-thousand points of overkill coming in the next attack." Sota explained, "Yugi's monster was no where near that amount…And Teach forgot to mention he was an eliminator also."

"Maybe it's a bug in the system, like how we couldn't just eject Tiffany earlier." Jackson suggested as he began to type into his terminal, "I'm running our hourly system check right now. Nothing has come up yet…"

"Then I'll have to use a faster method." Mokuba said from above the three, standing up from his desk, "I'm going in."

"Are you sure sir?" Rei asked, "It could be dangerous."

"It's all just virtual, there's nothing to worry about." Mokuba said, waving off Rei's cautions, "Prepare the spare pod!"

-------------------------

Back in the classroom, all of the students had returned to their seats. Some of them were exhausted, others merely a touch winded. Teach (who was back in his regular robes) was wiping some sweat from his brow as he picked up a piece of chalk, and drew three circles on the board.

"Well Yugi, you're deserving of the title 'King of Games.' In recognition of your skill, I award with three win points." Teach said as he pointed his staff at the circles.

From each circle emerged a point of energy, which floated into Yugi's disk. His disk's readout jumped to a 10, which then turned gold.

"Why is it gold?" Yugi asked.

"The gold number indicates you are the tenth person to secure a place in the finals." Teach explained, "Now before you go I have one last gift."

He snapped his fingers, and card appeared in his hand. He gave it to Yugi, who looked at it.

"Dark Eradicator Warlock?" Yugi said, staring at the monster, "I didn't even see his effect in the duel…"

Reading the card carefully, he thought for a minute. It was strong, but not quite his style. Still, that was no reason to turn down such a nice gift, so he placed it into his pocket. As he began to fade, Joey grabbed his arm.

"So where to next?" Joey asked.

"Guess we'll find out soon." Yugi responded as they vanished.

---------------------------

Elsewhere in the Virtual World, Mokuba was making his way down a long hall filled with doors. Each one was a backdoor to one of the system's main programs, and going in virtually was the fastest way to deduce if there was a problem. Opening one door, Mokuba gasped as he saw a shadowy figure standing before him.

One that he recognized.

"It can't be…" He gasped as he backed away, right into someone standing behind him.

He turned around, and screamed as the someone grabbed hold of him…

_**Looks like Mokuba just can't keep out of trouble…If you want to know what happened to him, you'll have to wait.**_

_**Next time, Zeffie is looking to earn the last few points she needs for the finals. But it looks like the only other duelist around is Serenity. Time for the two to resort to blows for their spot in the finals. We could only call it:**_

_**Cross Breeze**_

_**Hope you look forward to it!**_

Original Cards

---

Magic Formula

Equipment spell

Image of an ancient book covered in runes

This card may only be equipped to "Dark Magician" or "Dark Magician Girl." Increase the equipped monsters attack by 700 points. When this card is sent from the field to the graveyard, increase your life points by 1000.

_This card is an actual Japanese card. It has been used on the show by Yugi many times, with different rules. It has also been used by Dark Magician Girl on "Yu-Gi-Oh Gx" with the real rules. All credit for this card goes to its creators._

_---_

Original Deckmaster

---

Mystical Elf

LIGHT

Spellcaster

Four stars

800 attack

2000 defense

Elven Blessing: Discard two cards from your hand during your turn. Increase your life points by 300 times the number of monsters on the field.


	19. Cross Breeze

Disclaimer: I don't think I even need to say it but...We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. WE only own our original cards, characters, and deckmasters unless otherwise noted.

_**Hello there. My name is Serenity Wheeler.**_

_**Not many duelists are familiar with me. They tend to know more about my big brother, Joey. He's as a strong a duelist as they come, and pretty well known.**_

_**Or so he keeps telling me. He still doesn't realize he doesn't have to exaggerate to impress me. He's already done more than enough.**_

**_A few years ago, Joey participated in a big tournament so he could earn some money. I needed the money so I could have an operation to save my eye-sight, and he managed to come through. I can never repay him for all he's done for me._**

_**That's why I felt so terrible last year, after I was brainwashed and almost trapped his soul in an evil card. The only good thing that came out of that whole situation was that I finally got a deck of my own. Now I could duel with Joey, and spend more time with him.**_

_**Too bad I got separated from him when the tournament started, but another old acquaintance has shown up.**_

_**The finals are drawing near, and I want to be in them with Joey. I'm not holding anything back now!**_

Cross Breeze

Deep in a far off corner of the Virtual World, Three figures were dumped unceremoniously onto the ground.

"What…_The_ _Hell_…Just happened?" Growled one of them in a southern accent as he got up.

"I do not know." The second responded in a computerized monotone, "One minute I was heading to my next target for the plan, and then I'm back here."

"Why do I have the feeling that we're owed an explanation Crump?" The third said, glowering toward a pair of figures nearby.

One of them looked a bit nervous, and he elbowed the slightly taller figure next to him.

"You want to explain this Gansley?" The shorter figure (Crump) squawked, "You were supposed to keep a look out for intruders."

"Don't try to blame this on me!" The taller figure (Gansley) shouted, "That pest Mokuba…"

"MOKUBA!" The other three shouted.

"And what, pray tell, was Mokuba doing here?" The southern voiced one asked.

"How should I know Lector? As far as I can tell, one of you must have slipped up somewhere." Gansley responded, "He came here looking for the source of the errors that we've caused, and somehow manage to seal both myself and Crump inside our base."

"How could a child do that?" Lector shouted in his southern drawl, "Johnson, Nesbitt, any thoughts on the matter."

"If I were to guess…" Said one of the figures as he adjusted his glasses, "He's probably put up some form of security program around us."

The final figure ran a hand over the wall nearby, and a wall of fire suddenly forced him back.

"I agree with Johnson, it's definitely an advanced firewall." The mechanical voiced miscreant (Nesbitt, by process of elimination) stated.

"I don't know how he squirmed free, but the minute he did he was able to lock me in here with Crump." Gansley explained.

"And he must have figured that if you two were here, we weren't far behind." Lector hissed.

"Right you are." Mokuba's voice said, as he appeared in the center of the room.

The five men saw Mokuba, and leapt at him as one. The main flaw in this plan was that they found themselves flying right through Mokuba, and dog-piling on top of one another.

"Nice try Big Five, I should have known you guys would come to haunt us eventually." Mokuba said, turning to them, "Lucky for me, Noah taught me a few tricks to manipulate the Virtual World."

"So it would seem." Crump said from the top of the pile.

"Get…off!" Nesbit demanded from the bottom.

"I wouldn't try anything funny if I were you guys." Mokuba said, "You five must have had back-up copies of yourselves stored away, in case your original selves were ever destroyed. Well believe me; once I figure out how to safely get rid of you, you'll never bother me or Seto again."

"Since when did you grow a spine?" Lector said as he and the others got up.

Mokuba glared at the five business tyrants, and smiled a bit.

"Not sure, maybe Noah had some effect on me when he was living in my mind." Mokuba explained, "I don't know what you were planning, but it ends here. After all, Seto put in charge of making sure the Virtual World was in prime working order. And now I've got a few computer viruses to delete."

Mokuba vanished in a burst of sparkles, and Gansley let out a frustrated sigh.

"Gentlemen, if there is anything extremely important we wish to tell each other, we should probably make it fast." He announced, "Even with the failsafe we created, it should take less than an hour before Mokuba has deleted us…"

"I think we can escape before then." Crump smiled, "In fact, I calculate our odds to be roughly seventy-nine point forty-six percent."

"Where do you get those numbers?" Nesbit asked.

"I calculated the odds Mokuba is bluffing." Crump explained, "We all know that Seto would have loved to finish us himself. Mokuba is probably just gonna keep us in cold storage till then."

"Crump's probably right for once." Johnson stated, "But I'd rather be safe than sorry."

"Then I have a plan, but we have to work quickly." Lector said, "And do everything right the first time..."

He turned toward the area the firewall had covered before.

"It's unlikely we'll get another chance if this doesn't work." He sighed.

----------------------

Serenity was taking a well deserved break. She was sitting cross-legged as she looked through her deck, which was currently hovering in front of her.

"Wow, I never thought I'd be able to get this far." Serenity to herself, "Seven points already…"

Indeed, her first foe had been a snobbish rich girl named Damosel. She had been using dragon-types, including a powerful set known as the "Armed Dragons." She had been tough, but a lucky draw had saved Serenity from an early elimination.

After that had come an eliminator with a bird head and wings, Garuda the Wind Spirit. His deckmaster power had almost done her in, but once again Serenity had come out on top.

Now Serenity was looking at the incredibly rare card that had been awarded to her. It was, of all things, the Five God Dragon. She recalled exactly what Garuda had told her, about how she could get a real copy of this card.

"I guess a lot of fusion and dragon duelists dream of getting a card like this." Serenity, "Even I kind of wanted one...But I don't have the right cards to use it right now."

She tapped the screen before her, and her cards vanished back into her disk. She finally got up, almost stumbling into a large hole.

You see, Serenity had decided to take a break right where she had jumped to after beating Garuda. It would have been a good spot…

If it weren't for the fact that she had landed at the edge of a volcano. Molten lava boiled and bubbled a good hundred feet below, looking ready to burst out at any moment. An utter lack of paths down from her perch, combined with the fact that the volcano seemed fairly dormant, had persuaded her to take a break. Now, however, she chose to find a way down.

"Just three more points and I can be in the finals with Joey." Serenity smiled, no doubt in her mind that Joey would make it, "Won't he be surprised to see me."

She carefully made her way around the rim of the hole. The naturally occurring walkway around the magma chute was roughly ten feet wide, but around a volcano you couldn't be too careful.

Serenity suddenly stopped. A sound had reached her ears, and she looked around to figure out where it was coming from.

"Yeahyeahyeahyeahyeah!" A small girl's voice was shouting, climbing up from behind her.

Serenity turned right around, and saw a familiar girl with blond hair clamber up onto the ledge.

"ELIMINATOR!" The girl cheered, looking around, "Zeffie's ready to duel!"

"Zeffie?" Serenity gasped, recognizing the Elemental Duelist of Wind.

Zeffie stopped, and smiled at her company.

"Yeah! Miss Serenity is here!" Zeffie cheered, "Zeffie's happy to see a friendly face."

"How did you get up here?" Serenity asked, looking down the cliff face Zeffie had come up from.

"Zeffie climbed." The girl explained simply, "It was fun! Zeffie got sent to the bottom of the mountain after beating an eliminator, but Zeffie had seen the bottom of enough mountains earlier. Zeffie thought an eliminator was up here because of the smoke, so she climbed to the top!"

Zeffie had said all that, very quickly, in one breath. Now she stopped for a minute, allowing Serenity to speak.

"Well…um…I didn't see any eliminators up here." Serenity explained, "But I did duel one in some weird building earlier."

"Cool!" Zeffie cheered, "Where's the building?"

Serenity looked around, and shrugged. Zeffie's shoulders slumped a bit, but she perked right back up and turned on her disk.

"Then if there are no eliminators, Zeffie can duel you instead!" She grinned.

"Me?" Serenity squeaked.

"Sure, Zeffie has seven points." Zeffie explained.

"Um…Me too." Serenity admitted, gradually growing quieter, "But I was hoping to get to the finals and I'm not sure if…"

"…If you can beat Zeffie?" Zeffie finished for her.

"Needlez showed me some of your past duels last year." Serenity nodded, "You're a pretty strong duelist."

"So are you if you already have seven points." Zeffie smiled, "You even said you beat an eliminator! Come on, we'll each bet three points. Then the winner is a finalist, and the loser can get more points."

Serenity thought for a minute. She wasn't sure if this was a duel she could win. Heck, she was amazed she had won any duels today! But Zeffie seemed eager, and Serenity was sure that Joey wouldn't back down from a challenge.

She flicked her disk into a starting position.

"Okay then Zeffie, let's duel." Serenity nodded, "But we'll need to spread out a little more."

"Waaaaay ahead of you!" Zeffie yelled across the crater of the volcano.

Serenity blinked in surprise. She had been so absorbed in her own thoughts that she never even noticed Zeffie move.

"But before we start, do you have Garuda the Wind Spirit in your deck?" Serenity asked.

"Yes." Zeffie shouted back.

"Then I've got a little tip for you." Serenity smiled, "Something you can try out against me…"

-----------------------------------------------

"Serenity was sitting there for a while." Sota commented, "Why didn't our Spirit of Flames eliminator attack her?"

"Because it started malfunctioning, just like Bronn." Rei explained, "And what's worse, we've lost contact with Mokuba…"

"Don't worry Rei, I'm right here." Mokuba's voice exclaimed over her computer.

"Mr. Kaiba!" Rei gasped, "Did you find the problem?"

"I took care of things." Mokuba answered, "Just finish fixing the corrupt programs; we won't have any more problems."

"Yes sir." Rei nodded, and she began to furiously type.

----------------------------------------

Zeffie was nodding, thinking about what she had been told.

"Neat." She smiled, "Okay, Zeffie's deckmaster is Garuda the Wind Spirit!"

A tornado burst up behind Zeffie, out of which emerged the raven-headed humanoid. He spread his wings, an adjusted his sash.

"And I'll choose Goddess with the Third Eye." Serenity nodded.

A beam of light fell to the ground behind Serenity, and a solemn women in green robes appeared. True to her name, she had a third eye in the middle of her forehead.

"_I hope to help you in this duel as much I have in the others."_ Sounded a voice in Serenity's mind.

"_Don't worry, I'm sure you will."_ Serenity thought back.

"Ready Garuda? Zeffie knows what you can do." Zeffie stated.

"That a fact?" The birdman asked, "Then I've got nothing else to say, except good luck."

Zeffie and Serenity both raised their disks, and out of the volcano burst ten pillars. Five appeared in front of each of them, about five feet away.

"What are those for?" Zeffie asked, pointing at them.

"I'm not sure." Serenity muttered, "Maybe for our monsters?"

"Cool!" Zeffie cheered, "Let's duel!"

"And you can go first." Serenity nodded.

"Thank you." Zeffie smiled, drawing six cards.

Serenity drew five, and the duel was on.

Zeffie: 8000

Serenity: 8000

Zeffie tossed down a card, and screech sounded from above.

"Zeffie starts with her first deckmaster: Takuhee (1450/1000) in attack mode!" Zeffie grinned.

Garuda responded to the screech with one of his own. As if answering the call, the brown-feathered eagle swooped from the sky. It hovered over one of the pillars, awaiting its orders.

"Then Zeffie sets a facedown card." Zeffie smiled, placing down another card, "Your turn."

The facedown card appeared in the empty space between Zeffie and the rock pillars. Serenity took note of this before drawing.

"I'll open with Battle Ox (1700/1000) in attack mode." Serenity declared, putting down a monster.

Goddess began to glow with heavenly light, and a beam of light fell onto one of the pillars. The light faded, leaving a Minotaur in red armor, hefting a large axe.

"Attack her Takuhee!" Serenity ordered, "Ax slam attack!"

The Minotaur snorted, and jumped high into the air. It brought down its axe right onto Takuhee's skull, crushing the poor bird. Battle Ox then landed on Takuhee's platform, and jumped back to his own.

"Oops, that didn't work." Zeffie commented.

Zeffie: 7750

Serenity: 8000

"That's all for my turn." Serenity stated.

Zeffie drew, and placed another card onto her disk.

"Zeffie will now summon Sonic Duck (1700/700)." Zeffie declared.

A rapid quacking, followed by a loud _CRACK! _forced Serenity to cover her ears. Faster than a speeding bullet, but just as powerful as Battle Ox, Zeffie's bucket-wearing mallard had zoomed onto the field at the speed of sound.

"_That will make my ears ring for a bit."_ Serenity winced.

"And now Zeffie will use her deckmaster power: Rising of Etaqua!" Zeffie announced, taking a card from her hand, "Um…First Zeffie removes one wind monster from her hand…"

Zeffie held up her Kurama (800/800), and Serenity nodded. The card disappeared into thin air.

"Go on." She encouraged.

"Then one wind monster on the field gains the removed monster's attack points for the turn." Zeffie said slowly, turning to Garuda, "Right?"

"Right." Garuda confirmed, "And you played it like a pro. Sonic is powerful anyway, so you don't have to worry much when the bonus fades. Until then, here we go!"

A ghostly image of the blue crow-man swooped over the field. A tornado formed beneath Sonic Duck (2500/700), which began to beat its wings even faster.

"Get that Battle Ox with beak bomber!" Zeffie ordered.

The duck swooped high into the air, and then stopped flapping. It dove, beak first, right into the chest of Serenity's monster, and knocked it into the lava below. The Minotaur howled the entire way down, before being cut short by a sizzling noise.

"Yeah, hamburgers!" Zeffie cheered as her duck returned to its post.

"Oh dear." Serenity said, thankful that she couldn't see what remained of her monster.

"Your turn." Zeffie smiled as her monster went back to its original attack level.

Zeffie: 7750

Serenity: 7200

Serenity drew, and looked at the card she held.

"I'll activate the effect of my Thunder Dragon." Serenity declared, taking the card she had drawn.

"You don't have a Thunder Dragon on the field." Zeffie pointed out, "What _is _Thunder Dragon?"

"This." Serenity explained, turning around the card she held, "Thunder Dragon is a five-star, thunder-type, creature of light. It only has 1600 attack points, but if I discard one from my hand…"

Serenity pitched the card she held into her graveyard, and two more cards appeared before her.

"Then I can bring up to two more Thunder Dragons from my deck to my hand." She finished, claiming the cards, "And now for my deckmaster's power: Power of Fusion!"

Serenity's deckmaster began to glow with golden light, and Serenity pitched a Premature Burial card into her graveyard.

"I just have to discard one spell, and I can fuse two monsters as though I just played Polymerization." Serenity explained, "So I'll fuse my Thunder Dragons together, forming my Twin Headed Thunder Dragon (2800/2100)!"

Two scaly, serpentine creatures appeared in front of Serenity, who watched as a card from her fusion deck appeared on her disk. The dragons began to swirl, forming into a blur of red energy…

This coalesced into a new form all together. The monster was now a large, red dragon, with two heads sprouting from its body. It let out a roar of anger, and focused its eyes on the duck.

"And since that was a special summon, I can still normal summon another monster." Serenity said as she drew, "I summon Zombyra the Dark (2100/500)."

A shadow blurred into existence on top of one of the pillars. It fell away, showing a man wearing a skull-like mask and black body suit. A red cape was fanning in the rising heat of the volcano.

"Zombyra, attack the duck with super-powered punch!" Serenity commanded.

"Uh-oh." Zeffie said as the hero leapt skyward, and came down toward her monster.

Sonic Duck let out a quack of surprise as Zombyra's fist plunged toward it…

"Zeffie chains a trap!" Zeffie cheered, her facedown card lifting, "Spiritual Wind Art-Miyabi!"

Zeffie's facedown card lifted, and teenage girl with green hair and a brown cloak emerged onto the field. She carried a staff, topped with a silver dragon.

"Wow, who's that?" Serenity asked.

"This is Wynn the Wind Charmer." Zeffie smiled, "She knows a lot of wind magic, including a spell called Miyabi. Now by giving her one wind monster…"

Sonic Duck vanished in a blast of wind.

"Zeffie can send one of your monsters to the bottom of your deck!" Zeffie cheered, "Or in this case, fusion deck. Bye-bye Thunder Dragon."

Wynn waved her staff, and the red dragon roared in protest. It was swept off the field by a powerful gust, and its card vanished back into Serenity's fusion deck.

"_Oh…I forgot her facedown card."_ Serenity fretted, _"And Zombyra can't attack directly…"_

"I'll end my turn then." Serenity said, Zombyra striking a pose on his platform.

Zeffie drew her card, and gave her hand a quick look. Selecting one card, she slid it into place. A facedown monster appeared on one of the pillars in front of Zeffie.

"One monster facedown." Zeffie smiled, "End turn."

Serenity drew now, and thought for a minute.

"I guess I'll set one monster of my own facedown." She said, placing a facedown monster onto her disk.

On the pillar next to Zombyra appeared a card, and the hero gave it a confused look.

"And now Zombyra will attack your facedown monster!" Serenity called out, "Super-powered punch!"

Zombyra leapt skyward again, and came down on top of Zeffie's monster. He drove his fist into the card, and a gray owl wearing a golden crown flew out of it. It hooted weakly before tumbling toward the lava below.

"That was Zeffie's Owl of Luck (300/500)." Zeffie explained with a big smile, "Now Zeffie can take any field-spell she wants and put it on top of her deck."

Three cards appeared in front of Zeffie, and she happily tapped one of them. The other two vanished while the third floated to the top of her deck.

In the meantime, Zombyra (1900/500) leapt back to his platform, breathing heavily. Serenity noticed this, and frowned again.

"_Oops, I forgot that Zombyra loses attack points whenever he destroys a monster."_ She fretted, _"And I don't have anything in my hand to protect him…"_

"I end my turn again." Serenity said.

"Then Zeffie draws!" Zeffie called out, swiping her selected card into her hand, "And she plays her Rising Air Currents field card!"

The field slot on Zeffie's disk popped open and the blond child put the card in. As the slot closed, a powerful blast of warm air flew out of the mouth of the volcano, ruffling Zombyra's cape. Serenity was quick to move her hands to keep the hot air from drying out her eyes, while Zeffie smiled in the midst of the wind.

"Feels good…" She smiled, placing down another card, "And Zeffie's next birdie will think so too. Zeffie summons Faith Bird (2000/700)!"

Down from the clouds descended a large eagle, covered in iridescent blue feathers. It let out a musical cry as it spread its wings in the powerful breeze provided by the volcano.

"Thanks to Zeffie's field card, all wind monsters get 500 attack, and lose 400 defense." Zeffie explained with a smile, "So Faith Bird, stretch your wings and attack Zombyra with rainbow breeze!"

Faith Bird did indeed stretch its wings out, and then brought them together in a powerful flap. A blast of multicolored wind flew away from its body, and blew Zombyra clear off his platform. Rather than plummet into the lava below however, Zombyra went flying right past Serenity and over the cliff behind her. Serenity gasped in horror as she heard her monster fall screaming toward the ground below.

Zeffie: 7750

Serenity: 7100

Serenity drew, looking fairly nervous as she looked at her hand.

"_I've got Cave Dragon here, but he can't be summoned, I already have a monster._" She thought, _"And I have my Polymerization spell, but without the right material monster it's useless."_

Serenity looked at the card she had just drawn, and her eyes widened in shock.

"_Wow, I guess that's what Joey calls 'Heart of the Cards.'"_ She thought, playing her Polymerization.

"I'm using Polymerization." Serenity declared, "And I'm fusing together my Cave Dragon with my Lesser Fiend…"

Two figures appeared on either side of Serenity. On her right was a sluggish looking reptile covered in muddy brown scales. On her left, a fierce demon with a wolf head and four powerful arms. A portal appeared above them, and pulled the two creatures in before slamming shut.

"What do those make?" Zeffie asked, bobbing up and down her heels, "Zeffie never knew they had a fusion."

Zeffie got her answer in short order. A portal appeared over one of the empty pillars, and it ejected a ferocious dragon. The creature was covered in green scales, with purple wings and sporting four arms, in addition to its legs. It growled at Zeffie, who squeaked at the sight of it.

"This monster is Fiend Skull Dragon (2500/800)." Serenity explained, "He may not look it, but he can be friendly at times. And since he's a wind monster, he gets the bonus from your field card."

"Uh oh…" Zeffie gasped, taking a step back.

"Fiend Skull Dragon, attack her Faith Bird with halitosis blaster!" Serenity ordered.

The dragon reared its head back, and then snapped forward again. From its jaws poured a mind-bogglingly foul stench, which washed over Faith Bird. The blue eagle took one sniff, and immediately fell onto its back on top of the platform it was hovering over. It shattered into bits, while Zeffie held her breath as the smell washed over her.

Zeffie: 7250

Serenity: 7100

"Wheee-ew." Zeffie gasped, "That monster could use a Tic-Tac."

"I see your point." Serenity agreed, holding her own nose, "Well, I'm out of cards in my hand, so I guess it's your turn."

"Thank you." Zeffie said, drawing a new card, "Zeffie sets a monster facedown."

A new card appeared before Zeffie, and Serenity's dragon eyed it hungrily.

"Go ahead." Zeffie invited.

Serenity drew, and looked at the card in her hand. She shrugged, and pointed at Zeffie's monster.

"I hate to be the one to tell you this, but Fiend Skull Dragon negates flip effects." Serenity said with a sheepish smile, "Sorry Zeffie…You might want to hold your breath again. Attack!"

Zeffie took a deep breath just in time. Another wave of horrible halitosis blasted toward her field, and forced her monster to reveal itself. It was a humanoid dragonfly with huge, compound eyes. The creature gave a pitiful buzz before shattering into bits.

"What was that?" Serenity asked, looking to Zeffie.

"That was Flying Kamakiri #1 (1900/500)." Zeffie explained, a grid of cards appearing before her, "And its power isn't a flip effect. Now Zeffie can take a wind monster with 1500 attack or less, and summon it in attack mode."

Zeffie selected her card, and put it on her disk. A second dragonfly-man swooped down, and landed on the platform where his twin once stood.

"Zeffie chooses her second Flying Kamakiri (1900/500)." Zeffie explained.

"Your move then." Serenity said.

Zeffie drew, and fought to keep from smiling.

"_Hooray! It's the card Zeffie won from Sandy!"_ Zeffie cheered in her head, _"And Zeffie should have everything she needs to summon it soon…"_

"Zeffie moves Kamakiri to defense mode." Zeffie stated, turning the card on her disk, "Go ahead Serenity."

The dragon fly moved into a crouching pose, while Serenity drew and looked at her card again. Seeing no point in playing it at the moment, she pointed toward Zeffie's monster.

"Fiend Skull Dragon, attack!" Serenity shouted, "But don't use your breath this time."

The creature was more than happy to accommodate this request. It swooped on its wings, and grabbed Zeffie's bug with all four arms. It then twirled the helpless creature around, and sent it soaring into the stratosphere with a powerful hammer throw.

Zeffie watched as the grid appeared again, and she picked a card. This time, rather than a bug, a young boy in brown clothes appeared. He had blond hair, and seemed to be surrounded by a small tornado of leaves and birds.

"This is Whirlwind Prodigy (1900/1200)." Zeffie smiled.

Serenity gave the young boy a confused look. She shrugged as her dragon returned to her field, and waved toward Zeffie.

"Okay Zeffie, your turn." She said.

Zeffie smirked as she drew her card, pointing to her monster her eyes lit up with excitement.

"Hey Serenity, Zeffie got to beat an eliminator in this tournament too." Zeffie explained, "His name was Sandy, and he gave Zeffie a neat card. One that needs two sacrifices to summon."

"Sounds neat, but you only have one monster on your field." Serenity pointed out, "How can you summon it?"

"Simple, Zeffie's Whirlwind Prodigy counts as two monsters if Zeffie uses it to summon a wind monster." Zeffie explained, "And Zeffie's new monster can only be summoned by sacrificing wind monsters anyway, so Whirlwind Prodigy, Zeffie will tribute you!"

The boy clapped his hands together as Zeffie removed his card from her disk. A powerful blast of air shot him skyward, and he vanished into a cloud.

"Zeffie summons Simorgh, the Bird of Divinity (3200/600)!" Zeffie cried out, slapping down a new monster.

A glorious song echoed from above, and from the clouds above emerged a majestic creature. It was a gigantic bird, at least the size of private plane. Its green feathers glowed with a miraculous hue, and golden tail feathers trailed behind it. It turned its eyes toward the dragon before it, and let out a melodious cry.

"Wow…It's amazing…" Serenity said, staring in awe at the creature.

"Yeah, this is Zeffie's first time playing it." Zeffie admitted, "And it has a neat effect to, but you'll see it later. For now, Simorgh will attack your dragon with divine hurricane!"

The giant bird began to sing again, and the skies above turned a stormy black. A powerful wind began to blow over the mountain, and an eerie howl echoed out of the volcano, much like when air is blown over the mouth of bottle. A bolt of green electricity suddenly shot down, and obliterated Serenity's dragon in an instant.

Serenity stumbled back, and landed on her behind from the suddenness of her monster's death. Zeffie let out a cheer as the storm cleared up, and her bird fell silent again.

Zeffie: 7250

Serenity: 6400

"Wow…" Serenity said getting up again, "I didn't expect a lightning bolt."

"Simorgh controls all winds on the planet." Zeffie explained, jumping up and down uncontrollably, "She can summon a storm wherever she wants, and make any kind she wants: snow, rain, lightning, tornado, hail…"

Zeffie put another card into her disk, and stopped listing off weather conditions. A facedown card appeared behind Simorgh, which was looking at Zeffie with a watchful eye.

"Zeffie sets this facedown to end her turn." Zeffie declared, "And now Simorgh will use her effect."

"She does it now?" Serenity asked.

"She does it at the end of every turn." Zeffie explained, "Now we each lose 1000 points."

"One-thousand…!" Serenity started to shout.

She couldn't any further before Simorgh began to sing again. An icy-cold gust of air flew down and swirled around Serenity, who began to shiver. Miniature icicles formed on her clothes and hair as the 1000 life points were frozen right out of her.

Zeffie: 7250

Serenity: 5400

"S-s-so c-c-c-cold…" Serenity shivered her teeth chattering.

The winds vanished, and the heat of the volcano quickly warmed Serenity back up. As it did though, she noticed that Zeffie was shivering at all. In fact, there was no evidence that Zeffie had even been touched by the cold winds.

"Hey Zeffie, why didn't you take damage?" Serenity asked.

"Well…Simorgh is a magic bird. So magic is the only way to protect yourself from her effect." Zeffie said, shuffling her feet, "The damage you take is reduced by 500 for every spell or trap you control, and Zeffie has her facedown card and Rising Air Currents."

"Got it." Serenity said as she drew, "Now let me see…"

She smiled as she saw the spell she had just drawn.

"Exactly what I needed!" She said, opening her own field slot, "I activate my Fusion Gate field spell!"

Putting the card into place, the warm air soaring out of the volcano's mouth suddenly stopped. Simorgh (2700/1000) looked confused as the source of its power was cut off. Suddenly, the image of burning lava beneath the girls vanished, and was replaced by a swirling mass of stars and light.

"Cool…" Zeffie smiled, looking down into the portal, "Bet it get goes all the way to China!"

"Probably not…" Serenity said, "But it does go to wherever it is that monsters get fused. Now I can summon fusion monsters without Polymerization, I just have to remove the material monsters from play."

Serenity held up a card, and smiled.

"So now I'll send Marie the Fallen from my hand and my facedown Forgiving Maiden through the gate…" She stated.

Zeffie looked toward the long-forgotten facedown monster, and watched as a crying woman in black robes appeared on it. Next to her appeared a black skinned woman in a pink outfit. The two of them joined hands, and leapt into the mouth the volcano, a flash of light signaling their entrance.

"Time to bring in my favorite monster…" Serenity said, "St. Joan (2800/2000)!"

Another flash of light was emitted, and a glowing figure landed on one of Serenity's platforms. It was a woman, dressed in silver armor and carrying a glimmering sword. She had short, red hair, and glowed with a sacred aura.

"Oooh…She's stronger than Simorgh…" Zeffie fretted.

"Don't worry Zeffie; I'm not going to destroy Simorgh yet." Serenity said, putting her last card into her disk, "I'm just setting one card facedown and ending my turn."

Simorgh noted those words, and began to sing once more. This time, a powerful hailstorm began, with huge chunks of ice plummeting toward the duelists. Serenity smiled as a glowing barrier appeared around her, deflecting the ice before it came close. Zeffie screamed as pieces of ice the size of her fists shot down and plowed into the ground around her, covering her in dust and debris.

Zeffie: 6750

Serenity: 5400

Zeffie staggered a bit, brushing the dust from her clothes and hair. Serenity breathed a sigh of relief.

"See why I decided to leave Simorgh on the field?" She asked, "Joey taught me to always try and do the most damage possible, so rather than do only 100 by attacking your monster, I did 500 by letting its effect go off."

Zeffie took this all in, and nodded her head.

"Pretty smart Serenity. But that will only work as long as Zeffie only has one facedown card." Zeffie said, drawing her third card.

Looking over her hand, she smiled and slid a card into play.

"So Zeffie sets this card facedown and moves Simorgh to defense mode." She said, a new monster materializing next to Simorgh, "Zeffie's turn ends."

Simorgh landed on the platform beneath it, and folded its wings over its body. Before it could begin a new song, however, Serenity's facedown card flipped over.

"Before your turn ends, I activate Solemn Wishes!" Serenity called out, "Now I'll gain 500 life points every time I draw a card."

The turn was now officially done, and Simorgh began her newest melody. Lightning crackled in the air over head, and two lightning bolts shot down from the sky. Both girls cringed as the bolts headed for them, but a shimmering barrier stopped the one that was aimed at Serenity. Zeffie wasn't as lucky: A barrier appeared over her, but the bolt found its way through and blasted the ground behind her!

Zeffie stumbled forward as they lightning struck, and struggled to maintain her balance. Serenity looked concerned as Zeffie backed away from the volcano's edge.

"Are you okay?" Serenity asked.

"Zeffie's just fine!" Zeffie said, slightly nervous as she jumped back to her starting position, "Go ahead Serenity."

Serenity drew, and a golden light bathed over her body and boosted her life points.

Zeffie: 6250

Serenity: 5900

Seeing her new card, Serenity smiled as she placed it into her disk.

"Now I'll activate my Pot of Greed, letting me draw two more cards." Serenity said as the most common drawing tool in the game appeared beside her.

She slid two more cards from her deck, and another golden light fell on her. She smiled as she placed both of the cards into her disk.

"And now I'll play both of them." She said, "Go, Premature Burial and Re-Fusion."

A circle of red light and one of green light appeared on the pillars before Serenity. Each one began to pulse as she took two cards out of her graveyard. Zeffie tilted her head in a confused manner.

"Um…Zeffie's knows Premature Burial, but what does Re-fusion do?" She asked.

"Well, Re-fusion is a special version of Premature Burial." Serenity explained, "With it, I can summon a fusion monster from my graveyard, as long as I pay 800 points and equip with this card."

"And if Re-fusion is destroyed then so is the monster!" Zeffie guessed.

"Right." Serenity smiled, "So I'll give up 1600 points to bring back my Fiend Skull Dragon (2000/1500) and Cave Dragon (2000/100)!"

Out of the red circle emerged the slothful reptile Serenity had fused earlier. It let out a yawn, and shook most of the dirt from its scales.

From the green circle burst the purple-winged dragon with four arms. It seemed a bit out-of-focus however. It was fuzzy around the edges, and as it roared it sounded like it did so through a bad speaker.

Zeffie: 6250

Serenity: 4800

"Oh…" Zeffie said, eyes going wide at the sight of the two dragons, "Zeffie's in trouble isn't she?"

"You are if that facedown card can't stop me." Serenity declared, "St. Joan, attack the facedown monster with holy edged blade!"

Joan leapt forward, and plunged her blade into the hiding monster. A pulse of light flew down the length of the sword, and a second Owl of Luck (300/500) was sent flying out of the card. It hooted weakly before shattering into bits.

"That was another Owl of Luck!" Zeffie smiled, reaching for her deck.

"Sorry Zeffie, but my Fiend Skull Dragon negates flip effects, remember?" Serenity asked as her dragon let out a defiant roar.

Zeffie cringed, and Serenity pointed toward Simorgh.

"Fiend Skull Dragon, destroy Simorgh!" Serenity called out.

The dragon swooped to the sky, and then dove upon Zeffie's mythical beast. It grabbed the bird by the wings, and tossed it down into the vortex beneath it. The mighty bird let out a final cry as it was absorbed into the powerful gate and vanished.

"And Cave Dragon will attack directly!" Serenity ordered, "But try not to hurt her too badly."

The lazy dragon yawned, and looked at its feet. It kicked a small stone toward Zeffie, striking her in the stomach. She grunted in surprise as her life points dropped.

Zeffie: 4250

Serenity: 4800

"Your turn Zeffie." Serenity said with a smile.

Zeffie drew, and then looked toward her facedown card. Tapping a button on her disk, the card lifted up and an angel in white robes swooped out of it.

"Zeffie activates her facedown Graceful Charity." Zeffie declared, pulling three cards from her deck, "Now Zeffie can draw three cards and drop two."

Looking over her hand, she smiled as she selected her two cards. As she put them in her graveyard, one of them suddenly flew back out, and hovered over her head.

"What's happening?" Serenity asked, looking at the card.

"One of the cards Zeffie discards is Roc from the Valley of Haze." Zeffie explained as her skull-adorned hawk appeared behind her as a ghostly image, "When it's discarded, Zeffie shuffles it back into her deck instead."

Zeffie's cards flew out of her disk, and swooped around her body in a chaotic fashion. One-by-one, they settled into their slot in the duel disk, while Zeffie placed two more cards into her spell and trap zones.

"Now Zeffie will set two cards facedown." Zeffie declared, the new cards appearing behind her columns, "Your turn."

Serenity drew, and another golden light boosted her score. She looked at the lone card in her hand, and thought for a minute.

Zeffie: 4250

Serenity: 5300

"_I don't really need to play this now."_ She thought, _"Just one more attack, and I'll be in the finals. Then I'll really surprise Joey…"_

"St. Joan, attack!" Serenity called out.

Joan lifted her sword once more, and began to charge across the field. Zeffie flashed a broad smile before striking her disk.

"Zeffie chains Ordeal of a Traveler!" Zeffie called out, her trap lifting.

St. Joan stopped as a transparent image of the Great Sphinx of Giza (complete with nose) rose up from the plain of stars below the duel. Serenity seemed confused as Zeffie continued.

"Now, whenever you attack, you have to pick a card in Zeffie's hand." Zeffie said, waving her lone card in front of her, "Then guess if it's a spell, trap, or monster. If you're right, nothing happens, but if you guess wrong, your monster goes to your hand again."

Serenity looked at the card, and tried to think.

"_Joey managed to beat this card before…_" She thought, _"Okay, if that were trap or a monster, she'd have set it…I think…Well, even if I guess wrong, I'll know what it is on my next two attacks."_

"I think that's a spell card." Serenity said, with a bit of hesitation.

Zeffie grinned, and flipped the card around. Serenity gasped as she saw it was a monster card (Ashinigrai).

"Wrong!" Zeffie smiled, "Bye-bye St. Joan!"

A large, stone paw suddenly extended from Zeffie's trap, and swatted St. Joan into the air. She let out a cry of surprise as she vanished, and her card floated back to Serenity's fusion deck.

"Well, I know what that card is now." Serenity said, trying to keep from panicking, "Cave Dragon, attack!"

Cave Dragon started to paw at another stone, when Zeffie tapped her disk again.

"Zeffie chains her other facedown card: Compulsory Evacuation Device!" Zeffie cheered, a large dome appearing before her, "Now Zeffie can send one monster back to your hand, and Zeffie picks Fiend Skull Dragon!"

Several chains shot from the domed cannon, and pulled the protesting dragon into it. A loud warning buzzer sounded, prior to Serenity's dragon behind launched far out of sight. Once again, the card vanished from Serenity's disk and reappeared inside the fusion deck strapped to her waist.

"And since that was a chain, it happened before Cave Dragon attacked." Zeffie smiled, "And since there are no more dragons on the field, he isn't allowed to attack."

Indeed, Cave Dragon seemed far less motivated now. It closed its eyes, and began to snore as it fell asleep. Serenity gave her dragon a disappointed look, before turning to Zeffie.

"How did you know that would happen?" She asked.

"Zeffie dueled against a mean duelist named Damosel back before Zeffie was the Duelist of Wind." Zeffie explained, stretching her arms behind her back, "Damosel used lots of dragons, including Cave Dragon, and she was really mean too…"

"Um…Did she use Armed Dragons?" Serenity asked.

"Yep yep yep." Zeffie nodded.

"Wow, I think that she was my first opponent." Serenity said with amazement, "Did she always accuse people of cheating when they beat her?

"Yeah, she's not nice." Zeffie said, "But for now, let's keep dueling! We're almost done, Zeffie thinks."

Serenity looked at the card in her hand, and shrugged.

"I'll end my turn here then." She said.

Zeffie drew, and smiled as she slid another monster onto the field.

"Go Blue-Winged Crown (1600/1200)!" Zeffie cheered.

Once more, the screech of a bird echoed from above, and once more Zeffie's creature swooped down. This time, it was a large bird with a long neck, covered in deep-blue feathers with a crown of red ones on top of its head.

"That monster isn't strong enough to beat my dragon." Serenity pointed out.

"It is with Zeffie's deckmaster." Zeffie smiled, holding up Ashinigrai as it vanished into pixels, "Rising of Etaqua!"

"Oh, I'm up again?" Zeffie deckmaster muttered with a sarcastic tone, "About time…"

"Zeffie didn't hear you complain before." Zeffie pointed out.

"That's because I fell asleep." Garuda said, raising one hand and generating a tornado under Zeffie's monster, "When you selected me as a deckmaster, I kind of hoped I'd actually be using my power more than twice in this duel."

Despite her deckmaster's complaints, Blue-Winged Crown (2100/1200) was lifted a bit by the tornado's power. It let out a shriek, and focused its eyes one the snoring dragon.

"Attack Cave Dragon!" Zeffie called out, "Blue blur!"

The bird swooped forward at an amazing velocity, and blazed right past Serenity's lone monster. The dragon's eyes opened for a split second, and then it burst into a cloud of dust.

Zeffie: 4250

Serenity: 5200

"Go ahead Serenity." Zeffie smiled, "Hope you draw something good."

Blue-Winged Crown (1600/1200) fell back to its original score, and Serenity drew her card, once more being covered in golden light. She held the card over her head, and it began to shimmer.

"I activate Card of Sanctity!" She shouted, a burst of gold light flying from the card.

Serenity drew five cards, while Zeffie pulled a full hand of six. Another pulse of gold light flew from Solemn Whishes, and boosted Serenity's score again.

Zeffie: 4250

Serenity: 6200

Looking at Zeffie's field Serenity frowned.

She had a way to get rid of Zeffie's trap, but it would destroy her own traps as well.

Still, there was little other choice. If Ordeal of a Traveler remained in play, it would be a hindrance (at best) to her latest idea. She played the card.

"I activate Heavy Storm." Serenity declared, a powerful wind picking up, "So say goodbye to all of our spells and traps!"

Zeffie gasped as her lone trap shook, and broke apart in the wind. At the same time, the starry swirls in the crater vanished, replaced by molten rock once more. A wave of heat filled the air again, and Serenity's Solemn Whishes burst into flame as a result.

Unshaken, though realizing she might regret losing those cards, Serenity held up another three cards and put them into her graveyard.

"Now, I'm using my own deckmaster again." She said, "I discard Fusion Weapon to fuse my second Zombyra the Dark with Maryokutai."

From behind Serenity, a battle cry sounded. Zombyra flew up from the cliff he had fallen from earlier, and turned a flip before landing next to Serenity. On one of Serenity's platforms, an eerie skull with a red globe on the top of it, appeared.

"_I hope this works…_" Serenity's deckmaster thought as she began to glow, _"Zeffie seems to be very tricky."_

"_At least this will give us an advantage…_" Serenity pointed out.

Zombyra leapt high, and Maryokutai followed him into the air. A flash of light filled the sky, and from above plunged an entirely new (if somewhat grotesque) creature.

It was easily as big as Mr. Gold, if not bigger, and just as well built. Its skin was bright yellow, and on its left shoulder sat a large cannon. Its right arm was overdeveloped, and hung a little off of the platform it stood one. It made up for this by being equipped with a glove, covered in sharp looking instruments.

"Meet: The Last Warrior from Another Planet (2350/2300)." Serenity said.

"Hi Mr. Last Warrior!" Zeffie said, still cheerful, "Does he have a special power?"

"Yes he does." Serenity said, "As long as he is on the field, neither one of us can summon any monsters. We an only set them facedown."

Zeffie's eyes went wide as the alien creature swept the area with a strange red light.

"**Hostile life form detected."** It declared in a booming voice, **"Preparing to annihilate all enemy life forms."**

"Last warrior, attack her crown with otherworldly annihilator!" Serenity called out.

"**Compliance."** The alien boomed out.

A red cross-hair centered on Zeffie's bird, and ruby red laser struck it head-on. The poor creature shrieked once, before bursting into a mass of blue feathers which were scattered by the wind.

Zeffie: 3500

Serenity: 6200

Zeffie seemed frightened now, as Serenity waved one hand.

"Go ahead Zeffie, it's your move." Serenity offered.

"_Joey was right, this is a powerful monster."_ Serenity thought, _"Still, I feel kind of mean when I play him. Maybe I'll leave him out next duel and use Ryu Senshi again."_

Zeffie drew her hand to seven now, and frowned.

"Ooh…These are no good." She fretted, placing a card onto her disk, "Zeffie sets one monster and ends turn."

Yet another facedown monster appeared, and Garuda let out a frustrate sigh from behind Zeffie.

"Well, I obviously won't be needed any more during this duel." Garuda muttered, preening his feathers.

Serenity drew, and a yelp of excitement escaped her lips.

"I almost forgot I had this card!" She exclaimed, putting it into her disk, "I equip my warrior with the spell card Big Bang Shot!"

"It's been nice knowin' ya Zeffie." Garuda said, sitting cross-legged behind his duelist.

Last Warrior (2750/2300) began to glow with a fiery red aura, and his metallic weapons began to shimmer with heat. Zeffie braced herself as Serenity explained her new card.

"This spell gives any monster an additional 400 attack points, and it lets them damage you even if your monsters are in defense mode." She smiled, "Warrior, attack her facedown monster!"

The extraterrestrial charged up his weapons, and fired another blast of energy. The hidden monster flipped over, revealing Zeffie's bug-eyed, brightly colored Ashinigrai (500/500), which promptly followed the example set by its predecessor and exploded. As it did though, a gust of wind shot at Serenity, and mercilessly pushed her back.

"What…" She started to ask.

"That was Ashinigrai, and since it flipped you have to discard a card." Zeffie explained as another card appeared on her disk, "And Zeffie gets to summon her last Ashinigrai from her deck in facedown position."

Serenity quickly stuffed one of her two remaining cards into her grave slot, and the wind let up. Serenity breathed a sigh of relief: the winds had almost shoved her off the cliff behind her.

"Well, you may get another monster, but you still lost life points from my attack." Serenity stated, "If I did my math right, you lost 2250 of them."

And, of course, Serenity had done the math right. Zeffie's disk let out a series of beeps as it lowered her score.

Zeffie: 1250

Serenity: 6200

"_This is it, one more attack and I'll win."_ Serenity thought, with a smile, _"But I need to wait for my next turn."_

"Go ahead Zeffie." Serenity said.

Zeffie looked at her hand, and moved to draw her card.

"_Only one card can help Zeffie now…"_ Zeffie thought, pulling the strip of cardstock from her deck.

Upon seeing it, Garuda let out low whistle.

"_YAY!"_ Zeffie thought, almost dropping the card into the lava below as she shoved it into her disk.

"Zeffie plays Creature Swap!" Zeffie called out, a pair of arrows appearing in mid-air between the girls.

"Creature Swap?" Serenity asked, looking puzzled.

"Yeppie! Now Zeffie and Serenity each choose a monster, and trade them." Zeffie explained, "But since Zeffie and Serenity only have one each, we just trade what we have!"

Serenity gasped as the pillar holding Last Warrior, and the one holding Zeffie's hidden Ashinigrai both sank down, and out of sight. They then rose up again, only now the monsters had switched places. Serenity's warrior stood before Zeffie, looking mildly confused as to how it got there.

"And your spell is still attached to your monster." Zeffie smiled, "Last Warrior, attack!"

The warrior reluctantly took aim, and fired off his massive laser. The Ashinigrai flipped over, and Zeffie pitched a card as per the rules, just before the bird was wiped from the face of existence."

"**Target neutralized."** Last Warrior stated unnecessarily.

Zeffie: 1250

Serenity: 3950

"Go ahead Serenity." Zeffie chirped with a big grin.

Serenity drew, and struggled to keep from crying. Her only cards were another Fusion Weapon and a Fusion Sage card.

"I can't do anything, I pass." Serenity choked out.

"_I just need to hope she doesn't power up the Last Warrior any more."_ She thought, _"I'll last one more turn, and hopefully draw something to save me…"_

Zeffie drew, and her smile seemed to grow impossibly bigger.

"Don't worry Serenity, Zeffie won't finish someone with their own monster." Zeffie said, removing the card from her disk, "Well…Except Damosel. But she deserved it. Zeffie tributes Last Warrior from Another Planet to summon Roc from the Valley of Haze (2400/1400)!"

The alien fighter faded away, and from the clouds emerged Zeffie's skull-topped hawk. It let out a mighty screech as it hovered over the volcano top.

"But it's weaker than my warrior was." Serenity pointed out, "Why summon him?"

"Because Zeffie couldn't do this with your warrior." Zeffie said, holding up another card, "Zeffie removes Skull Red Bird (1550/1200) from her hand, to use her deckmaster one more time!"

Garuda got back to his feet, and held up one arm. The image of Zeffie's second deckmaster appeared behind Roc (3950/1400), and a powerful breeze washed over the massive bird. Serenity braced herself for a huge impact.

"Time to win Roc! Attack with canyon caw!" Zeffie ordered.

The hawk opened its beak, unleashing a devastating pulse of sonic waves. Serenity's scream was drowned out as she was flattened by the over powering vibrations.

Zeffie: 1250

Serenity: 0

The monsters faded away, except for the two deckmasters. Zeffie shook hands with Garuda, and smiled.

"You're gonna be Zeffie's deckmaster from now on." She said.

"Well, I did get to my power more than twice…" Garuda said, looking thoughtful, "You got yourself a deal kid."

Serenity, in the meantime, was helped to her feet by her own deckmaster.

"_I'm sorry Serenity. I wish I could have been more helpful."_ Goddess thought.

"It's okay Goddess." Serenity sighed, "We're not out yet. Next time, we'll earn what we need for the finals."

"_I'm sure your brother can't wait to see you."_ Goddess smiled as she and Garuda faded away.

Zeffie ran around the crater, and stopped in front of Serenity.

"You really got to be a strong duelist Serenity!" Zeffie smiled, "That was way more fun than Mr. Richington or Sandy!"

"I had fun too." Serenity said, watching as three of her points jumped out of her disk and landed in Zeffie's, "Look's like you're a finalist now."

Zeffie watched a golden number eleven projected over her disk. She smiled as she started to disappear.

"I hope you get to be number twelve, then we can duel again!" Zeffie said before disappearing completely.

Serenity smiled, and then started toward the rocky path that led down the volcano.

"Guess I'd better hurry." She said, "If eleven spots are already taken, there's only five left."

--------------------------

"Malfunctioning eliminator or not, that was fun to see." Sota said, leaning back in his chair, "How did that Serenity girl get to be such a good duelist anyway?"

"You do know her brother is Joey Wheeler, right?" Jackson posed, looking at Sota.

"Seriously? I'm surprised she didn't use a gamble deck like his." Sota declared.

Rei was paying little attention to this. She was scanning over the virtual map on her screen and noticed another duel in progress.

"Hey boys, we got a live one." Rei said, typing in some commands, "And this one just started heating up."

Jackson and Sota cut the conversation short as the main screen lit up with another duel.

And right in the middle of it, was Mr. Gold.

_**I have to work fast if I want a place in the finals. But at least the deck Joey helped me improve works well.**_

**_Only four points left in my score, but I'm not the kind that likes a lot of attention. So why don't you see how Mr. Gold is doing?_**

_**He's run into the last person he ever expected to see. And she isn't exactly happy to see him. I think I'll call the next chapter**_

_**Lover's Quarrel**_

_**I hope everything works out…**_

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Garuda the Wind Spirit

Winged-beast

WIND

Four star

1600 attack

1200 defense

Rising of Etaqua: Once per turn, you may remove one WIND monster in your hand from the game. Increase the attack of a WIND monster on your field by the attack of the removed monster.

---

Goddess with the Third Eye

Fairy

LIGHT

Four star

1200 attack

1000 defense

Power of Fusion: By sending one spell card from your hand, you may send Fusion Material Monsters that are listed by a Fusion Monster Card from your hand or your side of the field to the Graveyard, and Special Summon the Fusion Monster from your Fusion Deck.

_This monster served as Serenity's deckmaster in the anime saga "Mechanical Mayhem." All creative credit for its effect goes to the writers of those episodes._


	20. Lover's Quarrel

A/N: For those of you that haven't been keeping your eye on the whether in Buffalo, we were recently hit by a surprise blizzard that left Older Hokage's computer (our main repository of our chapters) without power for the last week. Sorry for posting late, we'll be returning to a regular posting schedule starting October 27th.

Also, Hikari celebrates her birthday this week. Fell free to drop in some birthday reviews! They're the best gifts.

_**How ya doing? This is Gold.**_

_**A long time ago, I met the love of my life. She was beautiful, smart (compared to me), and she had a good heart. She was perfect for me.**_

_**Apparently, she didn't think so. After ten years of happy marriage and raising a daughter for seven of them, she said that "We've grown apart." And that we should "Start seeing other people."**_

_**No one ever says that without having someone else already in mind.**_

**_Well, it's been about nine years since then, and she left her newer, richer boy friend a while ago and took about half his stuff with her. But since she didn't see anything in it for her she hasn't spoken to me since._**

**_Figures eh? It's been nine years and she's barely aged a day._**

Lover's Quarrel

The place: Back inside of the church where Mako and John Peter had met just about one hour earlier. The "Born Again" duelist had since moved on, leaving the sacred ground unoccupied.

This didn't remain a fact though. A single ring of light appeared in the church, and Gold landed inside. He looked around at the pews, the relief of angels carved in the walls, and the altar at the front. The entire chapel was brightly lit, and seemed to produce its own radiance of peace and good.

"I gotta start going back to church." Gold said out loud as he looked about, "Since when do these places glow?"

"This place is bright because it knows that you're not." A female voice sighed from behind him.

"Wait…I know that wit." Gold muttered, turning around.

At the far end of the church aisle stood a woman. She seemed to be in her mid-thirties, with red hair and green eyes. She wore a pink blouse and white jeans, and seemed to have an air about her that suggested superiority.

"Ruby…" Gold gasped, looking at the woman, "I'm speechless."

"It wouldn't be the first time." The woman (Ruby) responded with slight laugh as she stepped forward, "You know, I remember the day you were kneeling at an altar like that, holding a diamond ring and forgetting what you were supposed to say."

"At least I said 'I do.'" Gold shrugged, "And at least I meant it."

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep Julius." Ruby responded.

"I seem to remember that you walked out of my apartment." Gold responded.

Ruby shrugged a bit, and sighed.

"That was nine years ago." She admitted, "I'm a different person now. I'm not the same woman that left you just because of money issues."

"That's right. Now you're the woman that left me because I didn't have enough money, _and_ some shmuck who had too much." Gold said with a slight grimace, "Forget about it. I've got a tournament to finish."

"Funny, so do I." Ruby said, raising one arm and drawing attention to a shiny duel disk strapped to it, "What do you say to betting five points each?"

"You've gotta be kidding me." Gold muttered, looking toward the altar, "What did I do to deserve this?"

He turned toward Ruby and pointed at her, "And since when do you duel?"

"Who doesn't these days?" Ruby challenged, "Even Mary does. We enjoy bonding at the tournaments, it's something we can both have fun with."

"Mary?" Gold asked, "How is she?"

"She's doing fine thank you." Ruby responded.

"Did she get the thing I sent her for her sweet sixteen?" Gold asked.

"Maybe." Ruby sighed, "Duel me and I might tell you."

Gold frowned and reluctantly turned on his disk. Ruby moved a bit closer and flicked her own into a battle-ready position.

"I can't believe you picked up dueling." Gold sighed, "Seems kinda childish to someone who thought she was the "most mature" in the relationship."

"When did I say that?" Ruby asked.

"Every morning of every day for ten years straight." Gold smirked.

"…So I did." Ruby nodded, "Ah well, that's the past. Get ready for Ruby Markowitz, the drain master."

"Markowitz? Aw you changed your name back?" Gold groaned, "What did you do that for?"

"Because we're not married any more." Ruby stated, "Don't worry though, Mary is still…"

Ruby snickered a bit and shook her head.

"Mary Gold." Ruby laughed.

"Hey, that was my grandmother's name. Your fault for asking my dad to name her." Gold responded, "Now let's choose deckmasters. I already know which one I'm gonna use: Stone Statue of the Aztecs!"

With a rumble, the green statue emerged from the wall behind Gold. It hovered just off the floor, and Ruby smiled as she selected her own card.

"I didn't get eight points in this tournament by not having a good deckmaster." She stated, "Meet the first half of my perfect couple: Ultimate Obedient Fiend!"

The ground behind Ruby burst into flames and a gigantic figure emerged. He stretched clear up to the ceiling, and his skin was cherry red. It was clearly a fiend-type, based on the claws and teeth, and Gold was shocked.

"Ruby…That's the most demonic looking demon I've ever seen." Gold stated.

"So?" Ruby asked.

"We are in a church!" Gold shouted.

"I've made mistakes in churches before." Ruby shrugged.

"Name one." Gold challenged.

Ruby pointed right at him with out speaking. Gold grunted a bit, and frowned.

"Oh that's cold." He said, drawing five cards.

"Ladies first." Ruby smiled as she drew six.

"Eh…I'll let you go first anyway." Gold shrugged.

Ruby sneered in response, and the life points were set.

Ruby: 8000

Gold: 8000

Ruby was swift to place a card onto her disk. Behind her, her monster raised one hand and conjured a black hole in the floor.

"I'll open with a little offensive wall." Ruby declared, "Dark Elf (2000/800) in attack mode."

From the hole raised what could only be the evil twin of Yugi's Mystical Elf. She had dark hair and tan skin, wearing a dark-green dress with a black aura around her body. She gave Gold a nasty glare and a wicked smile as Ruby waved one hand.

"That's all for my turn. It's your move Julius." She stated.

Gold drew and thought for a second as he looked at Ruby's monster.

"_Huh, 2000 points and no sacrifice? This ain't good…"_ Gold thought as he put down two cards.

"I'll set one monster in defense mode." He announced, "And then I'll set a card facedown too. Go ahead Ruby."

The two cards shimmered into existence in between Gold and the Dark Elf. Ruby drew, and smiled as she saw the monster in her hand.

"I think I'll summon Berserk Gorilla in attack mode (2000/1000)." Ruby announced.

A loud hooting holler echoed from overhead, and a gorilla with red fur fell from the ceiling and landed in front of Ruby, next to her elf. He beat his chest furiously and glared at Gold.

"Trying to hold back this gorilla is about as tough as living with you for ten years." Ruby quipped, "So I'll just skip the frustration that comes with that, and let him attack!"

The beast let out a rage-filled howl and charged straight forward. He swung both his arms down in a hammer blow toward Gold's monster, only for a large hand carved from rock to push him back.

From Gold's card emerged the roughly hewn form of the Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000). The rock-type monster kneeled down, and crossed its arms, allowing the gorilla to channel a bit of anger on its knees before it wandered back to Ruby, looking exhausted from the effort.

"It always was tough trying to get through to you." Ruby sighed, "I'm ending my turn here."

"Fine by me." Gold nodded as he drew.

He put another card into his disk, and it appeared behind his stone monster.

"That facedown card is my entire turn." Gold stated, "Go ahead and attack Ruby, you were always good when it came to hurtin' people…"

Ruby drew, looking a little flustered by that last comment. She frowned as she held up the card she had drawn.

"I activate Magical Mallet." She stated, a tiny hammer with wings appearing over her head, "Now I can take any cards in my hand that I don't want, and shuffle them into my deck. In return, I draw the same number of cards that I put back."

Ruby slid three cards into her deck, and it glowed for a minute as the hammer spun wildly over her head. She drew three new cards, and nodded as she saw one of them.

"Alright Julius, seeing as my gorilla has to attack each turn, I'm going to let him." Ruby stated.

The beast lunged forward again, and slammed a fist against Gold's statuary. The stone soldier responded with a quick backhand, knocking the primate senseless and back toward Ruby's field.

"And now that my monster is finished misbehaving, I'll summon Fusillier Dragon, the Dual Mode Beast (2800/2000)!" Ruby intoned.

The doors of the church burst open behind her and a giant tank with a dragon-like head and neck extending from it rolled inside. It was covered in a red and gold paint job, and sported a multitude of weapons extending from every conceivable angle of its form.

"Wait a minute, twenty-eight hundred points?" Gold asked, "What just happened Ruby? These monsters of yours are too strong!"

"That's why they each come with a drawback." Ruby smirked, "Dark Elf requires that I lose 1000 life points every time I attack with her. Berserk Gorilla has to attack if he has the chance, and he's destroyed if I move him into defense mode. And Fusillier Dragon is a seven star monster I can summon with no sacrifice, as long as I cut his attack and defense in half."

The tank-dragon let out a whine, and several of its guns fell off and clattered to the floor. Its head lowered as its stats fell to (1400/1000). Gold gave all three monsters a confused look, as Ruby slid another card into her disk.

"I'll just end my turn with a facedown card." She stated, the card appearing behind her, "Go ahead Julius, try to figure out what I'm up to."

Gold drew, and frowned. This was obviously a trap, he could tell, and he wasn't to walk into it.

"I'll set one monster facedown, and another facedown card." He stated, two more cards appearing on his field, "Now just are you up to?"

Ruby didn't answer as she drew, but she did smile again as she pointed to her facedown card.

"You know, I have to congratulate you. You're the first person that hasn't tried to attack Fusillier Dragon after I set this combo." She stated, "But that doesn't mean it won't work. I activate my facedown card…"

The card lifted, revealing the image of Dark Ruler Ha Des who seemed to be melting due to a powerful curse. A string of energy fled from Ruby's body, and connected to the card, which began to pump out a strange, green mist.

"Skill Drain." Ruby smiled, "Now I pay 1000 life points and…well watch."

The mist settled over the field, and Gold stared as Berserk Gorilla suddenly changed colors. Its fur turned from red to a normal (for a gorilla at least) black color with a silver running on its back. Dark Elf's smile became slightly less twisted as the black aura around her faded away. Fusillier Dragon underwent the most dramatic change as all of its shed weaponry suddenly floated back onto its body and reattached.

At the same time, Giant Soldier of Stone seemed to be unaffected by these strange goings on, and remained in its crouching position.

"Okay, I got a bad feeling about all this." Gold said looking at the mist, "Reminds me of the way I felt before we agreed to the divorce."

"You really do have a sense for trouble, don't you?" Ruby asked

"Nah, not really. Otherwise I wouldn't keep walking into it." Gold sighed.

"Well you're right this card is trouble. Skill Drain negates the effects of all monsters on the field for as long as it's face up." Ruby smiled, "And since it's a continuous trap, that means until one of us destroys it. While this may weaken most monsters, my creatures actually benefit. Especially Fusillier Dragon."

Gold suddenly noticed that the massive machine's stats had leapt back to (2800/2000).

"Aw cripes…" He grumbled.

"Dragon, destroy his Giant Soldier of Stone!" Ruby commanded, "Dark bombardment!"

The newly empowered monster took aim with all of its weapons, and fired at the target. Gold braced himself as his monster was quickly reduced to a boulder, which in turn was crushed into pebbles, which were reduce to dust, which were then atomized into their component elements.

"Okay, that seemed a little rough." Gold commented, "On the other hand, you never were good at breaking bad news to people."

"I've found I'm very good at breaking through monsters though." Ruby responded, "And just because my gorilla doesn't need to attack doesn't mean he won't! Primal punch!"

The not-so-berserk-anymore gorilla let out a holler before tackling Gold's hidden monster. From the card emerged a man with gray skin, wearing a martial arts gi and an eye patch. He began to wrestle with the gorilla as Gold smiled.

"You just attacked my Legendary Jujitsu Master (1300/1800)." Gold explained, "So now, your monkey there is gonna be sent back to the top of your deck."

"Oh no he won't." Ruby smiled as the green mist hovered around Gold's monster, "Skill Drain affects all monsters on the field, yours included."

The martial artist suddenly began to gasp for breath as the mist sapped away his strength. Gold gasped in horror as the gorilla lifted up his opponent and slammed it into the ground. The rocky fighter was smashed into pebbles from the force of the blow.

"And if you didn't use those cards to save your monster, I doubt they can save you." Ruby grinned, "Dark Elf, hit his life points with ancient curse!"

The evil maiden began to chant in a strange language, and laughed as an orb of black energy surrounded Gold. He didn't scream, but his muscles tensed as he braced himself against the painful burning sensation the orb was causing.

"And thanks to Skill Drain, I don't have to pay for her attacks." Ruby smiled, "Caught you off guard didn't I?"

Ruby: 7000

Gold: 6000

Gold shrugged off the last of the burning as he looked toward Ruby.

"I've been hurt worse." He said, eyes narrowing a bit, "You done with your turn?"

"You bet." Ruby nodded.

Gold drew, and thought for a minute.

"Well, seeing as these bluffs don't work on you, guess I'll set them off." Gold smiled, "All three of them are the same thing: Rock Bombardment!"

The three cards in front of Gold lifted up, and three catapults appeared behind him. Gold smiled as he took out his deck, and selected three cards.

"Now then, this trap lets me send one Rock-type monster from my deck to the grave in order to deal you 500 damage." Gold explained, "So by setting off three of them, I'll not only deal you 1500 damage, but thin my deck of some currently-useless monsters."

Gold held up a Labyrinth Wall, his Morphing Jar, and Moai Interceptor Cannons. The shoved them into his disk, and each of the catapults was loaded with a large boulder.

"_Thanks for the idea, Zeffie." _Gold thought

"Sorry Ruby, this is gonna hurt you a lot more than you hurt me." Gold smirked, "Fire at will!"

All three of the siege weapons fired together, and Ruby screamed as the boulders plasters her to the ground and shattered several rows of the pews into splinters. Gold just crossed his arms as Ruby got back to her feet, clearly not amused by this turn of events.

Ruby: 5500

Gold: 6000

"I'll set a facedown card an end my turn." Gold said as the hidden card appeared in front of him.

Ruby drew, trying to regain her composure. She looked at the facedown card and smiled a bit.

"You know Julius, you may not be as famous as Yugi Mutou or Seto Kaiba, but you still have some fans back in New York City." Ruby explained, "As such, your deck is more or less common knowledge around the old neighborhood. So I know that card isn't something that could destroy my monsters. You don't use Sakuretsu Armor, and you certainly couldn't afford to try and buy a Mirror Force."

Gold drew back, making Ruby smile with a sadistic glee.

"You need to work on your poker face, Julius. Berserk Gorilla…" Ruby began.

"I activate Soul Resurrection!" Gold interrupted, waving a hand over his facedown card, "Now I can bring a normal monster back from my grave in defense mode, and I choose Labyrinth Wall (0/3000)."

From the ground before Gold, a wall of white mist arose. The mist solidified, forming into a sandstone wall in front of him. Ruby snarled a bit as she lowered her hand.

"I can't beat that yet, but I do have another plan in mind." She said, holding up a card, "If I can't attack your life points then I'll start attacking your deck. I activate my deckmaster's power of soul buffet."

Ruby turned the card around, showing a Giant Orc. She slid it into her graveyard and her deckmaster began to glow with red flames. Gold gasped as those same flames appeared around his deck, and four of his cards vanished into them.

"What the heck!" Gold shouted.

"My deckmaster works like this." Ruby explained, grinning again, "Once per turn I can discard a monster from my hand. In return, I can send one card from your deck to the graveyard for every star that monster had."

Gold thought for a minute, and frowned.

"Okay, I still over half a deck left." He said, "What sort of good does that do you anyway?

"Don't you get it, it's a choice." Ruby stated, "You can either try to overpower my monsters, or hide behind defenses until I burn away your entire deck. I still have plenty of monsters to discard for my deckmaster. Now I'll set one card facedown, make your move."

Gold drew as another card appeared before Ruby, and smiled as he saw the card in his hand.

"Okay Ruby, you said I have to either attack or defend." Gold said, moving a hand over his disk, "Just waiting for things to try and work out only made things worse the last time we fought. So I'm gonna try the opposite then: I shift Labyrinth Wall to attack mode!"

The wall itself didn't move, but a rather large hole appeared in the dead center of it. Ruby seemed confused as Gold plugged in another card.

"Confused? You never really understood me." Gold continued, "I activate Shield and Sword!"

"That card!" Ruby gasped, "It trades the attack and defense of every monster on the field!"

"That's right." Gold said as a bolt of energy struck every monster on the field.

Fusillier Dragon (2000/2800) didn't change much, though its neck joints and a few of its guns rusted over. Berserk Gorilla (1000/2000) began to shrink, its body withering until it looked more like a chimpanzee. Dark Elf (800/2000) gasped as her hair turned stark gray and wrinkles appeared all over her face, she had aged almost fifty years in five seconds.

By contrast, Gold's Labyrinth Wall (3000/0) filled in the hole it its center. Several sharp spires of rock jutted from its front, and pointed right at Ruby and her monsters. Gold smiled as he pointed toward Ruby's aged elf, which was having trouble standing up now.

"Alright Labyrinth Wall, attack her elf with spike trap!" Gold shouted, shoving another card into his grave, "And I'll discard one card to use my own deckmaster power: Stone Blast. Now all the battle damage dealt by my wall will be doubled!"

"It may be doubled, buy I can minimize it!" Ruby responded as her facedown card lifted, "I activate Staunch Defender, forcing your monster to attack Fusillier Dragon!"

The wall fired off a blast of powerful spikes toward Ruby's spellcaster. Before they could reach their target, the mechanical dragon rolled into their path as was pierced by every last one. Dark Elf and Berserk Gorilla gasped at the sight as their comrade fell to the floor, and exploded into a fireball.

Ruby: 3500

Gold: 6000

Ruby gasped as the heat of her monster's death washed over her. Gold just shrugged as he placed his last card into his disk.

"I'm laying this card facedown and ending my turn." He stated, "So all of our monsters return to normal now."

Berserk Gorilla (2000/1000) and Dark Elf (2000/800) returned to their normal forms, while Labyrinth Wall (0/3000) crumbled once more, leaving the hole again. Ruby drew her card, and glared at Gold.

"You know Gold, I don't think you ever took me seriously when we were married." She growled, "Did you think I would always be happy just living in a cramped apartment in the city, trying to raise a daughter?"

"You always wanted too much Ruby." Gold responded, "We had each other, we had Mary, we had something good…"

"But you never wanted more for us." Ruby responded, "You always settled for 'good enough' even when it wasn't the best for us. I couldn't take it any more, I needed to get out."

She narrowed her eyes at the card she held, and slid it into her disk.

"And you know what Gold? On this next turn I'm going to let you know what it felt like for me." She said, "You'll find out what it's like to feel like your being smothered by the person who's supposed to help you."

"I take your not gonna attack then?" Gold asked, looking to his facedown trap card (Desert Sunlight).

"No, I'm not." Ruby said, holding up another card, "But I am using my deckmaster again, discarding my four-star Goblin Attack Force."

Once more, Ruby's deckmaster shimmered with red fire, and once again four of Gold's cards burst into flames. He noticed one of those cards, and frowned as it was vaporized.

"Now I end my turn." Ruby stated, "Get ready…"

Gold drew, but before he could make a move Ruby tapped her disk.

"I chain Deck Devastation Virus!" She shouted.

Gold felt his body go numb for a second. Aside from Mystic Swordsman and Sasuke Samurai, that card was one of the ones he feared most as a duelist.

"I take it you know how this works?" Ruby smiled, "I just tribute a creature of darkness that has at least 2000 attack points."

Dark Elf screamed as she burst into a cloud of purple dust which settled across the field.

"And in return, I destroy every monster on your field and in your hand that has 1500 attack or less." Ruby declared, "And just because they're rocks doesn't mean they're immune!"

The Labyrinth Wall suddenly crumbled away completely, leaving Gold with no monsters. He winced as he turned his hand around, showing Ruby the card he had drawn.

"Another Giant Soldier of Stone?" Ruby observed, "He's gone."

The only card in Gold's hand melted into a puddle of purple sludge, which flowed into his graveyard. Gold just tensed his body and shut his eyes.

"Go ahead Ruby." He stated, "You can't hurt me any worse than the day you left."

"Probably not." Ruby agreed, drawing a card, "I summon Indomitable Fighter Lei Lei (2300/0)."

In front of Ruby appeared another monster. This one looked like a burly human dressed in battle armor with a pink symbol on his chest. His legs, however, resembled those of a jungle's cats and a cat tail extended behind him. The green mist of the still-present Skill Drain hovered over this fighter, and the pink symbol on his armor began to glow. He flexed his muscles as he stared right at Gold.

"Now my beastly bruisers, attack him directly!" Ruby shouted.

Both monsters jumped forward, and slugged Gold right in the stomach. He doubled over in pain as the pair of fists launched him backward into his waiting deckmaster.

Ruby: 3500

Gold: 1700

Gold let out a low groan as he lifted himself up again. While Ruby waved her hand.

"Go ahead Julius." She challenged, "You're the one that's cut off now. You never strived to improve, and I have. Now you'll see just what a difference it makes."

Gold drew, and the card in his hand shimmered. Ruby smiled as the virus cloud appeared overhead.

"Oh yes, my Virus will also destroy any monsters you draw for the next three turns, if they have less than 1500 attack." Ruby explained, "So let's see what you've got."

Gold turned the card around, showing his Threatening Roar trap. Ruby frowned as he smiled.

"Fine, it's safe." She declared.

"Then I'll set it facedown." Gold stated, sliding the card into place.

It materialized before him, leaving him with no other moves. Ruby drew her own card, and Gold tapped the button on his disk.

"Go Threatening Roar!" He declared.

The beast on the card burst to life, and let out a wall-shaking cry. Ruby's monsters cringed in terror, the fighting spirit scared right out of them. Ruby scowled in response, and plugged another card into her graveyard.

"That's starting to get annoying." She stated, "Besides, my deckmaster is still hard at work destroying your deck!"

The four-star card known as Nuvia the Wicked appeared in the air, before the thin sheet of cardstock turned into a fresh flame around Gold's deck. It swiftly burned another four cards to ashes, leaving fourteen in Gold's disk.

"Between my deckmaster and my virus, you won't have any cards left." Ruby smiled, "Your move."

Gold drew, and smiled as he turned the card toward Ruby.

"Funny thing Ruby, I have a way of working things out." He stated, "I activate Pot of Avarice."

The giant, jeweled jar appeared, and Gold took five cards from his cemetery.

"Let's see, I think I'll bring back both of my Giant Soldiers of Stone, Labyrinth Wall, Legendary Jujitsu Master, and this guy; Exxod the Master of the Guard."

"Exodd?" Ruby asked, "I never sent…"

"Yes you did." Gold interrupted, "When you used your deckmaster that second time."

"Oh sure, you remember that but you forget our fifth anniversary." Ruby muttered as Gold shuffled the cards back into his deck.

He swiftly pulled the two cards from the disk, and turned them toward Ruby. They were Premature Burial and Waboku, both of which were immune to the virus.

"_You have to be kidding me!"_ Ruby thought.

"Well, guess I'll use my Premature Burial to bring back another monster your deckmaster got rid of." Gold stated as a circle of red light appearing before him, "Come out, Hieracosphinx (2400/1200)."

From the light burst the falcon-headed sphinx monster. Its fur was clumped with dirt and ashes, and its wings were crumpled up, but it was at full battle strength. The mist of Skill Drain settled over it, but it seemed relatively unharmed.

"_Once more: You've got to be kidding me!"_ Ruby fumed, _"That is impossible!"_

"Hieracosphinx, attack Berserk Gorilla!" Gold shouted, "Riddle Rush!"

The sphinx screeched, and dashed forward at full strength. It slammed into the frightened ape, shattering it along with a chunk of Ruby's life points.

Ruby: 3100

Gold: 900

Ruby was almost blinded by the wave of anger that now assaulted her senses, but then Gold's voice broke through.

"You know Ruby, I was plenty broke up after you left." Gold stated, "I wasn't sure what I was gonna do, and the money issues only made things harder."

Ruby felt herself calming down, in spite of her pride.

"You want to know what I eventually decided?" Gold asked, "I decided, that I'd find a way to make things work. I'd prove that I could move on after what was the most painful moment of my life. And since I decided that, nothing ever gets me down. You may wipe the floor with me, you may pummel me in a card game, but win or lose I'll move on."

Ruby looked at the object of her wrath, and felt the last of the fury vanish. She took a deep breath, and looked toward Gold.

"Maybe, I was being a bit brash just now." She sighed, "I apologize Julius."

Gold blinked in surprise, and laughed a bit.

"Funny, this is the first time you ever admitted you were wrong to me." He chuckled a bit, "Apology accepted Ruby."

"Owe, and Mary love the necklace you sent her." Ruby stated with a small smile.

Gold blinked again, and just smile along with her.

"Eh, it's your turn Ruby." He stated.

Ruby drew, and thought for a minute.

"Well, I can't stop your monster from attacking." She smiled, "But I can do this: Card of Sanctity!"

A golden flash filled the church, and Ruby and Gold both picked up their cards. Ruby smiled as she held up one of them.

"Waboku won't do you any good if I don't attack." Ruby pointed out, "And thanks to my deckmaster I won't have to. I discard my second Fusillier Dragon!"

"Your second…" Gold muttered, "Wait a minute…He's an eight-star monster!"

"That's right, so you lose eight cards." Ruby stated as the mini-bonfire flared once more.

Gold gasped as a scant two cards were left sitting on his disk. In his hand, he looked at the cards he held, and winced. It would take one more card to make this hand perfect.

"Now then, just be sure, I'll set these three cards facedown." Ruby said, sliding three more cards into her disk.

They appeared before her, right next to Skill Drain.

"And then I'll get rid of all my cards with Emergency Provisions." Ruby stated, sliding her second-to-last card into the disk, "Now I can give up all four of my cards to restore 4000 life points."

The mouth appeared, and inhaled all four cards, revealing the facedowns had been two more Skill Drains and another Deck Devastation Virus. As they and the face-up Skill Drain were swallowed, the green mist finally dissipated, and Ruby's life points leapt skyward.

Ruby: 7100

Gold: 900

"That's all Julius." Ruby smiled, "With only two cards left, you probably won't be able to bring me down before your time runs out."

Gold looked to his cards, and frowned.

"_She must have another monster for her deckmaster." _He thought, _"Sheesh…Okay, one card can save me here. If it literally hit the bottom of my deck, she'll make me discard on my next turn and then I'm toast."_

Gold carefully picked up the top card, and looked at it.

"_Well what do ya know…"_ He thought with a chuckle.

"Hey Ruby, your virus runs out after three of my draws right?" Gold asked.

"Yes, and I chained it to…" Ruby trailed off, "Oh I jumped the gun. I chained it to that first draw phase, so the virus is gone already."

"Yeah, kinda glad you did that." Gold smiled, "If you didn't, I probably would have lost this duel."

"What are you talking about?" Ruby asked, "Look around Gold, unless you can deal me over 7000 damage in one turn, you have lost."

"That's exactly what I can do." Gold declared, "I'm gonna summon the latest monster I added to my deck. Too bad he only comes out if I get rid of a sphinx."

"Like Hieraco_sphinx!_?" Ruby realized.

"Yep." Gold nodded as he removed the monster from his disk and put down a new one, "So prepare to meet the true master of defense…"

A rumble sounded as the sphinx vanished. Behind Gold rose a megalithic idol, carved from solid gold. It had a golden circle behind it, and its body was reminiscent of the terrifying Exodia the Forbidden One.

"Meet Exodd, Master of the Guard (0/4000)!" Gold shouted.

Ruby stared up at the creature, and frowned.

"I…" She began.

"Don't see where this is going?" Gold interrupted again, "Let me show you. My monster is in attack mode, and I have…"

Gold turned around another card in his hand, and Ruby gasped in fright.

"Another Shield and Sword!" She shouted, "But with that…and your deckmaster…oh no!"

"You got it." Gold smiled, placing the card into his disk, "Go Shield and Sword!"

On the field, Indomitable Fighter Lei Lei (0/2300) gasped as his muscles shriveled to nothing. He now looked like a young boy, struggling in over-sized armor. Exodd (4000/0) on the other hand began to shimmer with a mighty aura of light, that overpowered the glow of the church.

"Oh…I knew I shouldn't left Lei Lei in attack mode." Ruby sighed, "Okay Julius, I guess I had this coming to me…"

"If you insist," Gold said, "Exodd, attack Lei Lei with Oblivion Fist!"

Gold shoved a card (Giant Soldier of Stone) into his graveyard and his deckmaster unleashed its power once more. Exodd's glow centered into one of its fists, which it pulled back. It swung the glowing arm forward in a swift arc, and slammed it against Lei Lei. The Beast-warrior screamed as he was vaporized, while Ruby braced herself as pure light flowed over her body. It didn't hurt, but she could hear her life points dropping all the same.

Ruby: 0

Gold: 900

Behind Ruby, the light slammed into the church wall, blowing it to shards and blasting the shards into the ocean behind the church.

---------------------------------------

Sota, back in the central command, looked like he was about to have a heart attack.

"He didn't…first the mountain…and now the…" He stammered, turning pale.

Before either of his coworkers could help, Sota fell over in a dead faint. Jackson sighed as he checked his friend's pulse.

"Well, he's fainted." Jackson sighed.

"I don't blame him. He spent two weeks on that church and three submissions before Kaiba green-lighted it." Rei said, getting up, "I'll get some smelling salts from the first-aid kit."

"I'll get him a drink." Jackson said.

---------------------------------------------------

Ruby fell to her knees, exhausted after the duel. An eight appeared over her head, and turned into a three as five lights floated out of her disk and into Gold's.

"You okay Ruby?" Gold asked, walking over to help her up.

"I'm fine." Ruby said, getting up by herself, "And I am sorry for the way I acted during the duel."

"No problem." Gold shrugged, "Hey, maybe we should meet in person again. You know, maybe during Mary's birthday next month."

"I think we'd like that." Ruby smiled as Gold began to fade, "Good luck Julius."

Ruby waved to the earth duelist, and as she did something caught his eye.

"Hey, isn't that…" He asked, pointing to a ring on her finger.

Before he could finish, he had disappeared. Ruby carefully removed the ring, and smiled as she saw the inscription inside.

'With love, from Julius.' The inscription read.

_**Love is a many splendor thing.**_

_**Also, Hell really doesn't have fury like a woman's scorn.**_

_**Who ever came up with those quotes has definitely met Ruby.**_

_**Well, that's enough of my past. Time to see if Joey has a future in this tourney. Our next chapter is called**_

_**Heat Wave**_

_**Hey wait…I forgot about Zef!**_

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Ultimate Obedient Fiend

Fiend

FIRE

Ten star

3500 attack

3000 defense

Soul Buffet: Once per turn, you may discard one monster from your hand. Send a number of cards equal to the level of the discarded monster from the top of your opponent's deck to the graveyard.


	21. Heat Wave

_**Joey Wheeler again, hope you guys didn't miss me too much!**_

_**Well, I guess that Kaiba really enjoyed the idea of irony around here. He teamed up with Noah to create this virtual world, and Noah tried to kill him once.**_

_**He always invites Yugi to these tournaments, even though he always winds up losing to Yugi.**_

_**And then, it turned out that he made an eliminator based of Yug's favorite monster: Dark Magician. **_

_**So, I guess I should have learned to expect the unexpected around here.**_

_**But seeing my latest opponent…I'm still surprised.**_

Heat Wave

"WOAH-NO!" Joey howled he reappeared above a tree with many strong branches, "DARN YOU KAIBA!"

Before Joey could continue to curse the name of Seto Kaiba and all that it stood for, he found himself plummeting down through the tree, bouncing of branches like a pinball before finally landing in a thorny bush at the bottom. The fall, combined with the nausea from his teleportation, knocked him senseless for all of thirty seconds. He then shot back to his feet, his face twisted in anger.

"That tears it! I don't care what you say Yug, Kaiba is getting some kind of twisted pleasure out of dropping us on stuff and I'VE HAD IT!" Joey shouted, turning around and seeing no sign of his shorter companion.

"Uh…Yugi?" Joey asked, scratching at his head, "Hey wait a minute, Yugi has his ten points…"

Joey frowned deeply as he realized what had happened.

"Aw shoot. He must have been sent somewhere else, and I won't be able to find him until I get my ten points!" Joey grumbled, looking at his own score of eight, "Well, I hope he had better luck with his landing than I did."

-----------------------------------------

Yugi sat in the middle of a grassy green field, no sign of any other people with in miles. Looking around, he sighed and glanced toward the sky.

"Guess that Kaiba wants to be sure I don't lose my space in the finals." He commented.

"_That's oddly considerate of him."_ Yami pointed out, _"On the other hand, I expected it. His pride means he won't let you lose to anyone but him."_

"True." Yugi nodded, "Am I supposed to consider that his form of a compliment, or be scared?"

"_Frankly, I'm a mix of both at the moment."_ Yami sighed, _"I guess that the best thing to do would be to wait here until the finals. There can't be many duels left to go."_

"Alright then." Yugi nodded, taking his deck out, "Guess I'll work on my cards a little until then."

Yugi began sorting through his deck, occasionally stopping to think for a minute. All the time, hoping that Joey was okay wherever he was.

--------------------------------

Joey stomped through the undergrowth of the forest he had landed in, leaving behind the thorn bush and tree that had served as a landing pad. He was grumbling under his breath, imaging the many unpleasant things his Red Eyes Black Dragon could do to Kaiba when they finally dueled.

He stopped grumbling though, as he heard voices up ahead. Quickening his pace a little, he could see two figures standing in a clearing just a little ways through the foliage. As he got closer, he stopped and crouched down behind a tree, watching the figures.

One was a young man in steel armor, carrying two swords. He had dirty blond hair, and had an air of authority around him.

The second was roughly the same age the first, wearing black-leather armor with a broadsword strapped to his back. His hair was short and black, held up by a black headband. He was watching his companion as he looked carefully at the ground.

"There was…a great duel here." The blond one stated, pointing out areas of trampled grass and a few blackened zones, "Both sides were great in skill. One of the duelists was commanding…"

He placed one hand on the ground, and swept the grass, sending a small cloud of colored particles into the air.

"Insect, judging the pheromone dust left behind. Possibly even Insect Princess or the Insect Queen." He continued.

"And the other?" Asked the leather bound warrior.

The blond warrior looked to the scorch marks, and gently prodded one with his sword. A small, black flame rose up, and was extinguished as the weapon was withdrawn.

"Fiend monsters." Was the scowl filled answer.

"Should we let the commander know?" Asked the other swordsman, "If fiends were in the area they could still be around."

"I think, we needn't worry." The first stated, "These marks are at least an hour old, the winner would have been taken away by now and the loser is of no consequence."

Joey leaned in closer, trying to get a better look. Now that he was leaning forward, he was finally able to identify the two men before him: The blond one was Marauding Captain, and the black haired one was Warrior Dai Grepher.

"_Huh, a pair of eliminators by the looks of things."_ Joey realized, starting to move back a bit, _"And as much as I'd love to prove I can outduel a computer, I can probably find a more challenging opponent somewhere else."_

As he started to stand up, a loud snap sounded from beneath his foot. Joey winced, realizing he had just put all of his weight on an until recently unnoticed (and rather loud) twig. Both warriors snapped to attention and readied their weapons.

"Who goes there?" Marauding Captain demanded, "Show yourself."

Joey thought for a second. He had seen both these monsters in duels before, and it seemed to him that running wouldn't do much good. He knew through personal experience that most warrior monsters tend to travel in groups, and it was likely that reinforcements were nearby.

"Okay, don't worry." Joey said, raising his hands over his head and stepping out from his hiding place, "Look, I'm unarmed."

"By the…Joey Wheeler?" Marauding Captain gasped, lowering his weapons, "I do not believe my eyes!"

"You know me?" Joey asked, looking a bit shocked.

"Of course!" The young captain smiled, "Most every warrior knows about you."

"_Wow, I'm actually flattered for once."_ Joey thought with a grin, _"And I didn't Kaiba would program his monsters to recognize my skill…"_

"After all, not every duelist can make such a rag-tag regiment work with just luck." Captain finished, causing Joey to fall over.

"_I should have expected that."_ Joey scolded as he got up.

Dai Grepher seemed a touch apprehensive though. He brandished his sword toward the blond duelist with a frown.

"Captain, remember what the commander said: All strangers are to be escorted to the camp." Grepher stated, "He may be Joey Wheeler, but he's no exception."

"Don't forget who's in charge of this scouting mission." Captain scolded, "But you're right, we'd better take him with us."

"Me, go with you guys?" Joey laughed, "Um…I'd love to, but I've got to find a duelist to challenge for a couple points and…"

He was cut off as Grepher pointed his sword toward him. Joey remembered that he didn't think he could run away from a pair of trained soldiers…

"On second thought, lead the way…" Joey sighed.

Grepher moved behind him, and Captain motioned for him to follow. Walking between the two monsters, the now captive Joey was led deeper into the woods.

-------------------------------------------------------------

It was only about ten minutes of good hiking before the trio entered another clearing. This one had a large tent set up in the middle of it, with several fire pits strewn around. At the moment, the camp was completely lifeless save for a shadowy figure moving inside the tent.

"Commander, we've found a duelist." Captain stated, snapping to attention.

The figure in the tent stopped shuffling about, and opened one of the flaps. Joey's eyes went wide when he saw who it was.

For there was no mistaking the red and blue armor worn by his favorite monster, or the ornately carved sword made of orange crystal that was currently strapped to his back. He smiled as he saw the other two warriors snap to attention, while Joey just looked flabbergasted.

"Flame Swordsman!" Joey nearly shouted, "You're an eliminator in this tournament?"

"Surely this doesn't surprise you Joey." The fire warrior said, taking a step forward, "After all, I heard that you and Yugi ran into my cohort, Dark Magician. Or Teach, as he no doubt wished to be called."

"Well, yeah. But I didn't think Kaiba would include both of our favorite monsters." Joey stated.

"Um…Sir?" Grepher stated.

Flame Swordsman smiled to his two subordinates and nodded.

"Nice work soldiers. You are dismissed." He stated.

The two warriors nodded, and faded away into pools of light. Joey watched as the lights formed into two cards, which floated to the commander's hands.

"To be honest, I thought you'd never get to this camp." Flame Swordsman stated as he pulled out a small deck of cards from his belt, "After all, Kaiba put almost three-hundred different eliminators into this world, and they activate in shifts. Sometimes one is active, and at other times another is."

"_Sheesh, and both Yugi and I wound up finding our favorite monsters here."_ Joey thought, _"Well, that's luck for ya."_

"So, I'm guessing since you're an eliminator I need to duel ya." Joey said.

"You don't need to do anything Joey. You're welcome to leave if you wish." Flame Swordsman stated, "I'll even give my troops orders to let you be if they see you again. But the finals are drawing close, and I'm betting you could use a few points."

Joey considered his options for a minute. He had originally planned to wander aimlessly until he found an opponent to take down. But this seemed to be a much more time friendly investment.

"Well, I don't have time to lose at the moment." Joey said as he turned on his disk, "Okay Flame Swordsman, I challenge you!"

"Excellent, I knew you wouldn't resist a challenge." The warrior smiled, "But for the purposes of the duel, please refer to me as General. It's how my troops recognize me."

"By troops you mean…" Joey began.

"That's right, Teach used his students as the monsters in his deck, I use the soldiers from my army." General nodded, "Now select your deckmaster and we can begin."

After saying this, General pulled his sword from his back. Pointing it into the air, a fireball launched from the blade and rose into the sky, bursting into a red-orange explosion high over the tree line.

"What was that?" Joey asked.

"A signal flare, calling my troops to the battle." General explained, "They were away on scouting missions. Give them a minute, they'll be here."

Nothing happened for a moment, then about twenty cards suddenly came flying from all directions, landing in General's waiting hand. He sheathed his sword, and shuffled the new cards into the stack he was holding.

"My army is always ready for a war Joey." General declared as he finished shuffling, "And unfortunately, you're the enemy this time."

"Don't hold back on my account." Joey stated, "Let's do this!"

Joey smirked as the wall of his own monster cards rose before him, and he looked over them all.

"_I could use my own Flame Swordsman."_ He thought, _"But on the other hand, he'd know exactly what I can do then. So let's try throwing him for a loop…"_

"I choose my Swordsman of Landstar for my deckmaster." Joey declared.

All of the cards before him except for one vanished. The remaining card shimmered red before turning into a small warrior dressed in brown armor. He blinked his oversized eyes at Joey, and let out a cheer.

"Alright! I was wondering when I'd get to be a deckmaster." He said in an excited voice, "I'm ready to go boss!"

"Glad to hear it." Joey smiled, "But, what can you do?"

"You got lucky picking me. My power is know as teamwork and…Well I whisper so he doesn't hear me." The tiny warrior explained.

He leaned close to Joey, and hissed something into his Joey. Joey looked shocked, but then smiled as he drew five cards.

"Oh yeah, jackpot." Joey smiled, "So which of us is going first?"

"I'll give you that honor." General stated, holding up one arm.

A burst of flame surrounded his limb, and when it cleared a bronze duel disk was hooked in place. General slid his deck into the slot on the disk, and drew five cards while Joey smiled.

"Let's duel!" Both of them declared.

Joey: 8000

General: 8000

Joey plucked six cards from his deck, and gave them a glance over. Smiling, Joey placed one of the cards onto his disk.

"I'll open with Axe Raider (1700/1150) in attack mode." He stated.

Joey's deckmaster sliced his sword through the air, opening up a strange hole filled with glowing light. From the hole leapt a well-muscled man wearing red and yellow armor, hefting an axe in his right hand. As the Axe Raider landed, he turned to the Swordsman of Landstar, and smiled. The tiny knight let out a battle cry, and it was answered by the axe-warrior, whose stats immediately jumped to (1900/1150).

"Your deckmaster power I take it." General nodded.

"Yep, it's called teamwork." Joey answered, "Every monster on my field with four stars or less gains two hundred attack points for every level four or lower monster I control. Good luck keeping your forces up, it's your move."

General drew, and nodded at the creature on his card.

"I choose to set one card facedown, and a monster in defense mode." He stated, the two cards appearing before him, "Your move."

Joey drew, and swiftly added another card to his field.

"I summon Gearfried the Iron Knight (1800/1600)." He smiled, "And now my deckmaster will give 'em both another little boost."

A warrior strapped in a suit of black metal rose into view, and turned toward the Axe Raider. Both monsters smiled at each other, and shook hands before Gearfried raised his sword arm and both of them turned to General. Axe Raider (2100/1150) and Gearfried (2200/1600) were both boosted by the sense of camaraderie inspired by the deckmaster, who smiled at the sight.

"I just love seeing friends work together." Landstar smiled.

"You ain't seen nothing yet." Joey declared, "Axe Raider, take down his monster with axe slam attack!"

The axe wielder lunged forward and slammed his weapon of choice right into the facedown card before it. From the card emerged a huge, purple shield, followed by a soldier with long black hair. He laughed as he pushed the offending warrior back with his shield, and Axe Raider stumbled.

"You just attacked Big Shield Gardna (100/2600). He's just a little too tough for your monster to beat." General explained.

"Maybe, but I know his drawback." Joey pointed out, "You don't play twenty games of Duel Monsters against Yugi without learning the weaknesses of some of his cards. After Big Shield Gardna is attacked, he has to move into attack mode himself."

This was true, judging the fact that the shielded warrior stood up. He strapped his weapon to his back, and raised his fists as if to punch something.

"So he's a sittin' duck now. Gearfried, fore-arm thrust attack!" Joey shouted.

The aptly name iron knight dashed forward and stabbed his weapon toward the Gardna. Before he could make contact though, General waved one arm over his facedown card.

"It's not that easy Joey. I activate Ready for Intercepting, which can switch a warrior into facedown defense mode." General announced.

Big Shield Gardna smirked as he suddenly vanished and was replaced by a facedown card. Gearfried's sword attempted to pierce the new target, but met with the same results as Axe Raider and was thrown backward. Gardna got to his feet again, and chortled a bit at his fellow warriors' misfortune. Joey's monsters seemed peeved at this treatment.

"Okay…That wasn't supposed to happen." Joey muttered as he looked over his cards, "I'll end my turn now."

"Fine, I draw." General stated as he picked up his card, "And now I tribute Big Shield Gardna for Silent Swordsman Level Five (2300/1000)."

Gardna disappeared, and in his place stood a green-skinned man dressed in a black jacket. He hefted a huge sword over one shoulder, and cast a smile at Joey's monsters.

"Swordsman, attack Gearfried with silencing slice!" General ordered.

The swordsman swiftly flashed forward, completely silent the entire way. Gearfried didn't make a sound as the warrior appeared in front of him, his sword touching the ground between the iron knight's legs. Gearfried suddenly gasped, and a line separated his body right down the middle from head to feet. The two halves started to fall away from each other, but burst just before they hit the ground. Axe Raider (1900/1150) clenched his fist as his comrade fell, and hefted his axe threateningly.

"Next I'll set one card facedown, and end my turn." General stated as he placed a card into his disk.

The card appeared, and Joey drew with a worried frown. His smile returned as he placed another card onto his disk.

"Well look who's here. It's my Goblin Attack Force (2300/0)!" Joey smiled.

From the woods behind Joey stampeded the four goblins, waving their weapons overhead. Swordsman of Landstar and Axe Raider (2100/1150) both let out a welcoming battle cry, boosting the morale of the charging goblins (2700/0).

"I activate my facedown card: Hidden Soldiers!" General responded.

A card showing a knight battling a demon, with three more knights hiding beneath some crags in the foreground, lifted up. General placed another card onto his disk, and looked back to Joey.

"This trap lets me summon a level-four or lower monster as soon as you normal summon." He explained, "So I choose Chthonian Soldier (1200/1400)!"

A man dressed in steel armor with a green cape walked onto the field. His eyes were glowing red beneath his helmet, as he raised his sword toward Joey.

"Eh, he's too weak to take on my monsters. Alright Goblins, go after that Silent Swordsman!" Joey ordered.

The goblins continued forward, and tackled the green-skinned soldier to the forest floor. He opened his mouth as if to scream, but no sound came out before he burst into pixilated images.

"Axe Raider, take out his Chthonian Soldier!" Joey continued.

Axe Raider heaved his arm backward, and then snapped it forward, sending his weapon flying toward the enemy. It struck Chthonian Soldier right in the chest, causing him to vanish in a puff of smoke.

"Too easy." Joey smiled.

"You think so?" General challenged, "Look up."

Joey cast his gaze skyward, just in time to see Chthonian Soldier's weapon fly toward him. He screamed as it slashed across his chest, knocking him over.

Joey: 7100

General: 6700

"Ugh…" Joey groaned as he stood up, "What was that?"

"That was Chthonian Soldier's effect." Smiled General, "When he's destroyed in battle, you lose the same amount of life points that I do."

"Okay, I really should start asking what these monsters can do before I attack them." Joey grumbled as he placed a card in his disk, "I set a card facedown, and end my turn."

On the field, the Goblin Attack Force all took a seat, and began chatting amongst themselves. One of them pulled out a large rack of ribs, and a second started a fire over which to roast them. All four warriors were now more interested in their meal than their opponent.

General drew his card, and turned it toward Joey.

"First, I'll play Pot of Greed." He stated, making his extra draws before the pot could even appear.

Looking them over, he placed one onto his disk.

"Next I'll summon Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (1400/1200)." He stated.

In front of him jumped the young, elven warrior dressed in his green armor. He wielded his blade over head, and smiled as he turned his gaze to Joey's monsters.

"Now guardian, attack the goblins with silver-blade slash!" General ordered.

The elven fighter leapt skyward, and brought his weapon toward his foes. Joey tapped his disk, and carnival music began to play as a coin appeared in mid-air.

"Not so fast, I activate Fairy Box." Joey announced, grabbing the coin, "Now I just toss this coin and call it. If I'm right, your monster's attack reduces to nothin' for this turn."

Joey tossed the coin up with a cry of "Heads!"

The coin flew up, and came back to earth, showing the blank, 'tails' side. General's monster smiled as he continued his flight pattern and came down on the goblins with his sword. The blade flashed silver, and all four members of the force shattered at once, along with their meal. Once more, Axe Raider (1900/1150) looked quite displeased with the death of his fellow monsters.

"Looks like luck wasn't with you this time." General stated as he placed another card into his disk, "I'll set one card facedown and end my turn."

The card appeared, and Joey drew. He looked at Fairy Box for a minute and nodded.

"Okay, first I'll pay 500 life points to keep my trap in play." He stated as his score ticked down, "Then I'll summon Rocket Warrior (1500/1300)."

From the sky swooped the part-rocket, part-soldier hybrid, brandishing his sword and shield. Axe Raider (2100/1150) smiled to him, and Rocket Warrior (1900/1300) raised his sword in a salute.

"Nice try Joey, but your deckmaster means that both of your monsters are too powerful to destroy my guardian." General pointed out.

"Yeah, I noticed that." Joey nodded, "But I noticed something else too. Rocket Warrior, go to invincible mode!"

Rocket Warrior folded up his body, forming the green and yellow missile. He launched forward, slamming into Obnoxious Celtic Guardian. The elf gasped in pain as he dropped his sword and staggered back.

"You'll still lose points from my attacks, and Rocket Warrior's effect will take 500 attack points away from your monster for the rest of the turn." Joey smiled.

General gasped, realizing that Joey was right. The Celtic Guardian (900/1200) had dropped his sword, and was nursing a large scorch mark on his chest.

"Now Axe Raider can do more damage. Attack!" Joey shouted.

Axe Raider lifted his axe, and charged forward, slamming the weapon into the guardian. The poor elf flew to the side, and slammed into the ground, but still picked himself back up and stumbled to his original position.

Joey: 6600

General: 5000

"Alright then, that's all for my turn." Joey smiled, "Go ahead General."

General drew, and smiled as he saw the card in his hand.

"Okay Joey, I'm about to use a card the will let me call in an entire army to help." General stated, opening his field slot, "I play Mausoleum of the Emperor."

The grassy clearing faded away, replaced by a rocky platform under Joey's feet. A stone bridge over a large gap appeared between him and General. Behind General appeared two massive towers, each with a blazing bonfire in front of them.

"Whoa…Where are we?" Joey asked.

"We're in a sacred tomb." General explained.

"A tomb…well, been there done that." Joey shrugged.

"This one is a bit different than any you may have visited." Explained General, "In this pit between us sit hundreds of terracotta statues of soldiers, all of which stand guard over this ground. But if a duelist is willing to make a sacrifice, they'll come to his aid."

"What kind of sacrifice?" Joey asked.

"A sacrifice of life points." General elaborated, "As long as this field is in play, each of us can normal summon any monster we want from our hand while ignoring tributing costs. We only need to give up 1000 life points for each tribute the monster needs. But I have a way to handle that…"

General set another card into his disk, and a green book appeared next to him. A large quill made of a pure-white feather hovered next to the book, fresh ink dripping from its tip.

"My Spell Economics will handle any life point costs accrued from any of my spell cards." General declared, "Mr. Kaiba gave me substantial budget for my army, but it's better if you don't need to use the entire years supply."

"Wait…With those cards you can summon any monster you want!" Joey realized.

"You're much smarter than Kaiba gives you credit for." General nodded, "Now I'll make use of this card…"

General placed another monster, his last card, onto the disk. Two statues rose from the misty pit between the duelists, and shattered. At the same time, the pen came to life and wrote the number '2000' in the book next to General.

"Report for duty, Sword Hunter (2450/1700)!" General ordered.

From the top of one of the pillars leapt a muscular man wearing gladiator-style armor. However, this armor was covered in multiple sheathes containing every style of sword imaginable. Short swords, broad swords, daggers, and other cutting implements were attached to the warrior's body. Even the front of his helmet had a sword on it, like some form of mask. In his hands he carried a rapier and a long sword, both of which he spun as he looked toward Joey's monsters.

"Now then, before I get into my battle phase I'll use my deckmaster power." General stated as blue fire leapt around him, "I'll give 600 of my attack points to Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (2000/1200)."

The blue fire roared over the elf, boosting his attack score even ask General fell to 1200 attack. General pointed to Joey's monsters and smiled.

"Okay troops, prepare for battle." He declared, "Sword Hunter, you take Rocket Warrior. After that, OCG can handle his Axe Raider. Attack!"

Sword Hunter ran across the bridge and slashed both his weapons at Rocket Warrior. Joey grabbed his Fairy Box coin, and threw it into the air.

"Not so fast big guy, Fairy Box will stop ya!" Joey shouted, "I call tails!"

The coin landed with an eye facing up from the floor. Joey gasped as General smiled at the little trinket. Now unopposed, Sword Hunter continued his attack. The little warrior missile fell over and burst, leaving his shield behind. Sword Hunter picked up the shield and stuck it to his leg like a shin guard.

With that done, General's elven underling now leapt into the air again. Joey frantically grabbed his coin and tossed it.

"Come on…Heads!" He shouted.

The coin landed on tails, causing Joey to pull at his hair.

"Oh come on! What did I do to deserve this!?" He shouted.

Obnoxious Celtic Guardian came down on the weakened Axe Raider (1900/1150), who hadn't even had a chance to mourn his friend. Axe Raider burst also, and Joey cringed as his life points fell.

Joey: 5950

General: 5000

"Well, I guess even the famous Wheeler luck can't hold out forever." General observed, "It's your move."

Joey drew, and looked at Sword Hunter (2650/1700). Frowning, he looked back to his hand.

"_Okay, Sword Hunter gets 200 attack points for every monster he destroys."_ Joey reminded himself, _"Course, he does that by turning them into equipment cards, and General should only have room for…two more of them. But I've got a problem…"_

Joey looked over the two monsters before him, and frowned even deeper.

"_Anything with less than 2600 points is gonna get blast by Sword Hunter, but anything stronger can't destroy the guardian."_ He thought, _"For that matter, nothing can get rid of it now, anything that could beat it in a fight would be two strong…"_

Joey looked at the cards in his hand, and struggled to form a plan. Looking at Fairy Box, he sighed.

"I choose to not pay for Fairy Box." He sighed.

The carnival game vanished, and Joey put a card on his disk.

"I'll set one monster in defense mode." He stated, "And that's my turn."

The hidden monster appeared before Joey, and General drew another card.

"Alright Joey, this next face should look familiar." General smiled as he slapped down another monster, "I summon Warrior Dai Grepher (1700/1600) in attack mode."

The warrior from before in black armor strolled onto the battle field. He raised his sword with a look of grim determination.

"Sword Hunter, attack the facedown monster!" General commanded.

Sword Hunter jumped forward, and sliced through the facedown card. The image of a humanoid panther in a green cape appeared briefly. Panther Warrior (2000/1600) before it shattered. A curved scimitar was left on the ground, and Sword Hunter (2850/1700) picked it up and smiled as he noticed it was a weapon he didn't already have on his armor. He clipped it over his other shin, while Joey braced for an attack.

General pointed at Joey, not saying a word. His unspoken command was understood though, as both of the remaining warriors suddenly dashed over the bridge. Joey cried in pain as two sword cut across his body, knocking him to the floor.

Joey: 2250

General: 5000

"Nice work men." General congratulated.

"Joey, get up!" Swordsman of Landstar gasped, flying down next to his controller, "Come on, you can win this!"

Joey slowly pulled himself up, and looked over his hand.

It contained Foolish Burial, Skull Dice, Hayabusa Knight, and Release Restraint (which he had drawn on his last turn).

"_The thing is, this hand is useless right now. All I can do is try to defend."_ He thought.

"It's your turn Joey." General stated, "Either move or forfeit."

Joey's eye twitched a bit.

"Hey, one thing I'll never do is give up." He stated, drawing his card, "Let's see what Kaiba thinks of me when I win this duel. I play the card I just drew: Graceful Charity!"

The angel soared overhead, and Joey pulled three cards off his disk. The angelic woman hovered in front of him as he looked over his choices.

The three new cards were Red Eyes Black Dragon, Premature Burial, and Giant Trunade. Joey smiled as he placed Release Restraint and the Red Eyes into his graveyard.

"Okay, here we go." He stated as the angel vanished, "I activate Foolish Burial."

A new spell rose before Joey, this one showing a hand, clutching a shovel, poking out of a grave.

"Now I can take a monster from my deck, and dump it into my graveyard." Joey said, a grid appearing before him.

He swiftly tapped one of the cards, and watched as it settled into his grave.

"Now, I'll cast Premature Burial!" Joey announced, plugging in another card, "And I'll use it to bring back the monster I just placed in my cemetery."

"And what would that be?" Asked General.

"A little fella called Cybertech Alligator (2500/1500)." Joey grinned.

A ring of light appeared on the ground in front of Joey, and then out of it rose a new creature. It looked like a humanoid alligator that someone had attached rusty, red armor to. It had a pair of mechanical wings (one of which was broken at the moment) and it gazed down at its opponent.

"That monster is no match for Sword Hunter, and it can't destroy my Celtic Guardian." General Pointed out.

"I was just getting to that." Joey smiled, holding up another card, "Allow me to introduce Giant Trunade. This baby will blow every spell and trap on the field back to their owner's hand. And that includes monsters that you turned into spells."

A huge gust of wind gathered over the field, and General braced himself as the rocky grave site was blown away and was replaced by the grassy clearing. In a flash Spell Economics, Mausoleum of the Emperor, and the unidentified facedown card were back in General's hand. At the same time, Panther Warrior and Rocket Warrior appeared in Joey's hand once more, alongside Premature Burial.

On the field, Sword Hunter was now lacking his new shin guards, and his stats had fallen back to (2450/1700). Cybertech Alligator, on the other hand, looked better than new. Its wing had been repaired and its armor was shiny and clean from the strong wind polish.

"Now then, since I got it back, I think that I'll cast Premature Burial again." Joey declared, putting the spell back in his disk, "Come on back Red Eyes Black Dragon (2400/2000)!"

The red light appeared once more, and Joey's signature dragon burst forth from the grassy ground. It was covered in dirt and its eyes were slightly dimmed, but it was clearly ready for a fight.

"Okay, Cybertech Alligator you take out Sword Hunter!" Joey ordered.

The mechanized gator flew forward on his mechanical wings and swung its claws through the mighty warrior. Sword Hunter's weapons went flying in all directions as he shattered into pieces.

"Red Eyes, take down Warrior Dai Grepher." Joey commanded, "Inferno fire blast!"

The powerful dragon charged its flames, and fired them off, consuming the screaming warrior with one shot. General staggered a bit as the excess force of the attack struck him. Obnoxious Celtic Guardian looked worried as he realized he was the only monster left.

Joey: 650

General: 4250

"Then I'll lay this facedown. Your move General." Joey stated as a facedown card appeared behind his monsters.

General drew, and looked at his hand. He quickly placed to of the cards back into his disk.

"I replay my Mausoleum of the Emperor and Spell Economics cards." He stated, sliding them into place.

The field began to warp again, and the spell book reappeared, but General plugged in another card.

"But I'm going to feed both of them to my Emergency Provisions, restoring 2000 life points in the process." He stated, the mouth appearing on the field.

The large mouth quickly snapped through the pillars and the book, leaving the field unchanged now.

Joey: 650

General: 6250

"Next I'll play Graceful Charity." General declared, the angel flying overhead a second time.

General pulled three cards from his disk, and then discarded two of them. He smiled as he placed the new card onto his tray, and removed Obnoxious Celtic Guardian. The elven warrior lowered his sword and vanished, and a glowing light appeared in his place.

"Now Joey, prepare to meet the greatest soldier this army has ever had." General stated, "I tribute my Obnoxious Celtic Guardian to summon a man I'm proud to call my second-in-command: Saint Knight Issac (2300/1800)!

The light shone brighter, and transformed into a knight dressed in silver armor. It sparkled under the forest sunlight, and shone with a brilliance all its own. In one hand, he hefted a large sword that shone like his armor.

"And now for my deckmaster power. I'll give 800 attack points to Issac, so he can slay your dragon!" General called out as his body burst into blue fire and his attack fell to 400.

The blue flames expanded, and covered Issac, boosting his stats to an unbelievable (3100/1800). His weapon was now wreathed in blue flame, and he pointed it toward Joey with a smile.

"Attack his dragon with shining, holy blade!" General ordered.

Issac lifted his weapon in both hands and charged forward. Joey pointed to his face down card, and it swung upward.

"Guess again, I activate Skull Dice!" Joey shouted, an imp in black clothes giggling as he leapt out of the card, "You know how this works, right?"

"The imp rolls a die, and the result is multiplied by 100." General sighed.

"And then it comes out of the attack of your monsters." Joey confirmed, the imp producing a blood-red die, "Go dice roll!"

The imp chucked his die, and it bounced along the ground. It skipped, rolled, and landed on the six.

"Oh yeah! I'm money baby!" Joey cheered as Issac fell to (2500/1800).

"Maybe, but your dragon is still slain." General declared.

Issac nodded, and brought his weapon down, severing the head of the Red Eyes from its neck. Joey cringed as one of his strongest monsters vanished in a pulse of light.

"And Red Eyes isn't just gone, he's staying gone." General continued, "Any monster Issac destroys is removed from the game. Now it's your turn."

Joey: 450

General: 6250

Issac went back to (3100/1800) as Joey drew his card. He smiled as he turned it toward General.

"This guy look familiar?" Joey asked, playing the card, "I summon Blue Flame Swordsman (1800/1600)."

A column of blue fire erupted on the field, and out of it stepped the near-identical twin of Joey's opponent. His armor was completely blue, his sword was blue, even the fire that surrounded his weapon was blue.

Swordsman of Landstar, who had been watching the duel intently, smiled at the sight of another low-level monster. He raised his weapon to the warrior, who responded with a battle cry. Blue Flame Swordsman smiled as his cry ended and his attack lifted to (2000/1600).

"Well I'll be…" General shook his head, "You summoned my long-lost brother. Who'd have thought we'd be on opposing sides?"

"Life's kinda funny like that." Joey shrugged, "And like your deckmaster power, your brother can lend his attack to other monsters. Unlike your power though, he can give it to more than warriors. So I'll give 700 points to my Cyber-Tech Alligator."

Blue Flame Swordsman raised his weapon, and a splash of blue fire soared from the tip. His stats fell to (1300/1600) as the fire struck the robotic gator. It let out a screeching roar, its power increasing to (3200/1500)!

"Attack Issac with mechanized gator claw!" Joey ordered.

Cyber-Tech Alligator eagerly obeyed, running the holy warrior through with one massive swipe. The knight screamed as he shattered to pieces, and General now looked worried.

"Blue Flame Swordsman…" Joey said, looking unsure of himself.

Seeing the hesitation on the faces of both Joey and his monster, General smiled.

"Go ahead, this is war." He declared, "Fell free to attack, I take no offense!"

Joey nodded, and pointed toward his monster's twin.

"Attack with blazing sword of battle!" Joey shouted.

General braced himself as his duplicate in blue lunged forward and slashed him with his fiery armament. Both warriors looked at each other for a minute afterward, then Blue Flame Swordsman returned to his starting place.

Joey: 450

General: 4850

"It's your move." Joey declared.

General drew, and let out a sigh as he placed a monster facedown.

"I'll place a soldier in defense mode, and end my turn." He announced, the facedown monster appearing.

Joey drew, and took another card from his hand.

"Okay, time to rebuild my forces some more." He decided, playing a monster, "I summon Hayabusa Knight (1000/700) in attack mode."

A new, strange figure stepped onto the field. He was dressed in steel armor, with a yellow cape and golden gauntlets. He carried a slim rapier in one hand. What set him apart though, was he had the head of a falcon, covered with blue feathers.

"You know, you'd really think this guy would be a wind or wigned-beast monster." Joey shrugged, "Ah well, since he's only level three my deckmaster powers him up."

Landstar let out a joyful yelp, and Hayabusa Knight (1400/700) acknowledged him with a wave. Blue Flame Swordsman (1500/1600) also seemed happy for the new company, he raised his sword to the falcon-faced fighter.

"And here we go: Blue Flame Swordsman, attack the facedown monster!" Joey ordered.

A burst of fire was launched from the warrior's sword, and struck the hiding creature. It turned over, revealing a blond woman in tattered gray clothes. She let out a cry before being consume by the fire, and a card flew from General's deck.

"That monster is know as they Warrior Lady of the Wasteland (1100/1200)." General explained, "When she's destroyed in battle, I can summon another warrior from my deck. But they need to Earth attribute, they need to have less than 1500 attack points, and they need to be in attack mode."

General put down the card, and a second Warrior Lady of the Wasteland (1100/1200) ran onto the field. She saw the three monsters before her, and cast a look at General that seemed to shout _"You're joking, right?!"_

"Had a feeling that monster couldn't defend for beans." Joey smiled, "Hayabusa Knight, take her out!"

The falcon warrior ran forward, and sliced at the poor woman with his sword. She screamed as she fell to the ground, and another card was placed onto the tray. A third Warrior Lady (1100/1200 still) nervously stumbled into play, and began shaking in fear.

"Too bad for her, my Hayabusa Knight can attack twice each turn." Joey shrugged, "Do it again!"

Hayabusa Knight showed the final lady the same courtesy as the first, slicing her up and letting her scream as she fell. A final card emerged onto the disk, and out of it came a samurai in green armor. He carried his katana before him, and had a look of bravery on his face even as he stood against three stronger monsters.

"This one is Masaki the Legendary Swordsman (1100/1100)." General explained, "One of the material monsters needed to fusion summon me."

"Yeah, I recognize him." Joey nodded, "And if I remember right, he doesn't summon anything. Cyber-Tech, you know what to do!"

The gator obviously did. It grabbed the unfortunate warrior and threw him into the forest. A burst of sparks flying away from the trees was the sole indication that the monster now rested in the graveyard.

Joey: 450

General: 2250

"That's all." Joey declared.

General drew his card, looked at it, and gave a defeated sigh.

"Well, I can at least get rid of one monster." He stated, playing the card, "I summon Exiled Force (1000/1000)."

From the trees emerged five men dressed in shabby clothing, carrying rusty weapons and shields. They looked up in determination toward the enemy force.

"By tributing them, I can destroy any monster I choose." General explained, "So I'll give them up and destroy Cyber-Tech Alligator."

The five men ran forward, and leapt all over the more powerful machine. It roared in protest, struggling to fling the smaller men off, but to know avail. One of the soldier successfully plunged his weapon into the gator's hide, and a high-pitched whine filled the area. Joey and his other two monsters all ducked as the mechanical gator exploded, taking the warriors with him and sending gears and cogs all ov3er the forest floor.

"Okay then…" Joey said as he drew, "Guess I'll end this."

General stood strong as Joey pointed right at him.

"Hayabusa Knight, double direct attack!" Joey ordered.

The blond duelist half expected a sudden change. For something to leap onto the field and stop the attack. No such event took place, his warrior made two quick swipes, and General was defeated.

Joey: 450

General: 0

"_That's all? No big surprise?"_ Joey thought as he shut down his disk, _"Huh…That's kind of a let down actually."_

"Well done Joey." General stated, falling to his knees.

Joey ran up to him, his monsters and deckmaster fading away behind him. He helped General to his feet, and the fire-warrior just smiled.

"I'm fine Joey, it takes more than that to take me down." General assured him, "But now, I have a prize for you."

"Oh yeah, I get three points." Joey smiled.

General reached into a small pouch at his waist, and removed three golden coins. The coins turned into points of light, which moved into Joey's disk. The number turned into a ten, and then into a golden thirteen.

"Huh…lucky number thirteen." Joey noted.

"And now, you receive one rare card for your deck." General stated, pulling a card from the waist pouch, "Kaiba said to give you this one specifically."

Joey smiled as he accepted the card and began to fade away. He looked at it, and his jaw almost hit the ground.

Looking up from the card was an adorable puppy with curly, brown fur. The title of it was 'Outstanding Dog Marron.'

"Okay, Kaiba can just go and…" Joey started to curse before vanishing completely.

General chuckled a bit, and moved back to his tent. Bespite what he had told Joey, the duel had taken its toll on him.

"Time for a nice, post-battle nap." He muttered, "Good luck Joey."

_**Show of hands: Who really thought that Kaiba would give me a rare card?**_

_**Anybody? Anyone at all?**_

_**Good, you guys are paying attention. Now then, next time you don't get to see me planning what I'll do to Kaiba if I ever get my hands on his rich throat. You do get to see a tag-team duel though.**_

_**Yep, Brian and Celeste have been quiet for way too long. And now they both looking for a shot at the finals, against another light and dark team.**_

_**We call it**_

_**Yin and Yang**_

_**Oh Kaiba, I'd like to have a word with you…**_

----

Original Cards

---

Foolish Burial

Spell

Image of a hand, holding a shovel, poking out of a freshly covered grave.

Send one monster from your deck to your graveyard.

_This card is an actual one in Japan. It was used in the anime by Joey, in the episode "Awakening of Evil (Part 2)."_

---

Hidden Soldiers

Trap

Image of a soldier battling some sort of demon. A trio of soldiers is hiding in the foreground of the picture, behind some rocks.

When your opponent normal summons a monster, you may special summon any level four or lower monster from your hand to the field. The monster must be summoned in attack mode

_This is a real Japanese card. It was used by Marik in the anime episode "The Darkness Returns (Part 1)."_

_---_

Cyber-Tech Alligator

WIND

Machine

Five stars

2500 attack

1500 defense

_Yet another card from Japan. Joey used it in the anime episode "Fighting for a Friend (Part 4)."_

---

Saint Knight Issac

LIGHT  
Warrior/effect

Six stars

2300 attack

1800 defense

Any monster destroyed in battle with this card is removed from play without going to the graveyard.

_Yet another Japanese card. This one has never been used in the anime._

---

Blue Flame Swordsman

FIRE

Warrior/effect

Four stars

1800 attack

1600 defense

At anytime, even during the battle phase, you may decrease the original attack of this monster by any amount and add the same amount to the attack of any monster on the field. If this monster is destroyed, you may special summon one "Flame Swordsman" from your fusion deck.

_This card was first used in the anime by Joey, in the episode "Fighting for a Friend (Part 4)." All credit for this card goes to the writing staff of that episode._

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Swordsman of Landstar

EARTH

Warrior

500 attack

1200 defense

Teamwork: All level four or lower monsters on your side of the field gain 200 attack points for each level four or lower monster on your field.


	22. Yin and Yang

_**Ugh…I have the worst luck when it comes to finding opponents!**_

_**Brian Hokage here again, and it's been at least two hours since I dueled Weevil. I've found no other duelists, but my luck is turning around.**_

_**Celeste is here too, and we've found another pair who could get both of us into a spot in the finals.**_

_**Our bad luck, their strategies are designed to work in perfect harmony. Celeste and I are polar opposites.**_

_**We'll need to overcome that difference to come out on top…**_

**Yin and Yang**

Celeste sighed as she made her way down a long hallway. It had been about an hour since she defeated Pegasus and after that she had found herself dropped into an area designated as "The Labyrinth." Seeing no sign of David Bowie, it didn't take long for Celeste to realize that she had been placed in an actual labyrinth (or, more likely, a Labyrinth Wall) and so she set out through it.

Of course, walking for a long period of time can be exceptionally boring. She had tried to spice things up by singing some songs that she knew, and right now was humming a song by the famous-eighties star.

"_What kind of magic spell to use? Slime and snails…Or puppy dogs' tails…Thunder or lightning…Then baby said: Dance magic, dance…"_ Celeste sang as she made a right turn.

She found herself cut off in mid-chorus as she ran straight into someone else. Both of them grunted, and stumbled backwards.

"Sorry, I didn't see you." The other person said as Celeste looked up.

"That's okay, it was my…"Celeste began.

Her voice trailed off and she broke into a smile.

"Nice running into you Brian." She laughed.

Brian blinked, and laughed as he fixed his jacket.

"Celeste! What are the odds?" He asked, joining her in a laugh.

The two of them finished laughing, and looked around the passage they were in. There was nothing but smooth, brown walls, with only the occasional turn or fork to break up the monotony.

"Seems like this goes on forever." Brian commented, gazing down the maze's path, "You had any luck finding a way out?"

"No, but in a place like this you can't take anything for granted." Celeste commented.

"What do you mean?" Brian asked.

"This maze is probably full of openings. We just haven't seen all of them." She explained, "It's like that movie, "Labyrinth." You ever see that?"

Brian thought for a minute, and then nodded. He ran one hand over the wall next to him.

"So you're saying that there's probably another path that's disguised because there's another wall right behind it." Brian guessed, "It just looks like one solid barrier that way."

"Right." Celeste nodded, "So let's walk next to each other, and keep a hand on either wall. See what we find."

Brian nodded, and looked back the way he had come from.

"So, do we go the way I came from, or back the way you came from?" He asked, "'Cause I hadn't thought to do that before…"

"We'll just go back the way I came." Celeste suggested, "I didn't think to do it either until just now."

The two started back down the path Celeste had been following. Brain ran his hand over the right wall, and Celeste over the left.

"How long have you been in here?" Celeste asked, "I've been here for about an hour."

"It's been around two for me." Brian sighed, "I beat Weevil Underwood, and got taken here. By now, most of the finalists have probably been chosen."

Before he could say anything more, Brian gasped and stumbled to his right. He stopped, and smiled as he saw that he was now looking down a new path.

"Wow, that actually worked!" Celeste smiled as she joined her friend.

"Come on, let's keep going." Brian said as he led the way.

The duo kept on walking, and soon came to a sharp right turn. Following it they were confronted by a double door, with a pair of masks on it. One was the crying mask of tragedy, and the other was the laughing mask of comedy.

"Different as light and dark." Celeste shuddered upon seeing the masks, "I always hated these things. They're creepy."

"Maybe so, but I'll bet this is a way out." Brian said as he pushed on the door, "Ugh…It's heavy! Give me a hand!"

Celeste pushed on the comedy door, while Brian continued to apply his strength to the tragedy door. Slowly, they began to open, until both Brian and Celeste could get through.

The other side of the doors was nothing special. Before the duelists of light and dark was a featureless chamber with a ceiling roughly twenty feet overhead. The room was about forty feet on either side, leaving plenty space of at least two duels to go on simultaneously.

"Well, nothing of interest here." Brian sighed.

"Big setup for an empty room though." Celeste commented, "Maybe we should look around."

Brian shrugged, and the two of them stepped forward.

The doors slammed shut behind them! Turning around, the pair ran to them and tried to pry them open, but to no avail. Suddenly, a rumbling noise filled the chamber. Turning around again, Brian and Celeste gasped as a huge, red drill bored out of one of the walls. Rubble was flung in their direction, and the two both fell to the ground, the rocks sailing over there heads.

The stones bounced off of the walls, and vanished as they did. As the rocks faded, Brian and Celeste watched as the drill stopped.

"I told you not to take that left!" An angry voice shouted from inside the machine.

"I'm sorry…" Said a much quieter voice, "It was an accident. There was this really cute little animal in the way, and I didn't want to hit it!"

"If the animal is too _stupid _to get out of the way, it would be an act of kindness to hit it with the tank!" The angry voice shouted.

The drill pulled back into the hole, and two young girls entered.

One of them wore pure white robes and had a hood that resembled a Scapegoat. Her pink hair extended from her headdress, and she carried a small staff. At the moment, she looked absolutely miserable.

The second one was a furious child wearing a black dress. She wore a hood that looked like a bunny, complete with floppy ears, and carried a pink whip in her right hand. Her blond hair stuck out from under her hat, and she was glaring at the other girl as she observed the damage.

"And I suppose you didn't want to hurt the _wall_ either!" The girl in black screamed.

"Stop yelling, I said sorry." The other girl squeaked.

"Well now the Labyrinth Tank is busted, and Machine King will tan our hides!" The first girl screeched.

"They're so cute!" Celeste exclaimed in a Zeffie-ish voice.

The two girls turned around, and the white robed one excitedly grabbed the other's arm.

"Hooray, duelists!" She cheered, "We have to do it now, you promised we would!"

"Oh fine." The other girl sighed.

The two stepped away from each other, and then struck similar poses, both pointing at the teens.

"_Prepare for trouble!" _Shouted the child dressed in black.

"_Make it double!"_ Cried out the other girl.

"_No way." _Brian and Celeste both thought as the girls continued, alternating lines.

"_To protect the world from devastation!"_

"_To unite all people within our nation!"_

"_To denounce the evils of truth of love!"_

"_To extend our reach to the stars above!"_

The girls brandished their weapons over their heads, and sparks of light and dark energy flew from them.

"_Curran!" _ The girl in black yelled.

"_Pikeru!" _Cried the one in white.

"_Spellcaster sisters, blast off at the speed of light!"_

"_Surrender now, or prepare to fight!" _

"_That's right!"_ Both girls shouted together, stamping their feet and pointing their armaments at the duelists before them.

"Next time, we do the Para-Dox motto." Curran grumbled to her sister.

Everybody remained still for a minute, and a cricket chirped in the distance.

"I…don't…believe it." Celeste muttered.

"Scary huh?" Pikeru asked.

"It's White Magician Pikeru!" Celeste shouted as she ran over and scooped up the small child, "Oh, you're sooo adorable! I have a copy of you in my deck!"

"Really?!" Pikeru gasped, hugging Celeste back, "Yippee!"

"And I gave a copy of your sister to Brian." Celeste explained.

"Wait, I remember that." Brian muttered, looking at the other girl, "Ebon Magician Curran."

"Hey look, I'm popular." Said Curran in a sarcastic tone, "Whoop-dee-flippin-doo."

"So why are you two dressed like Duel Monsters?" Brian asked as he tugged Curran's bunny ear.

Curran slapped his hand away and brandished her whip.

"First off, touch the ear again and I'll pop you like a soap bubble!" She threatened, "And second, we're not dressed like Duel Monsters, we _are _duel monsters!"

"Wait a second." Celeste realized as she looked at the girl in her arms, "Then you're the real White Magician Pikeru?"

"As real as I can be!" Pikeru cheered, "And my sister is the real Ebon Magician Curran."

"Wow." Muttered Brian, "So what are you two doing running around in this maze?"

"Did you get lost?" Celeste asked.

"No, we were looking for chumps to duel!" Curran shouted, "And we would have found some earlier if Pikeru had learned how to drive!"

"You're the one that didn't want to take the owner's manual." Pikeru squeaked, "You told Machine King we didn't need it."

"Why are you looking for duelists?" Brian asked, looking confused.

Both girls turned to him, and Curran slapped a hand to her forehead.

"Excuse me, did you not notice that we are walking, talking Duel Monsters?" Curran asked, "Obviously, we're programs in this computer, and we're doing what we were programmed to do!"

"We're eliminators." Pikeru said with a big smile, "Would you like to duel us?"

Brian and Celeste drew back.

"Eliminators!" Celeste gasped, "But why come after us?"

"Dumb luck." Curran snarled, "Emphasis on _dumb._"

"You don't have to duel us if you don't want to." Pikeru explained, gesturing toward the hole their tank had made, "You could use that exit and leave."

Brian turned to Celeste with a frown.

"I don't think we have much of a choice Celeste." He stated, "As far as we know, there's no way out of here beyond that hole."

Celeste thought for a minute, and turned to Pikeru and Curran.

"Pikeru, why do you keep saying 'duel us'?" She asked.

"Duel both me and my sister, together." Pikeru explained, "You know, a tag team duel."

"She may be dim, but Pikeru is still my sister." Curran snickered, "The two of us were given decks that compliment one another's strategy. Of course, if you don't think you can handle it…"

Celeste looked back at Brian.

"Have you ever played tag team?" She asked.

"A couple times." Brian nodded.

Celeste's eyes narrowed. Brian looked sheepish.

"Okay, twice. Once with my brother as my partner, and the second was Yugi." He confessed, "How about you?"

"I learned this game playing tag team." She explained, "My teacher and I competed in a few tournaments like that."

"Then I guess we accept your challenge." Brian said to the sisters, "Now who goes first?"

"I say we go in reverse alphabetical order by first name." Pikeru called out quickly, "So I go first."

"Fine by me." Celeste nodded.

Both Brian and Celeste turned on their disks. Pikeru and Curran each held their left arms over head, and a pair of duel disks appeared on their arms. Pikeru's was a silvery white, while Curran's was a lustrous black.

"Tell you what, how about we make a special deal since you two are so doomed." Curran smirked.

"What kind of deal?" Brian asked.

"Easy, if you two both manage to last to the end of this duel, we'll give you each six points instead of three." Curran explained.

"We'd automatically be in the finals!" Celeste gasped.

"Right, and I'll even double the special prize for you!" Curran nodded, "But if only one of you wins, the winner will get nothing! But we'll only eliminate the loser."

Brian and Celeste looked at one another and nodded.

"Okay, you got a deal." Brian confirmed.

The grid of cards appeared before Brian and Celeste, both of whom knew what to do. The problem, of course, was choosing the deckmaster.

"I take it the two of you will be your own deckmasters?" Brian queried.

"Right!" Pikeru nodded.

"Duh." Curran scowled.

Brian looked back to his cards, thinking about what to use. He carefully reached out, and tapped one of them.

"My deckmaster will be…" Brian intoned as the card floated behind him.

The card shattered into millions of pixels, which reformed into a brown ball of fur with green paws. It was about the size of a basketball, and had large yellow eyes.

"Kuriboh!" Brian shouted.

"Kuri!" The fuzzball responded

Pikeru, Celeste, and Curran all stared at the furry fiend. Curran snickered a bit, and then began to roll on the floor with laughter.

"You call _that_ a deckmaster!" She scoffed, "Oh, please tell me you're joking! I may die laughing!"

"But it's soooo, cute!" Pikeru cooed as she waved to the monster, "Hello cutie!"

Kuriboh squeaked and waved a little paw toward Pikeru.

"Aww." Celeste cooed as she gave the little creature a pat.

"Hey, you need to choose your deckmaster too." Curran said as she struggled to avoid laughing again.

"Right." Celeste nodded as she selected a card, "My deckmaster is Asura Priest!"

Behind Celeste, a sparkling beam of light floated down. From it, stepped the blue-skinned fairy, all three of his faces solemn, and all six of his arms crossed.

"An excellent choice, you have made Celeste." The fairy said in three, somewhat monotone voices, "Serve you well as a deckmaster, I can."

"Do you have to talk like Yoda?" Celeste asked.

"Yes." Was the response, "But great, my power is. If a fairy-type you control destroys a monster in battle, activate my power, you can. Backup Dagger permits one fairy one extra attack when it destroys a monster. Only once per monster, can it be done though. Use it wisely, you must."

"I will, don't worry." Celeste promised with a smile.

"How about you Kuriboh?" Brian asked.

The Kuriboh squeaked, and landed on Brian's shoulder. It leaned close to his ear, and seemed to whisper something to him. Brian nodded, and gave the fur ball a pat on the head.

"Okay then, I'm ready to go." Brian stated.

All four duelists pulled the top five cards from their deck. Pikeru and Curran put down their weapons and nodded to each other, as did Brian and Celeste.

"DUEL!" All four shouted together.

Pikeru: 8000

Celeste: 8000

Curran: 8000

Brian: 8000

"Pikeru, I think you claimed the first turn." Brian pointed out.

"Oh, right." The tiny Spellcaster nodded.

She looked over her hand, and frowned.

"Uh oh, my hand isn't very good." She fretted.

Curran looked over to her sister, and let out a frustrated sigh.

"Pikeru you dolt!" Curran scolded, "You forgot to draw your first card!"

Pikeru blushed, and pulled the sixth card off of her deck. She smiled as she saw what it was.

"Oh goody! This is much better!" She cheered, "I play Magical Mallet!"

Pikeru placed the card in her disk, and a wooden hammer with wings floated over her head. It began to spin wildly, and Pikeru held up her cards.

"What's that?" Brian asked.

"This is a powerful spell card." Pikeru explained with a huge grin, "I just take any number of cards from my hand that I don't want, shuffle them back into my deck, and then draw the same number of cards I just put back."

"So basically, it's a selective Reload card." Celeste guessed, her eyes narrowing.

Pikeru nodded, "I choose to shuffle three of my cards back into my deck."

Three cards faded from Pikeru's hand, and the mallet disappeared. Her deck glowed, and Pikeru drew three new cards.

"Much better." She smiled, "I play Frontline Base!"

The wall behind Pikeru began to glow as she slid another card into her disk. The light coalesced, and became a giant door that extended from the floor to the ceiling of the chamber. It was made of wood, and looked like something one would see on an old castle.

"This spell lets me special summon one level-four or lower union monster from my hand each turn." Pikeru explained as she waved to the door, "And since this is a tag-team duel, my sister can use its effects also!"

"Thank you Pikeru." Curran sighed, somewhat sarcastically.

"You're welcome!" Pikeru said cheerfully (obviously failing to notice the attitude), "Now, I'll use my spell to special summon Freezing Beast (1500/1000)."

Pikeru pointed her staff toward the door behind her, and it opened slightly. A cold breeze flew from the door, and a swirling ice storm came flying out through the crack! It swirled around in front of Pikeru, and formed into a creature that resembled an iguana made of icicles.

"And now our deckmaster powers activate." Curran smiled as she began to glow with a black aura.

"Already!" Celeste gasped.

"Yep!" Pikeru smiled as a white aura surrounded her, "Mine is called blessing. Whenever I special summon a monster, I restore 400 life points for every card in my hand. But since this is a tag-team duel, my power will do the same for Curran."

"My power has the same trigger, but a very different effect." Curran smiled, "I call it hex, and whenever I special summon a monster, I blast my opponent for 300 points of damage for every card in their hand. And since this is a tag-team, my power activates when my sister special summons, and lets me blast both of you!"

"Oh boy!" Brian shuddered as the auras flared.

"Blessing!" Pikeru called out, waving her staff over her head.

A shower of white sparks covered her and Curran. At the same time, Curran pointed her whip at Brian and Celeste.

"Hex!" She yelled.

Brian and Celeste screamed as their bodies were surrounded by black flames!

Pikeru: 9200

Celeste: 6500

Curran: 10000

Brian: 6500

Brian and Celeste both groaned as the flames died away. Pikeru and Curran both giggled as their life points finished climbing. Pikeru slid another card onto her disk, and smiled as a column of flames shot up before her.

"Now, I normal summon Burning Beast (1500/1000)!" She called out as the flames faded away.

Next to the ice creature, there was now what seemed to be a Gila monster made of red-hot stones.

"Just like me and Curran, these two monsters are siblings." Pikeru smiled, "But they can do something Curran and I can't do."

Pikeru pointed to the ice monster and smiled.

"Freezing Beast, attach yourself to Burning Beast to form…"

The ice creature turned into a swirl of ice crystals once more, and began to hover around the rock monster. The ice began to coat it, and a white steam covered the area.

"Steam Beast!" Pikeru finished.

A new apparition, one that looked like a large dragon made of white steam, materialized before the girl. It spread its wings, and let out a terrifying roar!

"Yikes!" Brian shouted, "A fusion monster?"

"Not quite." Curran corrected, "It's still the Burning Beast (1500/1000), it's just that Freezing Beast is a union monster for it."

Brian and Celeste stared blankly at Curran. She sighed again, and pointed to the "Steam Beast."

"Union monsters are a special breed of creature that can equip themselves to other, specific monsters." Curran explained, "When they do, the equipped monster is usually given new abilities, just as if they had received an equipment spell card."

"They don't really make a new monster." Pikeru confessed, "But they usually look different, so I give them new names anyway."

"Oh." Celeste nodded, "And I'm guessing that both of your decks are full of these union monsters."

"All the better to take advantage of your deckmaster powers!" Brian realized, "You can special summon almost every turn, and wipe out your opponents in no time!"

"Wow, it took the last guys we faced almost the entire duel to figure that out." Curran snickered, "There might be hope for you losers yet."

"That's not a very nice thing to say, Curran." Pikeru chimed in, "Oh, I end my turn by the way."

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm not nice!" Curran responded as Celeste drew her first card.

Celeste frowned, as she saw what she had.

"_This is not good." _She realized, _"The best I can do is try to empty my hand to reduce the damage."_

"I set three cards facedown, and one monster in defense mode." Celeste stated, placing the cards in their proper spots.

Three facedown cards and a hidden monster alighted onto the field. Celeste nodded to Curran, signaling the end of her turn.

"Pathetic." Curran muttered as she drew her sixth card, "Let me show you a real opening move. First, I use Frontline Base to summon Second Goblin (100/100)."

Curran cracked her whip against the ground, and the doors allowed a new monster through. This one was a small, bald demon with pink skin. He was dressed like a boxing coach, and even had a towel over one shoulder.

"And since that was a special summon…" Curran grinned.

"Uh oh!" Brian and Celeste said together.

A shower of white sparks flew over the twins, while Brain and Celeste screamed as the black fire burned them again.

Pikeru: 10000

Celeste: 5900

Curran: 12000

Brian: 5000

"And for my next trick, I normal summon Giant Orc (2200/0)." Curran continued, putting a second card in play.

From the floor next to her burst up a giant monster. It was a huge goblin, which would easily have dwarfed Mr. Gold, and carried a giant shin bone in his right hand.

"Hey, I have Giant Orc in my deck!" Brian exclaimed.

"What, you have a copyright on it or something?" Curran retorted, "Well I bet you never thought of this: Second Goblin, attach to Giant Orc to make Orc Training Team!"

The smaller fiend laughed, and jumped onto the larger ones shoulder. The Giant Orc grinned, and stared down at Brian.

"This is gonna be fun." Curran giggled with malicious glee, "But for now, it's your move."

"Thank you." Brian said as he drew, "Now let's see what sort of damage I can do…"

Looking over his hand, Brian smiled. He placed a card on his disk, and Kuriboh let out a shrill whistling noise. From the ceiling dropped the intimidating, purple skinned Archfiend Soldier (1900/1500).

"I think Archfiend Soldier should be enough to handle you two." Brian smiled, "Soldier, your target is the Steam Beast! Blade of demise!"

The caped demon lunged forward, unsheathing a wicked looking sword as he did. He swung it through the incorporeal dragon, which immediately dissipated…

Leaving the Burning Beast (1500/1000) behind, looking very agitated.

"What the heck!" Brian shouted, "Where did he come from?"

"Union monsters protect the monsters they attach to." Pikeru explained with a giggle, "If their host would be destroyed in battle, then the union monster goes to the graveyard instead. You beat Burning Beast, but I only lost 400 life points and the Freezing Beast that was equipped to it!"

Pikeru: 9600

Celeste: 5900

Curran: 12000

Brian: 5000

"_I don't have much that I can do to get rid of extra cards." _Brian thought, _"At this rate, their deckmaster powers will wipe the floor with me."_

"I finish my turn by laying one card facedown." Brian stated.

"Then here I go!" Pikeru intoned as she drew, "And I use Frontline base to summon Doitsu (100/200) in defense mode!"

From the gate flew a paper airplane. On it sat a strange figure, which looked like a doll made of brown modeling clay. He carried a Japanese bento box, from which he was eating sushi and rice.

"And now…" Pikeru cheered, waving her staff.

Sparks and flames flew up around the field, and both Brian and Celeste cringed once again.

Pikeru: 10400

Celeste: 5300

Curran: 13600

Brian: 3800

"This…is…bull…" Brian started to curse.

"No naughty language!" Pikeru scolded, "And it's still my turn too. I'm going to set one card facedown, and move Burning Beast into Defense mode. That's all."

A brown card appeared behind the clay man. At the same time, the red Gila monster crouched down. Celeste drew her card.

"I play Mystical Space Typhoon, and use it to destroy Frontline Base!" Celeste shouted.

A sharp blast of wind flew forward, and slammed the doors behind Pikeru and Curran shut. As the portal faded, Pikeru let out a gasp of horror.

"Don't worry sis." Curran assured her partner, "They think they've taken the upper hand, but they didn't realize we each have three copies of that card."

Ignoring this, Celeste placed another card onto her disk.

"I summon Hysteric Fairy (1800/500)." She continued, "And then I'll flip over my facedown monster…"

Next to the facedown card appeared a young business woman with white angel wings. She adjusted her glasses, and smiled as the hidden monster revealed itself. It was a sorceress with purple/red hair, wearing blue robes and a staff tipped with a crescent moon.

"Magician of Faith (300/400)." Celeste smiled, "And with that, I get to recover my Mystical Space Typhoon."

Eldritch energy flowed from Celeste's disk, and formed into a card. Celeste snapped the card from mid-air, and placed it right into her disk again.

"Now I'll use my spell again to destroy your facedown card Pikeru!" Celeste called out.

Pikeru gasped as her card (Magic Cylinder) shattered into digital dust.

"Now, I activate my first facedown card: Windstorm of Etaqua!" Celeste continued, one of her cards lifting.

A rush of wind flew over Pikeru and Curran's side of the field. Giant Orc fell to one knee, while Doitsu stood up on his airplane. Burning Beast moved back into a more aggressive posture, much to Pikeru's dismay.

"No!" Pikeru moaned, "That trap changes the positions of our monsters!"

"That's right." Celeste smiled, "So now, Magician of Faith, destroy Doitsu!"

The Spellcaster swung her staff, and a beam of sparks flew from it. The crashed against the clay figure, who cracked and shattered. The bento box fell to the floor, and spilled before disappearing.

"Hysteric Fairy, wipe out Burning Beast!" Was Celeste's next order.

The woman adjusted her glasses, and a beam of energy flew from her eyes! The laser blast slammed into the reptilian rocks, which burst into pebbles before vanishing.

"And now my deckmaster power lets her attack once more." Celeste continued as Asura Priest glowed with blue light.

She pointed at Pikeru, "Attack Pikeru directly!

The fairy focused her eyes one the cowering child…

When giant Orc rolled into the path! The laser fired, flying right at the huge monster. At the last second, the Second Goblin jumped from Orc's shoulder and took the full brunt of the blast. Pikeru looked to Curran, who had an angry sneer on her face.

"Now listen here missy! No one beats up my sister except me!" Curran shouted, "That's why I sent Giant Orc in to defend her."

"That, and the fact that you knew Second Goblin would take the hit." Brian guessed, "I'll bet you had that all planned out."

"Thank you Curran." Pikeru squeaked.

"Yeah, whatever." Curran sighed, "You done yet, Tinkerbell?"

Celeste's eyes narrowed at Curran, and she shook her head.

"Not quite Curran, I activate Hysteric Fairy's special ability." Celeste explained, "As much as I hate to do this, I'll sacrifice both her and Magician of Faith to give myself 1000 life points."

Hysteric Fairy nodded to Celeste, and held up her book. The ankh on the cover glowed, and both monsters disappeared. The book hovered over Celeste for a minute, and two orbs of light descended into her body. A white glow surrounded her as her life points increased.

Pikeru: 9600

Celeste: 6300

Curran: 13600

Brian: 3800

"That's my turn." Celeste declared.

"_What the…"_ Brian thought, _"Celeste left herself with no monsters on her field. She must be depending on those facedown cards, and my Archfiend Soldier."_

"I draw!" Curran called out as she did so, "And since the first one was so popular, I play one of my copies of Frontline Base!"

Curran put the card in her disk, but as she did Brian's card lifted.

"Guess again Curran, I activate my facedown card!" Brian interrupted, "I played this to try and avoid your draining power, but it looks like it's about to pay off. Go: Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell!"

Curran gasped as the image of her Frontline Base spell card appeared over Brian's head. Brian held up a card (Yami) and put it in his graveyard.

"All I have to do is discard one spell from my hand, and I can negate the activation of one of your spell cards." Brian explained as a pentagram covered the card over his head, "But there's more. Now, you aren't allowed to play Frontline Base for the rest of the duel. And since this is a tag team, the same applies to your partner!"

"Way to go Brian!" Celeste cheered.

"No way!" Curran shouted, "Can I get rid of the seal?"

"Nope." Brian laughed, "Sorry Curran, but my trap isn't a continuous one. Once it's played, its effects can't be reversed."

Curran stomped her foot angrily, and Pikeru looked worried.

"That…wasn't nice." Pikeru protested in a squeaking voice.

"Neither was your strategy!" Brian pointed out.

"And neither is this!" Curran shouted, slamming a card onto her disk, "I summon my second Second Goblin (100/100)!"

Another bald, pink demon, identical to the first one, jumped onto the field. Curran moved his card into her spell/trap zone, and he jumped onto the Giant Orc's back.

"Now then, I'll switch orc back into attack mode…" Curran stated as her monster stood up straight again, "And send it after Celeste! Bone club beatdown!"

The huge demon lumbered forward, and swung his weapon toward Celeste.

"Archfiend…" Brian began to shout to his monster, ready to send it in to intercept the attack.

"Activate Draining Shield!" Celeste interrupted, a silver shield jumping up in front of her, "Now Orc's attack is negated, and his attack points are added…to Brian's life points."

The Orc's club was stopped in midair by the shield, and a wave of light flew from it. It surrounded Brian, bolstering his score.

Pikeru: 9600

Celeste: 6300

Curran: 13600

Brian: 6000

"Oh…Thanks Celeste." Brian smiled, "I didn't think you could use Draining Shield to heal your partner though."

"Neither did I." Curran growled as Giant Orc lumbered back to her, "I end my turn here…"

"Then I'll start mine." Brian declared as he drew.

His eyes went wide as he saw the card in his hand. He smiled, and removed Archfiend Soldier's card.

"My soldier has served me well today; I think I'll let him go AWOL for a bit." Brian explained as he put the new card down, "But I'll make up for it by summoning one of his commanding officers: Great Maju Garzett (0/0)!"

The Archfiend vanished into a blob of shadows. From the blob emerged a new, more horrifying creature. It had gravelly, blue skin covered with armor plates made of red bone. Patches of sickly, yellow hair extended from its hands and the back of its horned skull.

"No attack or defense points?" Pikeru muttered quizzically, "But why?"

"I'm a little fuzzy on that matter myself." Celeste chimed in, giving Brian a confused look.

"Now don't worry ladies." Brian smiled, "My fiend has plenty of power to go around. Mainly because, once he's been tribute summoned, his attack points rise to double the original attack of the monster I used to summon him."

A shadowy version of Archfiend Soldier appeared next to the red fiend, and faded into his body. Great Maju Garzett (3800/0) let out a ferocious roar as newfound strength flowed through it!

"Maju, destroy Giant Orc with channeled darkness attack!" Brian ordered with a dramatic arm sweep.

The demon roared again, and pointed a vile claw toward the orc. A beam of pure darkness flew from it, and headed straight toward the helpless monster. As before though, The Second Goblin perched on its shoulder jumped in the way, and was wiped out.

Pikeru: 9600

Celeste: 6300

Curran: 12000

Brian: 6000

"Hah! I barely felt that." Curran taunted, "And don't think that we're out of tricks just because we lost Frontline Base!"

"I wouldn't dream of it." Brian smirked, "Pikeru, it's your turn."

"R-r-right." Pikeru stammered, staring at the terrifying monster before Brian as she drew.

"Pikeru, don't you dare have a panic attack now." Curran growled through clenched teeth.

"I p-p-play Pot of Gr-greed!" Pikeru choked out as the sinful jar appeared next to her.

She drew two new cards, and carefully looked them over.

"Now I summon Vampire Orchis (1700/1000)." Pikeru declared.

As she played the card, a tree with an evil face and multiple flowers on it rose up behind her. The "flowers" began to snap around, like mouths looking to snatch something out of the air.

"And by its effect, I can special summon Des Dendle (300/2000) in defense mode!" Pikeru declared, placing another card from her hand onto the field.

A slimy patch of moss and mushrooms sprouted from the ground next to Vampire Orchis.

"And since that was a special summon…" Pikeru continued, raising her staff.

"We get to have more fun!" Curran finished for her.

Another wave of white and black magic broke over the four duelists, causing Brian and Celeste to shout in pain again, While Pikeru and Curran enjoyed a nice life point boost.

Pikeru: 10000

Celeste: 5700

Curran: 13200

Brian: 5100

"I am _really, _getting sick of that!" Brian shouted.

"You and me both." Celeste agreed, "Now I know how it feels to be on the receiving end of a 'Cestus of Dalga.'"

"And now, I play the Swords of Revealing Light!" Pikeru finished, placing her last card in her disk.

A cage of glowing sword rained down, surrounding _both _Brian and Celeste.

"Not bad sis." Curran commented, "Now the swords will hold them until each of them takes three turns!"

"What!" Brian protested.

"Tag-team rules." Pikeru smiled, "Next, I equip Des Dendle to my Vampire Orchis."

The moldy monster oozed to the side, and settled itself of the tree's roots.

"Go ahead Celeste." Pikeru invited

Celeste drew a card, and looked over to the Des Dendle equipped tree.

"I summon Zolga (1700/1200)." She stated.

Before the light duelist materialized a figure wearing a purple cape and a metal mask. It hovered about a foot over the floor.

"Umm…Celeste?" Brian chimed in, "I hope you don't mind me asking but…Isn't Zolga an earth monster?"

"Yes, but she's also a fairy." Celeste explained, "And there's no rule that says I have to play _just _light monsters. Besides, you'll thank me once you see her ability."

"Well, if you're sure." Brian shrugged.

"Is that your turn?" Curran asked.

Celeste nodded, and Curran drew.

"Orc, attack her…" Curran began to order.

"Activate Threatening Roar!" Celeste shouted quickly.

A ferocious beast (Manticore of Darkness) rose up behind Celeste as her trap activated. It roared, causing the Orc to stumble backwards. Pikeru let out a squeak of fear, and fell onto her behind!

"Pikeru, you're embarrassing us." Curran muttered to herself as her sister got up.

"Sorry." Pikeru mumbled as she dusted of her robes.

"You should be nicer Curran, Pikeru is trying hard to help you." Celeste scolded, "Don't forget, you two are a team for this duel."

"Don't I know it." Curran sighed, "That's all I wanted to try for my turn, so you're up shadow-boy."

Brian drew, and frowned.

"_Where is my Heavy Storm when I need it?"_ He thought, _"For all I know, they might draw something that could destroy Maju."_

"I set one monster in defense mode." Brian declared, placing a facedown card onto his tray.

The hiding creature materialized in the matching spot, its card showing no indication of what it might be.

"That's all from me." Brian admitted.

Pikeru drew, and let out a joyful squeal. Brian and Celeste just gave each other looks that screamed 'this can't be good.'

"I just drew the toughest monster in my deck!" Pikeru said happily, "So now, I'll unequip Des Dendle from Vampire Orchis…"

"You can do that?" Celeste asked.

"Yep, and it counts as a special summon." Pikeru nodded as the patch of slime moved from the roots back to its starting point.

"Please tell me I didn't just hear that…" Brian moaned as dark and light magic converged on the field again.

Pikeru: 10400

Celeste: 4800

Curran: 14400

Brian: 4200

Brian and Celeste picked themselves up from the ground after the latest assault on their life points.

"And now, I sacrifice both of my monsters…" Pikeru declared.

The two plants faded away into nothing, and a paper airplane soared onto the field. On it was a doll made of blue clay, standing on one hand.

"To summon Koitsu (200/100)" Pikeru finished.

"Oh shoot…" Celeste muttered, "She summoned 'that guy…'"

"What's wrong? That thing is a wimp." Brian observed.

"Looks can be deceiving." Pikeru smiled, "With a little help from Curran, you'll see what I mean. But in the meantime, Celeste can have her turn."

Celeste drew, keeping one eye on the blue doll.

"I summon my own White Magician Pikeru (1200/0)." Celeste announced, putting the card into play.

A perfect doppelganger of the girl they were dueling jumped onto Celeste's side of the field. Pikeru smiled, and blushed a bit, while Curran smacked herself in the face.

"And I thought one was bad…" She muttered under her breath.

"And I'll set two cards on the field to end my turn." Celeste stated as two new cards appeared in her spell/trap zone.

"Then it's my turn." Curran grinned as she drew, "And would you look at this, I drew my Tribute to the Doomed card!"

"Tribute to the Doomed!" Brian gasped as the card was played.

"That's right." Curran nodded as she put a card into her graveyard, "I just discard one card, to destroy one monster. And since you spoke up first, I think it will be your Maju!"

A flurry of white, linen bandages wrapped around the bony demon. It let out a moan, just before being pulled into the ground.

"Next, my Orc will smash Pikeru!" Curran declared.

The dueling Pikeru let out a gasp of horror.

"Not you, hers." Curran assured her sister.

Giant Orc lumbered forward, and swung his weapon right at the child. She screamed, and vanished in a pulse of light. At the same time, one of Celeste's facedown card lifted.

"Go Dimension Wall!" Celeste called out, "Now the damage I would have taken is sent back to you Curran."

Curran grinned smugly as her life points dipped.

Pikeru: 10400

Celeste: 4800

Curran: 13400

Brian: 4200

"Do I look like I care?" Curran laughed, "Thanks to Pikeru, I have life points to burn!"

"You're welcome Curran!" Pikeru said cheerily.

"Well I'm not done yet." Celeste stated as her other card lifted, "I activate Call of the Haunted to revive Pikeru right now."

A spooky purple mist wafted from the trap, and coalesced into the form of the little white mage. She smiled, and waved hello to her dueling counterpart. At the same time, Giant Orc fell into defense position, as per his effect.

"What a waste of time." Curran muttered, "Well I'm not done yet either. I sacrifice my Orc, to summon a monster known as Aitsu (100/100)!"

The mammoth monster vanished, and in his place appeared another airplane. On this one was a doll made from red clay, looking around with a confused look.

"All right, your move loser." Curran smirked.

Brian didn't respond, and drew a new card. Suddenly, the Pikeru in front of Celeste raised her staff, and a sparkling pink aura fell over him!

Pikeru: 10400

Celeste: 4800

Curran: 13400

Brian: 4600

"What the…" Brian gasped as his life points were bolstered.

"Looks like my Pikeru can restore your life points." Celeste observed, "That's a stroke of luck."

"I'll say." Brian nodded, "But for now, I flip my Dark Mimic Lv 1."

Brian's hidden monster turned over, revealing a small treasure chest. The top opened up, revealing several rows of sharp teeth!

"Just by flipping this little guy over, I'm allowed to draw one card." Brian explained as he pulled a card from his deck.

He smiled as he placed the card onto his disk, removing Dark Mimic's card as he did.

"And now I'll sacrifice the mimic, to summon Dark Ruler Ha Des (2450/1600)!" Brian called out.

The treasure box vanished in a flash of black flames. In its place rose an imposing figure. He had green skin, and wore regal looking robes. His eyes glowed with crimson flames, and he held a glass of green wine in one hand.

Curran made an exaggerated yawn, while Pikeru tried to keep a brave face.

"Yeah, whatever." Curran sighed, "Anything else?"

"Yeah, one facedown card." Brian declared, placing a new card into his disk, "Go ahead Pikeru, but remember the swords will wear off after my next turn."

"I'm not scared!" Pikeru responded as she drew, "My sister and I have our trump card on the field."

Pikeru giggled as she played another card.

"But before I get to that, I activate Emergency Provisions! Now I destroy spell and traps I control, and gain 1000 life points for each one. But since Curran likes to spend lots of life points sometimes, I'll give them to her instead."

The swords vanished in a flurry of sparks. Those sparks swooped around Curran, who smiled as her life points were boosted.

Pikeru: 10400

Celeste: 4800

Curran: 14400

Brian: 4600

"Why did you do that?" Brian asked.

"Because it doesn't matter if you can attack any more." Curran answered, "You're not going to want to…"

"…Because I equip my Koitsu to Curran's Aitsu!" Pikeru finished.

The blue and red dolls joined hands, and began to spin around. They merged into a blue and red blur, which slowly turned purple…

And then they stopped. The two dolls had become one: A large purple doll, easily as tall as Giant Orc had been, standing on the floor rather than a paper airplaine.

"Meet Aitsu-Koitsu (3100/100)!" Pikeru and Curran shouted together.

"I was afraid of this…" Celeste sighed, "I had heard of those fairies before, but I never thought anyone would actually use them!"

"And it gets better." Pikeru smiled, "Since my monster is equipped to Curran's we're both allowed to control it. So attack Celeste's Zolga with purple plasma stream!"

The odd fairy raised his arms, and an orb of purple energy appeared in his hands. He pointed it right at Zolga, and the orb swooped forward, only to be intercepted by a trio of robed priestesses.

"What!" Pikeru gasped.

"Did you forget about my facedown card?" Brian challenged, "It's a little trap known as Waboku, and I can use it to save my monsters, or my partner's."

Celeste smiled at Brian, and flashed him an 'okay' sign.

"Thanks Brian." She said, "I'll be sure to take care of that oversized piece of Play-Doh."

"Go for it!" Brian cheered.

"But it's still my turn!" Pikeru protested.

"Can that last card in your hand help?" Brian asked.

Pikeru looked at it, and shook her head 'no.'

"Then is it my turn?" Celeste asked.

Pikeru just nodded. Celeste drew, and let out a triumphant shriek.

"Oh great, the pixy drew something good." Curran realized.

"Yep, but first I need to collect my life points from Pikeru." Celeste pointed out, "Two monsters on my field gives me 800 points."

The Pikeru in Celeste's employ waved her staff, and a shower of sparkles covered the light duelist.

Pikeru: 10400

Celeste: 5600

Curran: 14400

Brian: 4600

"But now, I'll have to sacrifice both Pikeru and Zolga…" Celeste began.

The two monsters turned to Celeste, and bowed before fading away. Celeste placed the card she had drawn onto her disk, as more sparks surrounded her body.

"Of course, I gain another 2000 points since I tributed Zolga…"

Pikeru: 10400

Celeste: 7600

Curran: 14400

Brian: 4600

"…But now I'll summon Guardian Angel Joan (2800/2000)!" Celeste shouted.

Beautiful music filled the chamber, and a radiant orb of light appeared over Celeste's head. The light formed into a human-shaped figure, and slowly faded. A red-haired woman, dressed in pure white robes and a decorative sash slowly hovered to the ground before Celeste.

"So what!" Curran shouted, drawing back slightly at the sight of the fairy, "She's not strong enough to beat our monster!"

"No? I beg to differ." Celeste challenged as she placed her final card into her disk, "I equip her with the Cestus of Dagla!"

A pair of golden, curved blades appeared in the angel's hands. Joan (3300/2000) crossed her arms, holding them near her shoulders.

"Go get 'em Celeste!" Brian cheered.

"Joan, attack Aitsu-Koitsu with celestial strike!" Celeste ordered.

Joan swung the blades forward, and a beam of golden energy flew off! It raced toward the purple doll, which drew back in fear. The beam struck home, and a cloud of violet dust settled over Curran and Pikeru. As it cleared, only the red Aitsu (100/100) was left, sitting confused on it airplane.

"And now my deckmaster ability lets her destroy Aitsu." Celeste continued.

"Very good, yes." Asura priest stated, "Strong in the light, you are."

A blue aura surrounded the oriental fairy, and Joan lashed out again with her weapons. The beam struck home, turning the still-attack-position Aitsu into a pile of red fragments on the floor.

"Now let's see." Brian smiled, "Since this is a tag-team, and Curran's Aitsu had been equipped with Pikeru's Koitsu, you both take 200 damage from the first attack."

"But since the second attack only hit Aitsu, only Curran loses the 3200 from that attack!" Pikeru realized.

"Plus, Joan gives her controller life points equal to the original attack of any monster she destroys in battle, and the Cestus transfer any life points you lose to me." Celeste pointed out with a grin, "That's 3500 overall, but I'm sending them all to my partner since he needs them more."

Joan glowed with a golden light, which spread over to Brian. The dark duelist let out a surprised yelp as a jolt of energy flowed through him.

Pikeru: 10200

Celeste: 7600

Curran: 11000

Brian: 8100

"Wow! That feels amazing!" Brian shouted as the light faded.

"Your turn Curran." Celeste smiled.

"Oh cripes…" Curran muttered as she drew.

A smile crept across her face as she plugged her card in. A flurry of black dust blew across the field, and covered Joan! She began to cough uncontrollably, and diseased patches of green skin formed on her neck, face, and arms.

"What did you do?!" Celeste shouted, staring at her monster with a horrified expression.

"What does it look like I did? I gave her a sickness." Curran snickered, "A deadly one at that, courtesy of my Ekibyo Drackmord equipment card! Now in two turns, Joan will perish from the disease. Until then, she can't attack at all!"

Curran threw back her head in raucous laughter. Pikeru looked a little green herself at the sight of the suffering fairy, but didn't say anything. Celeste was a combination of livid and frightened at the sight of her once-powerful creature.

"Well, now I only have to worry about Ha Des." Curran grinned as she waved to end her turn, "And I can take a few hits still…"

"That so?" Brian challenged as he drew, "Well let me show you a neat little trick…"

"_I just hope Celeste doesn't mind…"_ Brian thought as he played a card.

A strange symbol appeared in front of him. It was reminiscent of an ankh, only much more decorative.

"Hey, Monster Reborn has been banned for tournament use!" Pikeru protested, "You can't play that!"

"This isn't Monster Reborn, though I still don't know why they banned it." Brian explained, "It's a less powerful card known as Monster Reincarnation. I just discard one card like so…"

Brian slid a card into his graveyard, and another one was ejected.

"And I can move any monster in my graveyard back to my hand." Brian finished, "What's more, I just discarded a Night Assailant, so now I can take any flip-effect monster from my graveyard, and put it into my hand as well."

A second card was ejected, and Brian held them both up. They were Great Maju Garzett, and Dark Mimic Lv 1. Curran scoffed a bit at the sight of them.

"Oh please." Sighed the dark sorceress, "You think I believe for one minute that you'd sacrifice Dark Ruler Ha Des? I know you'd have no way to retrieve him."

"I wasn't going to sacrifice Ha Des." Brian stated as he looked to his partner, "Celeste?"

Celeste nodded, and gestured to her sickened monster.

"He's going to sacrifice my Joan." She stated.

A wave of black energy flowed up around the angel, who gasped as she vanished into the darkness. A cloud of black dust was left behind, which soared into Curran's graveyard as her Ekibyo Drackmord card was destroyed. In place of Joan, the hulking fiend in his red-exoskeletal armor reappeared.

"Now then, Joan's original attack strength was 2800." Brian explained, "So when we double that…"

Pikeru and Curran's eyes went wide as Maju (5600/0) growled at them. They drew back in fear as Brian pointed to Pikeru.

"Time to clean up! Ha Des, attack Pikeru with dark flames of Purgatory!" Brian shouted.

Pikeru screeched as the fiendish king shot a blast of black flames from his hand. They washed over Pikeru, who fell to the ground!

"Maju, your target is Curran! Channeled darkness!" Brian commanded.

The giant fiend roared, and a wave of black energy flew from his mouth. Curran screamed in pain and fear as she was blown back to the wall!

Pikeru: 7750

Celeste: 7600

Curran: 5400

Brian: 8100

"That's all." Brian grinned, "Oh, and since I sacrificed my partner's monster to summon Maju, she's allowed to control him also. If she wants to that is…"

"I'll keep that in mind." Celeste nodded, giving the demon a mixed look of respect and disgust.

Trembling, Pikeru drew a new card. She let out a yelp of surprise, and (almost dropping the card) slid it into her disk.

"I play Card of Sanctity!" She shouted, a blast of golden light filling the room, "Now we each draw until we hold six cards!"

"Pikeru, you moron! That helps them as much as it does us!" Scolded Curran

Pikeru and Curran each drew five cards, Celeste drew six, and Brian drew three. Pikeru smiled, and set four cards into her tray. Two facedown cards, and a hidden monster appeared before her. At the same time, a wave of Magic shot at Maju, forcing it to its knees!

"Huh?" Brian commented as his monster fell to defense mode.

"Guess Maju didn't like my Block Attack card." Pikeru giggled as she held the card to her opponents, "It changes on monster from attack mode to defense mode, and he has zero defense! And if you were thinking of turning him back, well…"

Pikeru slid one last card into her disk, and a series of chains shot from the floor, holding the demon in place!

"Think again! My Flint spell will drop Maju's attack by 300, and keep you from changing his position!"

Maju (5300/0) groaned, and struggled against the bonds. Brian winced as he realized one of his strongest monsters was now paralyzed.

"Until we have a shot at you guys, my facedown monster and these two cards will hold you off." Pikeru smiled as she bounced on her toes a bit, "Your turn Celeste!"

Celeste drew, and winced as she looked over her hand.

"_Not a good time for a magic pocket!"_ She thought, _"I don't have a single monster to summon. And my only non-spell card is this trap…_"

Celeste slid the card into her disk, and it materialized facedown before her.

"One facedown, and it's Curran's turn." She sighed.

"Yeah, that's a lousy bluff." Curran sneered as she drew.

"_I hope Brian understands that was all I can do…"_ Celeste thought.

"Well well, I just drew my Premature Burial card!" Curran laughed as she played the card she'd drawn, "I'll use it to resurrect Aitsu (100/100)…"

The red doll and his paper transport reappeared in front of the black-robed child. Curran's body was surrounded by dark flames.

"And now…" Curran called out.

For the umpteenth time, Brian and Celeste were forced to their knees by a wave of black magic. Pikeru and Curran were both giggling as their life points were boosted again.

Pikeru: 8550

Celeste: 5800

Curran: 7800

Brian: 6300

"That's the last time you two are going to do that!" Brian shouted.

"Maybe, but it's the last time we'll need to." Pikeru chimed in, "I activate Roll Out!"

One of her two cards lifted, revealing the image of a complex looking robot. A card floated from Pikeru's disk, and plugged into it.

"Now I can select a union monster in my graveyard, and attach it to its proper monster on the field." Pikeru explained as Koitsu reappeared.

"So say hello to Aitsu-Koitsu (3100/100) again!" Curran shouted as the two small dolls once more joined into the giant, purple one.

Brian and Celeste both gulped as they stared at the huge creature. Curran pointed her finger at the area between the two of them, and smiled.

"The only question now is who to attack." She grinned, her finger moving back and forth between them, "How about…Celeste! No more restoring life points for you two once she's out of the way!

The doll raised his hands, gathering another blast of purple energy. Celeste cringed as it flew towards her…

And a wall of brown fuzzballs jumped into the path of the attack. They were squeaking, and had large eyes. They looked exactly like…

"Kuriboh?" Celeste gasped as the wall was blown apart.

Celeste was unharmed. Looking toward Brian, she gasped as she saw his deckmaster hovering in the air next to Maju.

"Brian, your deckmaster!" Celeste shouted.

"Just saved you a few life points." Brian smirked, "Once per duel, Kuriboh's deckmaster power can shield one of us from a direct attack. But to do so, he has to move to the field."

"Stupid move." Scowled Curran, "If I destroy that dust bunny, you're out of the duel."

"Maybe, but I'll worry about that." Brian smiled, "Anything else you want to try?"

Curran looked at her remaining hand, her scowl becoming deeper, and shook her head. Brian drew, and smiled as he turned his card toward the twins.

It was Mystical Space Typhoon.

"Uh-oh…" The girls muttered as Brian played the spell.

A blast of wind shot forward, wiping out Aitsu's Premature Burial card. The purple doll groaned, and collapsed into a pile of dust on the floor.

"Now that that's out of the way…" Brian smirked, "I summon my own Giant Orc (2200/0)."

Brian played the monster, and his own version of the huge fiend lumbered forward. It held its club over one shoulder, looking fairly relaxed at the moment.

"Ha Des, destroy Pikeru's facedown monster." Brian smirked.

The fiendish ruler launched his black flames, only for them to be spun aside by Pikeru's facedown card lifting up.

"My Negate Attack trap stops your attack and your battle phase!" Pikeru panted, now clearly worried.

"Shoot." Brian grumbled as he placed another card in his tray, "I'll lay this facedown and then I'm done."

Pikeru drew, and a huge grin crossed her face. She slammed her new card down, and another paper airplane flew onto the field.

"I summon another Doitsu (100/200) in attack mode!" Pikeru declared as a second copy of the bento-eating clay doll landed in front of her.

"And then I flip over my facedown monster: Soitsu (0/0)!" She continued.

Her facedown monster turned over, revealing a green doll that was making bodybuilder poses on its paper airplane.

"Let me guess, these two are union monsters." Celeste sighed.

"Yep." Pikeru nodded, "So now, I equip Doitsu to Soitsu to make Soitsu-Doitsu (2600/0)!"

The two dolls began to swoop wildly around the room, until they collided in front of Pikeru. There was a flash of light, and a yellow doll, about the same height as the two teens, now stood before the childhood white mage.

"And next, I equip him with Fairy Meteor Crush." Pikeru continued, placing one of her last two cards into her disk, "So now he deals damage through defense."

The doll started to glow with red flames, and slammed its fists together.

"Attack Kuriboh!" Pikeru ordered!

The giant toy dashed forward, and swung a clay fist toward the miniscule fiend…

"I respond with Interdimensional Matter Transporter!" Brian shouted as his card activated, "And I'll use it to remove my deckmaster for one turn!"

The mini-fiend squeaked in fear, but vanished in a burst of light just a second before the attack hit. Pikeru frowned, but then smiled once more.

"Well, since you changed the number of monsters on your field, I can recall my attack." She said, "And seeing as Great Maju Garzett has no defense points, I think I'll attack him instead!"

The clay monster turned to the bound fiend, and lifted up a massive fist. It slammed its target with a powerful punch, releasing a shockwave that knocked both Brian and Celeste to the floor!

Pikeru: 8550

Celeste: 3200

Curran: 7800

Brian: 3700

"Since you both controlled that monster, you both take the damage." Curran reminded them, "Not exactly a bright move there."

"What's more, since the monster that Flint was attached to was destroyed, I can reequip it to another monster." Pikeru said with an innocent smile, "I choose Giant Orc!"

The orc (1900/0) groaned as the chains launched from where Maju had been kneeling and wrapped around him. Pikeru smiled, and turned to her sister, who gave her an angry look.

"You unbelievable moron!" Curran screamed, "You should have put it on Ha Des, he's stronger!"

Pikeru cringed, and looked crushed.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, sounding near tears, "But…but my monster is stronger than any of his anyway…"

Curran sighed, and shook her head. Pikeru just waved a hand to end her turn. Kuriboh reappeared with a squeak, and looked around confused.

Celeste drew, and quickly played the card.

"I activate Graceful Charity." She stated, an angel swooping over her head.

A shower of sparks fell onto the light duelist as she drew three cards. She then placed two into her graveyard, and smiled as she opened her field slot.

"And now for a card I haven't used in this tournament yet…" Celeste announced as she placed a card into the slot.

A wave of white, puffy clouds filled the area, and behind Celeste rose a huge palace! It was white and gold, with beautiful gardens all around it.

"The Sanctuary in the Sky!" Celeste shouted, "In this hallowed palace, No player can take any battle damage during a fight involving a fairy-type they control."

Brian let out a low whistle, while Pikeru and Curran looked around in awe. As they did, Celeste's facedown card lifted.

"And now, I activate my trap card, Light of Judgment." Celeste proclaimed.

The castle behind her began to shimmer with even more dazzling lights. Pikeru 'oohed' over the light show, while Curran and Brian shielded their eyes.

"Now, I just discard one creature of light from my hand…" Celeste explained as she discarded a Shining Angel.

Over her head appeared a young man wearing a white toga. He hovered on golden wings, and a piercing light shone from his body.

"And now, one card on your field is destroyed." Celeste stated, "And I choose Soitsu!"

Pikeru let out a small 'eep' of fear as the light from the angel's body focused on her monster. It moaned, and was vaporized in the blink of an eye.

"Now then, Brian, can I borrow a monster?" Celeste asked, turning to her teammate.

"I'd be insulted if you didn't." Brian responded.

"Thanks." Celeste nodded as she added a card to her disk, "Then I tribute Brian's Gaint Orc to summon my Agent of Judgement Saturn (2400/0)!"

The Orc vanished, the chains falling to the ground and vanishing in a puff of smoke. In front of Celeste rose an imposing figure. It was a purple-skinned angel, at least six feet tall, wearing white robes with blue wings extending from her shoulders. She had a solemn look on her face, emanating a feeling of both confidence and intimidation.

"2400 attack points!" Pikeru squeaked, "Uh oh…"

"And next, my own Premature Burial." Celeste smiled, "Bringing back someone you may remember…"

Celeste played the card, and an orb of light jumped from her disk. It began to transform, and then faded, leaving behind Guardian Angel Joan (2800/2000) in all of her glory.

Pikeru: 8550

Celeste: 2400

Curran: 7800

Brian: 3700

"And next, I remove Shining Angel and White Magician Pikeru from my graveyard." Celeste stated.

The monsters she had named floated from their resting place. Their translucent spirits hovered before the girl, and then faded away.

"To summon my favorite monster, Soul of Purity and Light (2000/1800)." Celeste intoned.

Behind Celeste rose the silvery spirit maiden. She gently draped her arms across the teen's shoulders, and spread her wings behind the two of them.

"Last but not least, I move my deckmaster to the field." Celeste called out.

"My command, your wish is." Said Asura Priest as he floated in front of his controller.

Celeste gave Pikeru an apologetic look, and the tiny white magician began to quiver with fear.

"Sorry Pikeru, but I can't have you boosting your life points anymore." Celeste apologized, "Everybody, attack Pikeru!"

Pikeru screamed bloody murder as a huge influx of light and energy (and daggers) flew right at her. She ducked, covered, and was consumed by the blast. As it faded away, she was seen lying next to the wall, her eyes spinning in two different directions.

Pikeru: 0

Celeste: 2400

Curran: 7800

Brian: 3700

"I hope she's okay." Celeste fretted.

"I'd be more worried about Curran." Brian smiled, "After all, my fiends aren't going to be as nice with her."

Curran gulped .

"Well, I'll lay one card facedown to end my turn and, due to the rules of using Spirit monsters as deckmasters, Asura Priest stays where he is." Declared Celeste, "And I apologize Pikeru!"

"'polgy accepted." Pikeru muttered weakly as she lay on the ground.

"You two…Will pay for what you have done to my sister!" Curran roared as she drew, "I'll eliminate both of you!"

Curran grinned maniacally as she slapped another card onto her disk. In front of her rose another Giant Orc (2200/0), this one seeming very mad.

"I don't like that look of hers." Celeste muttered to Brian.

"You two are finished." Curran laughed, "I activate Double Attack!"

"And that does…what exactly?" Brian asked as the card was played.

"Simple, I choose one monster on the field." Curran explained as her Giant Orc began to shimmer with a black aura, "Then I discard one monster of a higher level from my hand…like my second Aitsu."

Curran sent another copy of the red toy to her cemetery, and the black aura flared up.

"And now my monster can attack twice in one turn!" Curran shouted, "And in case it didn't sink in, he's stronger than both of your deckmasters!"

"NO!" Brian shouted.

"Destroy Asura Priest, and then Kuriboh!" Curran ordered.

The orc dashed forward, raising his club as he aimed at the blue-skinned monster…

When three priestesses jumped into his path! The orc stumbled, and Curran's face contorted into a look of rage.

"WHAT HAPPENED!!!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

The entire room actually seemed to shake from the force!

"Temper, temper." Celeste smiled, pointing to her now face up trap, "Your monster couldn't hurt us because of _my_ Waboku card. And thanks to his own ability, he'll go to defense mode at the end of your battle phase."

Brian wiped his brow and placed a hand on his chest.

"_Okay heart, resume beating."_ He coached.

"Nice save Celeste." Brian congratulated, trying very hard not to sound worried.

"NO!!" Curran bawled, "THAT'S NOT FAIR! I HAD YOU!! I…WAS…SO…CLOSE!!!!!"

"Close only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and tactical nukes." Celeste responded, "Done with your tantrum yet?"

Curran's face was turning purple, but she made no move to indicate whether or not she was continuing.

"I'll give you twenty seconds, then just make my move anyway." Brian warned.

Curran took a few deep breaths, and her orc fell to a defending position.

"Your…move!" She spat at Brian.

"Thank you." Brian nodded as he drew, "I think I'll start it by playing Brain Control."

A huge brain appeared next to the fiend duelist as he played the card. It extended a pair of misty arms toward the giant beast, and dragged it away from Curran.

Pikeru: 0

Celeste: 2400

Curran: 7800

Brian: 2900

"For the low cost of 800 life points, I can command one of your monsters for a turn." Brian smiled, "And now I command it to go to the graveyard, to make way for my favorite monster…"

The larger monster shattered, and a group of bats gathered on the field. They swooped around, and formed into a pale-skinned man with green hair, wearing a black tuxedo and blood-red cape. He smiled at Curran, showing a pair of sharp fangs.

"…Vampire Lord (2000/1500)!" Brian smiled, "He may not be a fiend, but I just can't bear leaving him out of my deck."

The vampire gave Brian an appreciative nod, while Curran shot him a confused look.

"Why did you sacrifice my monster for one that's so much weaker?" Curran shouted.

"So that my deckmaster could get even with you for laughing at him." Brian explained as Kuriboh huffed angrily, "Oh, and since Celeste used my monster to summon Saturn, I can control it as well. If I may that is…"

"I'd be insulted if you didn't." Celeste smiled (trying not to laugh) as Saturn bowed to Brian.

"Thank you." Brian nodded, "Before I get to that though, I have three cards left in my hand, and I intend to use them."

Brian plugged all three of his remaining cards into the disk, and three glowing orbs appeared on the field behind Kuriboh.

"These things were taking up space in my hand for the longest time, but now I've got the chance I need to use them." Brian smiled, "They're known as Dark Energy, and when I equip them to a fiend-type monster, that monster gains 300 attack and defense points. I think I'll give all three of them to Kuriboh…"

The orbs began to glow, and each one fired a bolt of green lightening into the fuzzy fiend. It squeaked in surprise as its body began to glow with dark energy, and its attack sky rocketed to (1200/1100). It was still small compare to the other monsters, but it was obviously stronger than it had been before.

"…Hmm…I honestly wasn't sure what would happen to Kuriboh when I used those. Live and learn I guess." Brian shrugged, before pointing at Curran, "Now then, Ha Des, Saturn, Vampire Lord, in that order, all of you go at her directly!"

A blast of black fire, a wave of light, and a barrage of bats (from Vampire Lord's cape) rushed toward Curran. She screamed as the overwhelming blast knocked her onto her back.

Getting back up, she heard Brian yell, "Kuriboh, finish her off!"

Curran gasped as the mini-demon flew toward her. She then sneered as it stopped right in front of her.

"Wait, how's this thing supposed to hurt me?" She asked.

As if in response, Kuriboh began to pulse with waves of energy…

And then an explosion filled Curran's side of the field! The dark magician child screamed as she flew backward, joining her sister at the wall. Kuriboh squeaked joyfully at the sight, and returned to Brian.

"Kuriboh attacks by…" Brian began.

"Self…destruction…got it." Curran groaned.

Pikeru: 0

Celeste: 2400

Curran: 0

Brian: 2900

Both girls lay on the ground, moaning in pain. Brian and Celeste's monsters all cheered and vanished into sparkles of light and darkness.

"Nice work Celeste." Brian smiled.

"Great job Brian." Celeste said, returning the grin.

Curran and Pikeru groaned as they got up. Pikeru was clutching her head, and Curran seemed quite put off.

"I can't believe they beat us." She growled to her sister.

"I can." Pikeru muttered in a dizzy manner, "They're really strong duelists."

"Are you okay?" Celeste asked, walking over to the girls.

"Never better." Curran huffed, waving her hand, "Here, take your stupid points and leave!"

Pikeru waved a free hand, and twelve points of light appeared in the air. Six flew toward Brian, and the other six went to Celeste. Both of them smiled as their counters shot up to ten each, and turned gold. Brian's counter was replaced by a fourteen, and Celeste's by a fifteen.

"Guess they only need one more finalist." Brian guessed as the numbers faded.

"Now get out of here!" Curran shouted.

"Doesn't work that way." Celeste said, "We still get a prize for winning, remember?"

"I was kind of hoping you didn't." Curran grumbled, "Okay then, one minute."

Curran and Pikeru walked to the center of the chamber, and tapped on the floor. A small tower rose up, with several cards all over it.

"Okay then, you each get two cards." Curran said, pointing at the tower.

"Take any that you like!" Pikeru invited.

Brian and Celeste walked over to the column, and looked over it.

"_Hmm…Warrior of Zera and Archlord Zerato." _Celeste thought as she took the pair of cards, _"I've heard of these, but I never thought I'd see them!"_

"_These look promising…" _ Brian said to himself as he removed two cards from the column, _"Masked Beast Des Gaurdias and Mask of Remnants. These are rare, powerful, and _great _for my deck. And now I have an excuse to use that one trap in my side deck…"_

"Happy now?" Curran sneered.

Brian and Celeste both nodded, and began to fade.

"Great, now leave!" Curran shouted.

"Bye-bye!" Pikeru waved.

The light and dark duelists vanished completely. Pikeru and Curran both sat down back-to-back, and looked around the room.

"So how do we get out of this maze?" Pikeru asked.

Curran sighed, and just placed her head in her hands.

"Warm up the tank." She sighed.

_**I'll just say this now: Those deckmaster powers were annoying.**_

_**Now if only I could settle on one deckmaster…**_

_**Ah well, I'm in the finals, so is Celeste. Mako, Zeffie, and Gold have all made it…**_

_**Wait, what about my brother? Tim needs to work fast if he wants to be a finalist. And his eliminator opponent isn't going down easy.**_

_**How are you supposed duel against the law? Guess you'll find out next time in**_

_**Justice for All**_

_**See ya!**_

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Asura Priest

LIGHT

Fairy/Spirit

Four stars

1700 attack

1800 defense

Backup Dagger: When a Fairy-type monster you control successfully destroys another monster in battle, that fairy may attack a second time in a row. This power can not be used twice on the same monster.

---

Kuriboh

DARK

Fiend

One star

300 attack

200 defense

Kuriboh Barricade: When your opponent declares a direct attack, you may special summon this monster to your field in face up attack mode to negate the attack.

_Kuriboh served as Yugi's deckmaster in the anime saga "Isolated in Cyber Space." All creative credit for its deckmaster power goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

White Magician Pikeru

LIGHT

Spellcaster

Four Stars

1200 attack

0 defense

Blessing: Anytime a monster is special summoned to your field, increase your life points by 400 times the number of cards in your hand.

---

Ebon Magician Curran

DARK

Spellcaster

1200 attack

0 defense

Hex: Anytime a monster is special summoned to your field, decrease your opponent's life points by 300 times the number of cards in their hand.


	23. Justice for All

_**Hey, it's Tim again!**_

_**A lot has been going on since you last saw me. Apparently, there's been a lot of duels.**_

_**There's just one tiny problem: I haven't been in enough of them!**_

_**Does that sound fair to you?**_

_**Oh well, I guess they saved the best for last.**_

_**Too bad the 'best' is just a program…**_

**Justice for All**

Inside the dark room where Mokuba had imprisoned the Big Five, the former villains were doing all in their power to escape.

At least, three of them were. Nesbitt, Lector, and Gansley (barely visible as shadowy figures within the dim room) were busy mulling around the literal firewall that kept them prisoner within their own base of operations. Occasionally, one of them would test the strength of an area by placing a hand against it, only to be forced back as the flames rose again.

Sitting at the table in the center of the room, Johnson and Krupp were both recuperating from their latest attempts to get out.

"How much time do you think is left?" Johnson asked.

"Well…If Mokuba wasn't bluffing I'd guess we have about…One hour." Krupp responded, idly twirling a pencil in one hand, "Of course, that's a worst-case scenario."

"I say, better safe than sorry." Lector responded, glaring at his cohorts, "Now get up and get back to work!"

"Hey, you didn't run headfirst into that stupid firewall." Johnson complained, "I still smell like burning hair…"

"It grew back, now quit whining!" Nesbitt retorted.

"Gentlemen…" Gansley called out.

"Well it still stings a bit." Johnson shouted.

"I don't care if it hurts like the devil. You're helping bust down this firewall." Lector growled, "And so are you Krupp."

"I've formulated and calculate every angle of this wall." Krupp complained, "It is, for lack of a better term, perfect."

"Excuse me…" Gansley tried.

"No security system is perfect." Nesbitt responded.

"This one is." Krupp said.

"No it's not." Gansley shouted quickly, "I found a gap!"

The other four looked up from their argument, and saw Gansley now stood next to a ring of flames. The ring was about four feet in diameter, large enough for a relatively thin adult to jump through.

"That's our exit?" Lector asked.

"Apparently, as Mokuba's attempts to undermine the firewalls we placed over our own programs, he's unwittingly undone a part of this one." Gansley smiled, "Unfortunately, it's too small for most of us to fit through…"

Before Nesbitt or Krupp could ask any questions, Johnson jumped to his feet.

"Well, guess that leaves it to me." He smiled.

"Now wait just one…" Krupp began.

Johnson dashed forward, and leapt straight ahead, going head-first through the ring. Gansley and the others stood in shocked silence, as the fire ring closed up behind their fleeing coworker.

"Well, I guess our continued existence relies on Johnson." Lector observed.

Gansley sighed, and bowed his head.

"We're doomed." He said simply.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"…And he'll regret _ever _being born!" Joey finished ranting as the teleport program ring faded from around him.

The blond stumbled a bit, and looked around. He now stood in a large field, with no signs of any forests, cities, or other life (aside from green grass and some yellow flowers).

"Well…This ain't so bad." Joey shrugged, looking around.

He stopped, and squinted his eyes. Several yards away sat a familiar figure who was standing up and pocketing something. Joey smiled, recognizing the signature spiked hair of his best friend.

"Hey, Yugi!" Joey shouted, running toward his buddy.

The figure turned around, revealing it was indeed Yugi, and smiled as he ran toward Joey.

"Joey, you made it!" Yugi cheered as the two reached each other.

They quickly exchanged a high-five, and smiled.

"So, who did you duel for your last points?" Yugi asked.

"You wouldn't believe me." Joey said.

"Try me, I'm gullible." Yugi smirked, "Don't forget, I dueled Dark Magician earlier."

"Alright." Joey smiled, "I dueled Flame Swordsman. And won."

"Flame Swordsman? I wonder if Kaiba planned it like that?" Yugi asked.

"Speaking of Kaiba, have you seen him?" Joey asked, "I want a few words with him about the prizes he gives out at these parties of his."

"Nope, but this is a big field." Yugi said, looking around, "I'd bet it's designed to hold all the finalists, with minimum chance of them finding each other."

"Why would Kaiba keep us all separated?" Joey asked.

Yugi shrugged.

"Not sure. Maybe he doesn't want any preparing their decks to counter a potential opponent." Yugi suggested.

"Yeah, that makes sense." Joey nodded, "So, guess we just sit around for a while?"

"Looks like it." Yugi nodded.

The two looked around at the idyllic scenery. Joey yawned, and stretched a bit.

"Okay, yeah, let's see if we can find anyone else." Joey offered.

"Good idea." Yugi nodded.

With that, the two started off in the direction they were facing.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Far on the other side of the virtual field, Mr. Gold was enjoying a happy reunion of his own with Zeffie. The wind duelist was her usual bundle of energy, bouncing on her heels as she related each of her duels in excruciating detail.

"And then Mr. Richington told his big Muka to attack, and Zeffie got to use her deckmaster!" Zeffie smiled, "She bounced Muka right back to his hand, then summoned her three big birdies and splatted him!"

"Nice work Zef." Gold smiled, "You're gonna be the kid to beat around here."

"Zeffie? Mr. Gold?" A new voice called out.

The duo turned around, and smiled as Mako Tsunami ran up to them.

"Fancy meeting you two here." Mako smiled, "So, you made it to the finals?"

Before Zeffie could start her tale over again, Gold placed a restraining hand on her shoulder.

"Yep." He responded simply.

"And Zeffie had a bunch of cool duels!" Zeffie cheered, "Oooh, Zeffie hopes Serenity made it! It would be great if Zeffie and Serenity could duel again!"

"Okay, calm down." Mako smiled, trying to calm the girl.

Suddenly, two rings of light fell to the ground, and out of them emerged Brian and Celeste.

"You know, this teleporting thing is actually kind of…" Brian began.

"Bri-Bri!" Zeffie cheered, tackling the teen in a tight embrace and knocking him over.

"Ack!" Brian shouted as he hit the ground.

Celeste snickered a bit as the dark duelist attempt to undo the death lock Zeffie had around his spine.

"Oh, Zeffie…Wasn't expecting to see you yet…" Brian gasped out.

"Hi Zeffie." Celeste smiled.

"Celesty!" Zeffie cheered, releasing Brian and jumping toward the older girl.

Gold placed another hand on Zeffie's shoulder, holding her back once more.

"Come on Zef, you already gave Celeste a hug today." Gold reminded her.

"Oh yeah." Zeffie said, calming down.

"So, you two must have done pretty well." Mako said, looking to Brian and Celeste.

"Let's just say that, when it comes to tag-team duels, Celeste is no slouch." Brian said.

"You're not bad yourself. I've had worse partners." Celeste smiled.

"You tag-teamed for your last points?" Mako asked.

"Against a pair of eliminators." Brian nodded, "Six points and two rare cards apiece."

"We made out well in that deal." Celeste smiled.

Before this conversation could continue, yet another ring appeared. Out of this one, just ten feet away from the others, stepped Tim. His eyes went wide as he saw his friends standing in a group nearby.

"Guys!" Tim shouted, running toward them.

The others turned to him, just in time to see him stop short and fall to his back, like he had just run into a wall.

"Tim?" Brian shouted, running toward his brother, "Hey Bro, you okay?"

Tim picked himself up, holding his head.

"Who...Put…That wall…There?" He asked.

Brian cautiously reached forward, and as he did a shimmering barrier of yellow light appeared around his hand. He blinked, and gave the barrier a quick tap with his knuckles. A small wave of yellow pulse through the air around them, spreading out into the sky and ground.

"It _is_ an invisible wall." Brian noted, "Must be here to keep duelists from getting in."

"But you guys are in there." Tim pointed, "What gives?"

"We got teleported in here." Celeste explained.

"Weird." Gold grumbled, "The barrier has to let you through for something, right?"

"Maybe it's points." Zeffie smiled, "Zeffie has ten points, Goldie has ten points, Mako has ten points…"

Tim's eyes were now widening in panic.

"Wait, do all of you have ten points?" He asked.

The other five all nodded, solemnly.

"Well…How many spots are left for the finals?" Tim asked.

"Well, I'm in the eighth spot." Mako said.

"I've got twelve." Gold said.

"Eleven!" Zeffie cheered.

"I'm fourteen." Brian muttered, "And Celeste…"

Celeste tapped her disk, and a golden fifteen appeared over her head.

"I think there's only one spot left." She winced.

Tim's eye twitched a bit, and he frantically began to look around as if expecting an opponent to materialize out of thin air.

"Oh geeze, what am I gonna do?" He shouted, starting to dash around in a small circle.

"You don't have ten points?" Zeffie asked.

"I only have eight!' Tim responded, "I was out for the first forty-five minutes of the tournament!"

"You'd better hurry up." Celeste advised, "No telling who might be dueling for their last points right now. I met some decent duelists today…"

The other four nodded in agreement, which surprisingly enough did nothing to ease Tim's anxiety.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In a separate area of the virtual world, behind one of the doors that Mokuba had been strolling past earlier, sat a room filled with coffin sized tubes. Inside each of these tubes floated a Duel Monsters card, with a ghostly image of the monster they represented hovering around them. A few of the tubes had 'Closed for Repairs' written on them, while others were just empty.

It was this room that Johnson now found himself in, looking around the different monsters.

"Okay, no time to waste." He muttered, "I need someone that's leaving now…"

He started down the nearest line, and looked over each monster as he passed.

"Hmm…Lord of Dragons, no…Mystic Horseman, too hairy…Green Phantom King, murder on my sinuses…Cyber Tutu…" Johnson shuddered bit, "Never again."

A loud buzzer echoed through the room, and several of the tubes began to slide across the floor. Realizing he was running short of time, Johnson ran to the nearest one and plunged his hand into it. Ghost like, his arms went through the glass and snatched the card right out of the tube.

"It's just a simple matter of removing the core data and replacing it with mine." Johnson smiled as he shredded the card.

He floated the rest of the way into the tube, and closed his eyes. The tube reached the exit to the room and slowly opened up to brilliant sunlight…

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"There must be someone to duel around here!" Tim shouted.

"Now calm down…" Brian coached.

"Hey, look!" Zeffie smiled, pointing upward toward a black speck, "It's a bird!"

"It's a plane." Mako said as the speck grew larger.

"It's…Oh damn!" Tim shouted, dashing away from the point of impact of the falling object.

The object slammed into the ground, making a fair sized dent. The dent immediately repaired itself, the ground evening out again. The Elemental Duelists all looked at the new figure standing outside the barrier.

The man that stood before them was easily six feet tall. He had strapping muscles, covered by a black body suit, which in turn was decorated with armor that looked like bones. He wore a skull-like mask that covered his entire face, and a red cape fanned behind him.

The figure looked around at the six duelists, and gave a half hearted smile.

"Oh, um…pardon me." He said, "I just sort of…dropped in I guess."

"_Ugh, which monster did I possess?" _Johnson wondered, looking at the six before him, _"Please not Cyber Tutu. The others would never let me live it down…"_

"Hey, you're Zombyra the Dark." Zeffie smiled, "You're a Duel Monster."

"Oh, you guys can see him too?" Tim asked, "So I'm not crazy."

"_Zombyra, that superhero monster?"_ Johnson thought, _"Well, I could have done worse I suppose. Better act like a hero…Shouldn't be too hard."_

The skull-faced monster leaned down close to Zeffie.

"Are you a fan of mine, little girl?" He asked.

"Not really…But Zeffie beat up your card during a duel today." Zeffie responded.

"_I had to wind up dealing with a kid._" Johnson lamented, _"Ugh…I don't have time to stand around. Besides, this is the finalist waiting area. I should have an access point to the others somewhere around here."_

"Does anyone want to tell me why a Duel Monster is walking around here without a duelist?" Tim asked.

"I quote Pikeru and Curran 'We're obviously computer programs and we're doing what we were programmed to do.'" Celeste smiled.

"Yeah." Brian nodded, "Tim, this guy is an eliminator! If you duel him and win. You can get the last few points you need."

"_WHAT!"_ Johnson thought, _"I have the worst timing in the world. I didn't even see what kind of deck this monster has!"_

"Actually, I need to be going to my designated…" Zombyra/Johnson began.

He turned around, only to see Tim turn on his duel disk with a grin.

"Where do you think you're going?" Tim asked, "I need two more points for the finals. If I don't win a duel soon, I won't make it anyway so I might as well duel against an eliminator."

"_If I try to run it might look suspicious._" Johnson realized, _"I'll take him out fast."_

The other five watched as Zombyra flung his cape out behind him, setting it fanning in an unfelt breeze. He seemed a bit out of place in the sunny meadow, but still exuded an aura of heroic confidence.

"So young duelist, you wish to face the powers of justice?" He challenged, "Ha, and ha again! You stand no chance against the champion of the night: Zombyra the Dark!"

"How about you put your life points where your mouth is." Tim smiled, his deckmaster choices appearing.

Zombyra held one hand over his head, and the bone armor on it began to shift. It merged, stretched, and warped until it formed the shape of a duel disk, and a deck of cards appeared on it.

"Ew…" Zeffie moaned.

"Okay, I use Fiend-monsters and even I thought that was unpleasant." Brian commented.

"They can't all be pretty." Celeste pointed out, "Although I'd rather not have seen that."

Johnson focused for a minute. The technique that he and his partners had been using to possess deckmasters thus far allowed them immediate knowledge of their host's deck and deckmaster ability. He had rushed it a bit, and now was concentrating on recovering that particular bit of data. Within a minute though, he knew the basics of the deck he held and the power he wielded.

"_I have less than an hour._" He coached himself, _"And as much as I hate to admit it, I need Lector and the others…For now."_

Tim, in the meantime, was running finger past his monsters.

"Okay, I'll try you this time." He stated, jabbing at one of them, "Hey Zombyra, is that armor real bone?"

"Yes." Zombyra responded.

"Good, my deckmaster will love chewing on it once we're done." Tim smiled, "Here boy!"

A huge hole opened behind Tim, and out of it leapt the orange-and-purple, three-headed horror known as the Flame Cerebrus.

"Finally! A chance to stretch my legs." The middle head shouted.

"Ugh…Whine, whine, whine, that's all you ever do." The right head responded.

"Oh could you two stop arguing for once, we've got work to do." The left head snapped.

"_This is a migraine I could do without._" Johnson thought.

"Okay Flame Cerebrus, what do you do?" Tim asked.

"Well, as guardian of the underworld we watch over the souls and enter and leave." The left head stated.

"Our deckmaster power is called Guardian of the Underworld, after us." The center head continued.

"If you discard a monster from your hand, you can special summon a monster from your graveyard." The right head grinned, "But the resurrected monster has to have a star level equal to or less than the discarded monster."

"Got it." Tim smiled, "Okay, very little time for lame jokes so let's light this candle."

"Very well, I shall smite thee with the deck of justice!" Zombyra shouted.

"And away we go." Brian commented, taking a seat, "Well, this should be fun to watch."

Zombyra: 8000

Tim: 8000

"I'll let you choose the first or second turn." Zombyra offered as he and Tim drew five cards each.

"You go first spandex, I insist." Tim said, looking at his hand.

"Very well, then I'll start the duel with my deckmaster power." Zombyra declared, "Cry for justice!"

The hero tilted his head back, and let out an ear-splitting roar. The sound echoed across the field, and a card flew out his deck. Tim and the spectators all covered their ears in pain as Zombyra's scream finally died down.

"Okay, what did that do?" Tim asked, "Other burst one of my eardrums I mean."

"Cry for justice allows me to skip my draw phase to search my deck for a special kind of monster." Zombyra explained, "I can use it to bring any monster with the words 'Elemental Hero' in its title to my hand."

"Elemental Hero?" Gold gasped, looking shocked, "It can't be…"

"You've heard of them?" Celeste asked.

"Yeah, but there's no way…" Gold responded.

Ignoring the chatter nearby, Zombyra placed the card onto his disk.

"Now to summon the monster I searched for." He declared, "Arise Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

Zombyra pulled back his hand, and slammed it to the ground. A geyser of water shot out of the ground, and along with the water came a…unique person.

He was dressed in blue tights, covered with a lighter armor. Over his face he wore a blue cowl with a white cape fanning behind him. A pair of tanks filled with water were attached to his back, and hoses ran from the tanks to a pair of nozzles on his wrists. Gold let out a laugh as he saw the monster.

"I don't believe it!" He laughed, "It's really is him! Elemental Hero Bubbleman!"

"And how do you know him?" Mako asked, looking confused.

Gold's eyes seemed to be sparkling with nostalgia as he looked at the monster before him.

"You guys never heard of Bubbleman? He was one of the stars of my favorite comic book series when I was kid: The Adventures of the Elemental Heros." Gold explained.

"He's a real superhero?" Zeffie asked.

"You'd better believe it Zefs. I used to love reading those comics when I was growing up." Gold shook his head, "Pegasus must be a fan too, if he made cards after them."

"He's made cards after everything else." Celeste pointed out, "I guess superheroes make sense."

"Okay, so he's a superhero." Brian nodded, "But he's a very weak superhero, currently in attack mode."

"That won't matter soon. Bubbleman was as strong as the other heroes, but he was usually the front line." Gold explained, "If he couldn't handle things, he'd call in the others and then, watch out bad guy!"

"Ahem…Trying to duel here." Tim interrupted.

"Don't let us stop ya." Gold smiled.

"I don't intend to." Zombyra declared, "As your chum over there stated, Bubbleman can call for help if the need arises. If he's the only card on my field when I summon him, I draw an extra two cards."

Zombyra pulled two more cards off his disk, and looked them over. He tapped the far edge of his disk, and it slid open.

"Now, I activate a field spell card." He declared, "So prepare to face the Elemental Heroes in their home field…"

He slapped a card into the slot, and the ground began to shake. The five spectators braced themselves as the Earth beneath them began to shift upward.

"I activate Skyscraper!" Zombyra called out.

The path of ground beneath Gold and the others suddenly shot upward, carrying the five of them with it! Tim watched as more giant pillars of dirt rose upward, slowly transforming into large buildings. The sun was hidden behind one of them, plunging the area into darkness and making it seem as though night had fallen.

"Hey, what did you do with my brother and my friends?" Tim asked as the grass he stood on turned into a city street.

"They'll be fine, citizen, I merely gave them a birds-eye view of the action." Zombyra declared, pointing to the building behind Tim, "They're up there."

Tim looked up, able to see five figures leaning over the edge of one of the towering structures.

------------------------------------------------------

"This stinks! Zeffie can't see anything!" Zeffie complained.

"Gold, you're the expert on this sort of thing." Mako said, "What is this."

Gold smiled, looking around the rooftop.

"This is Skyscraper City." He said, his voice carrying a reminiscent feel, "The Elemental Heroes defended this place from super-villains, disasters, alien attacks, oh you name it, they fought it!"

"Okay, glad I asked." Mako said, "Now how can we watch the duel?"

"I think these might help." Brian said, pointing to a line of binoculars sitting along the ledge of the building.

Celeste walked up, and looked through one of them; she frowned, and then noticed a coin slot near the bottom of the machine.

"Anybody have a quarter?" She asked.

-----------------------------------------------------

Zombyra placed another card into the disk, and it appeared facedown.

"One last card, facedown, will end my turn." He announced.

"Good, I was afraid the tournament would be over before you ended." Tim said, drawing, "Actually…"

Tim looked around the field, and laughed a bit.

"I guess it will be soon, I summon Solar Flare Dragon (1500/800)!" He called out.

In a rather interesting display, all three heads of the Flame Cerebrus suddenly belched forth a blast of fire. The fire gathered into a long, thin shape which began to writhe and twist in mid-air. The fire fell away, leaving Tim's serpent-like dragon hovering just over the ground.

"I don't know what Skyscraper does, but it hasn't given your monster any extra attack points." Tim smiled, "So he's toast! Solar Flare shot!"

The dragon roared, and shot out a blast of fire from its mouth. Bubbleman gasped, and fell over as the flames stuck him, and he shattered into bits. Zombyra quickly tapped his disk, causing the facedown card to flip over.

"Since you destroyed one of my monsters, I can activate my Hero Signal trap card!" He called out, "Now I can search my deck for any Elemental Hero that has four stars or less, and summon it to the field."

Zombyra held up one hand as the sky above them was emblazoned with a glowing letter 'H.' a single card appeared in his outstretched hand, and he put it down.

"Come forth Elemental Hero Burtinatrix (1200/800)!" He called out.

The signal suddenly vanished, and a battle cry echoed from above. Down from the clouds swooped a woman with snow-white skin, ashen-gray hair, and wearing a red leotard. A trail of fire followed her to the ground, and she landed casting an ominous glare at Tim's monster.

"What do you say to that?' Zombyra challenged.

"I say, if the superhero thing doesn't work she'd make a great mascot for a 'gentlemen's' club'." Tim smiled, "Besides, your new monster is still weaker than mine. I end my turn, which activates Solar Flare Dragon's ability: he'll deal you 500 points of damage right now."

The dragon swooped forward, right past Burstinatrix, and blasted a fire ball right into Zombyra's face! He batted the flames away from his mask, coughing on smoke and ash.

Zombyra: 6200

Tim: 8000

------------------------------------------

"And there's Burstinatrix, the lethal lady of the E. Heroes." Gold said, gesturing down to the monster, "She controlled the power of fire, just like Tim could, but she was good at it."

"Neat!" Zeffie cheered.

"Please remember who we're cheering for." Celeste reminded Zeffie.

"Zeffie knows, but Bursty down there can't beat Timmy." Zeffie pointed out.

"Don't be so sure." Gold stated, "The E. Heroes always fought harder when they were protecting the city. We don't know what this field-spell even does yet."

-------------------------------------------------

Zombyra drew, and smiled as he placed down another card.

"I summon another hero to the field." He declared, "Arise Elemental Hero Avian (1000/1000)!"

From the sky soared another hero, this one male. He was covered from head-to-toe with green feathers, and a pair of wings extended from his back. Attached to his hands were gloves with sharp looking talons. He and Burstinatrix nodded to one another, and turned toward Tim.

"He can't handle my monster." Tim pointed, "My dragon will turned him into KFC!"

"Not true." Zombyra declared, "Now the power of Skyscraper can activate. When an Elemental Hero attacks a monster whose attack is higher than theirs, they gain 1000 attack points during the battle!"

"What?" Tim asked, suddenly worried.

"Burstinatrix, burst fire attack!" Zombyra ordered.

The red-clothed heroine held her hands together, and an orb of flame appeared in them. As her attack rose to (2200/800), she pulled it back, and then tossed it into the air where it burst into a lethal barrage of tiny fires that consumed Tim's dragon. The creature roared in pain before it shattered.

"Avian, quill cascade!" Zombyra shouted.

Avian flapped his wings forward, and tiny feathers flew of his wings. Tim braced himself as the white darts sliced at his arms on their way past.

Zombyra: 6200

Tim: 6300

"Then I'll lay this card facedown." Zombyra declared, sliding a card into play, "That ends my turn."

The facedown cards appeared, as Tim drew.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Back on the roof, Gold was nodding his head.

"Avian down there was the protector of the skies." He explained, "If a villain tried to escape, and the other heroes couldn't follow, he'd track 'em down from above."

"Looks like he could handle anything they might throw at him." Brian commented.

"Those talons ain't just for show." Gold smiled.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tim smirked as he played another card.

"Here comes Blazing Inpachi (1850/0) in attack mode!" He declared.

A pile of logs fell to the street, and ignited spontaneously. They rose up into a roughly human shape, and the new creature beat its fists together.

"Attack Avian with blazing beatdown!" Tim ordered.

The wooden golem charged forward, only for Zombyra to wave a hand over his disk.

"Not so fast, I activate Hero Barrier." He declared, a blue force field appearing around him, "This stops one attack, so long as I have an Elemental Hero on the field."

The energy field expanded, and knocked Blazing Inpachi back. Tim frowned, and slid a card into his disk.

"I lay one card facedown and end my turn." He stated.

Zombyra drew, and held up a spell card.

"Time now to activate Polymerization!" He shouted, "Fuse together Avian and Burstinatrix!"

The two heroes leapt into the air, and began to spin around one another. They formed into a red and green blur, which began to slow down.

"Behold, Elemental Hero Flame Wingman (2100/1200)." Zombyra called out.

The blur had stopped now, and its form was clear: A green-skinned human with a white wing extending from his left shoulder. In place of his right arm was the head of a dragon, covered in red scales, and a red tail extended behind the hero.

"You can fuse those monsters?" Tim asked.

-------------------------------------------------------

"You can fuse those monsters?" Brian gasped.

"Of course, it's their trademark." Gold smiled, "If a baddy was too tough for them to take down with their normal powers, they could join together: mind, body, and soul to form a new hero. It was only temporary, but it was usually enough."

"Could they all do that?" Zeffie asked.

"You bet." Gold nodded, "You take a pair of Elemental Heroes and you can be sure they could fuse together."

"How many heroes were there?" Brian asked.

"Eight." Gold answered.

"That's almost thirty fusions!" Mako exclaimed.

"And that ain't countin' fusing them with another hero after the first fusion." Gold smiled, "Eh, but you'll see what I mean."

The others looked a bit worried as Gold moved back to watch the duel.

-----------------------------------------------------

Tim glared at his facedown card.

"_I'd like to use this, but it doesn't work on special summons._" He lamented, _"Well, at least I'll only lose about 300 life points."_

"Flame Wingman, strike down his monster with skydive scorcher!" Zombyra shouted.

The hero leapt high into the air, alighting on top of the spire of a building. He then dove down, swooping like a bird of prey upon Tim's monster. He delivered a powerful punch wrapped in flames to Blazing Inpachi, which shattered into splinters before it faded away.

"That wasn't so bad." Tim commented.

"It's about to get worse. Since Flame Wingman destroyed your monster, its attack points are now taken out of your life points." Zombyra explained, "Look up."

Tim looked overhead, and gasped as he saw Flame Wingman hovering there. The hero pointed his dragon arm at the fire duelist, who screamed as a blast of flame shot from it.

Zombyra: 6200

Tim: 4200

"_I've got this duel in the bag._" Johnson thought from inside Zombyra, _"A few more hits like that and he's gone."_

"I end my turn." Zombyra announced.

Tim groaned as he drew his card, but perked up a little as he saw it.

"I'll set this monster facedown." He stated, a hidden creature appearing, "And then I'll set another card facedown. Your move."

Zombyra reached for his deck, but paused for a second.

"I think I'll use my deckmaster power again." He stated, "Cry for justice!"

Once more, the superhero titled his back in a powerful warcry, and a shimmering figure dressed in blue and yellow spandex leapt from above. He turned into a card, which faded into Zombyra's hand.

"I've used my deckmaster ability to bring Elemental Hero Sparkman to my hand." Zombyra explained, "And now I'll use Polymerization to fuse him with Elemental Hero Clayman in order to form…"

Zombyra played the cards as he said this, and two new figures appeared. One was the yellow and blue hero from before, a corona of electricity crackling over his body. The second looked more like a blocky statue brought to life, with its head covered in red-paint. The swirling vortex pulled in the two heroes, and lightning began to shoot out of the hole.

"Elemental Hero Thunder Giant (2400/1500)!" Zombyra called out.

The portal spat out a man that stood about seven-feet tall. He wore purple spandex covered by a giant chest plate of yellow and white armor that spread over his arms. He wore a white helmet with a blue visor, and lightning was arching between his hands.

"Now then, Flame Wingman, attack and destroy his facedown monster with skydive scorcher!" Zombyra ordered.

The green and red hero shot another blast of fire from his dragon-arm, but Tim tapped a button on his disk.

"I'm activating Negate Attack!" Tim declared, the fire fizzling out before it reached him, "So your attack is stopped and you battle phase is over."

"Very well." Zombyra nodded, while Johnson seethed behind the mask, "But just a little warning: Thunder Giant can destroy any monster that's weaker than he is. All I need to do is discard a card during my turn."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

While all this was going on, the others were on top of the skyscraper. Brian looked to Gold, with a curious expression.

"Thunder Giant, Sparkman, and Clayman." He said, "You know of them?"

"You bet. Sparkman was a super-genius who used his inventions to help the others. He also designed a super-suit that could control electricity." Gold smiled, "Clayman was kinda like me: He was the biggest and the strongest. If he didn't want to move, no bad guy could make him, and if he wanted to move, no bad guy could stop him."

"And they could join to make Thunder Giant." Mako guessed.

"Yep, and if he showed up…" Gold shrugged, "He could use Sparkman's electrical power and be just as much of a tank as Clayman is."

Zeffie had her eyes pressed up against one of the binoculars, while Celeste looked up from hers.

"Uh oh…" She sighed.

----------------------------------------------------------

Down on the field, Tim drew his card with a smile.

"Well all I need to do to screw you over is this." He stated, "I tribute my facedown Flame Ruler (1500/1600)…"

Briefly, the image of Tim's regal Rastafarian faded into view. He smiled as he vanished into a column of orange flame. From the flaming pillar extended a massive pair of wings, and the column fell away to reveal Tim's frightening, flaming centaur standing at least as tall as most of the buildings nearby!

"And summon my Infernal Flame Emperor (2700/1600)!" Tim finished.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

On top of the roof, all the spectators (aside from Brian) drew back at the sight of the monster. Brian just sighed.

"Brace yourselves, this is a monster that I'm familiar with." He warned, "And we might be in for a rough landing."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tim held one hand next to his graveyard, and a card slid out. Zombyra didn't notice this, and merely laughed.

"Even if you destroy one of my monsters, the other will use the power of Skyscraper and destroy Flame Emperor on my next turn." Zombyra declared.

"Not if I start the Great Chicago Fire over here." Tim smiled, holding up his Blazing Inpachi.

"What?" Zombyra asked.

"When I summon Infernal Flame Emperor, I can remove up to five Fire monsters from my graveyard." Tim explained, "Then I get to destroy that many spell and trap cards on your side of the field."

A ghostly Blazing Inpachi appeared, and ran into the nearest building. The structure went up like a tinder box, and the flames spread to other buildings nearby.

"In the words of history's greatest arson…'Moo.'" Tim joked.

The buildings and fire vanished in a puff of smoke, and five loud screams followed by a series of thuds could be heard as the audience to this duel struck the ground.

"Tim…." Brian growled, getting to his feet, "Did you forget we were up there?"

"Ouch…" Mako moaned, "Celeste…"

"Sorry." Celeste said, climbing off Mako's back.

"Zeffie, I can't feel my spine." Gold gasped out.

"That's cause Zeffie's head landed on it…" Zeffie said, staggering to her feet, "Not fun."

"I'm gonna lie down for a few minutes, if that's okay." Gold groaned.

"And miss all the fun?" Tim smiled, "You've gotta see this, trust me. Flame Emperor, destroy his Flame Wingman with Dante's Inferno!"

The massive beast belched forth a wave of fire, and the fiery superhero screamed as he was consume by it. Zombyra let out a shout of his own as his life points paid the price for destruction of his monster.

Zombyra: 5600

Tim: 4200

"Now I'll set this facedown and end my turn." Tim finished, playing another card behind his monster.

Zombyra drew, looking worried a bit as he looked over his three cards.

"I activate Graceful Charity!" He called out, holding the card overhead.

An angel swooped above him, showering Zombyra with light. He drew three cards, and gave them a look.

"_Ugh…these stupid cards. I don't even recognize most of them!"_ He thought angrily, _"Of course, this one is rather powerful. But it needs me to put four others into my graveyard first."_

Looking over his hand, he smiled behind the mask.

"_Thankfully, I have three of them right here."_ He thought, putting two into his grave, _"I'll use this one, and discard the other two. Then I just need the last one…"_

"I now activate H-Heated Heart!" Johnson shouted, "One of the foundations of hero-ship, this card grants any Elemental Hero an extra 500 attack points, and the power of a Fairy Meteor Crush!"

An 'H' made of red flame appeared behind Thunder Giant (2900/1500) who let out a roar of triumph as his attack points leapt.

"And next, I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart (1500/1600)!" Zombyra continued.

From the sky plummeted a well-tanned and muscled man with his black hair pulled into a pony tail. He wore only a loincloth and carried a crudely crafted sword in one hand.

"Him Tarzan, you dumb." Tim smiled, "I trigger my Trap Hole card, dropping that monster right to the graveyard!"

The facedown lifted, and the ground under Wildheart's feet began to split open. Rather than fall, Wildheart suddenly jumped away from the collapsing patch of grass, and the hole opened up right next to him.

"What the heck?" Tim objected.

"Wildheart." Gold groaned as he sat up, "He could use his animal instinct to sense danger. He never walked right into an ambush, you could never get the jump on him."

"In game terms, he's immune to all trap cards." Zombyra shouted, "Now Thunder Giant, attack!"

Thunder Giant lifted one of his massive limbs and a bolt of lightening shot toward Tim's monster.

"Back at ya, I activate Mirror Force!" Tim called out.

Tim's final facedown card lifted, and a shimmering barrier appeared over him. The electrical attack struck the barrier, and reflected upon its master. Thunder Giant screamed as he burst apart, while Wildheart jumped to the side again and narrowly avoided the lightening by falling into the still open Trap Hole. Once the danger had past, the wild hero pulled himself back out, and the hole closed behind him.

"Hmph, Wildheart didn't get blasted because of his ability." Brian realized, "But it doesn't matter, my bro's monster is too strong for him."

"Yeah. If he'd tried to use Thunder Giant's effect first he could have at least had a direct attack." Mako stated, "Pretty dumb mistake."

----------------------------------------------

In the control room, Jackson almost choked on the candy bar he was eating upon hearing Mako's comment.

"Mistake!" He shouted, "My monsters don't make mistakes…"

He looked over the record of the last move, and thought for a minute.

"Something wrong?" Sota asked, as the door near the back of the room opened.

"Yeah, Zombyra just made a huge error." Jackson fretted, typing in some commands, "I programmed him myself, and he just went and discarded his best chance! He should have kept Heated Heart and Righteous Justice along with Wildheart, that way he could have attacked after taking out Tim's facedown cards."

"And instead, he leaves himself open." Rei noticed, Mokuba returning to his command chair at the back of the room.

"Something wrong?" Mokuba asked, drawing attention away from the duel.

"Just found another minor error sir." Jackson stated, "One of the eliminators is malfunctioning again."

"Let me see." Mokuba said, pressing a button on his own machine.

Information filled the screen, and Mokuba frowned as he looked it over.

"_The data is all scrambled, with firewall programs in place to prevent interference."_ He thought, typing in more commands, _"I should have been more careful, looks like the Big Five have some fight left in them!"_

Mokuba watched as his prison appeared on screen. Sure enough, only four of the inmates were present.

"I should have known." Mokuba muttered.

"Sir?" Jackson asked, "Should we stop the duel?"

"It won't be that easy." Mokuba said, "Zombyra has been affected by the same thing as Bronn and Spirit of Flames. We need to sort this out now, while he's distracted. Are you with me?"

"Yes sir." Rei nodded.

"All over it." Sota declared typing furiously.

"I bet I fix it before Sota!" Jackson declared typing on his own terminal.

"You're on!" Sota smiled.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

"I…end my turn." Zombyra moaned, waving one hand.

Tim drew, and held up another card.

"Looks like I found my own Graceful Charity." He stated, the angle flying over him this time, "So here goes…"

Tim drew three cards, and looked over them.

"I just got a great idea. I discard these two cards…" Tim began.

He held up his Hand of Nepthys and Salamandra before shoving them into his disk. He then held up a second Great Angus.

"But I'm going to use my deckmaster to bring one of them back." He smiled, "Come on: Hand of Nepthys (600/600)!"

Flame Cerebrus let out a howl, and the card in Tim's hand burst into flames. Tim almost dropped it from surprise, but the fire wasn't burning him. It swiftly extinguished itself, and his card had now turned into the Hand of Nepthys which he placed on his disk.

In front of Tim appeared his golden-mask sorceress, hovering on a small cushion of air. The priestess smiled, and touched down on the ground.

"Next, I'll normal summon my second Blazing Inpachi (1850/0)." Tim continued, a second mass of burning wood appearing next to his other monsters, "But he won't stick around, it's time to really heat things up. I use the ability of my Hand of Nepthys, offering her and Blazing Inpachi as tributes…"

The bird-priestess waved one hand, and a familiar golden fire consumed both her and Blazing Inpachi. A glorious melody filled the area as Tim slid another card from his deck.

"And I summon my Sacred Phoenix of Nepthys (2400/1600)!" He called out.

The gold fire faded, leaving Tim's radiant winged-beast on the field. He gold feathers glinted in the sunlight, making her seem even stronger than usual. Zombyra gulped nervously.

"Some like it hot, but I like it a la flambe." Tim shouted, "Emperor, attack!"

The monstrous beast launched another fire wave, incinerating Wildheart before he had time to scream.

"Phoenix, attack with phoenix wing wind blast!" Tim ordered.

The massive bird sang her melodious cry again, and flapped her wings. A blast of golden fire surrounded Zombyra, who screamed as his life points took a dip.

Zombyra: 2000

Tim: 4200

"Then I set one card facedown." Tim said, sliding his last card into his disk, "Go on."

Zombyra drew, and held the card overhead.

"I activate whatever this card is!" He shouted frantically.

The others all looked confused, but a flash of golden light interrupted their thoughts.

"Card of Sanctity?" Tim muttered, "Well, I needed more cards."

Tim drew six times while Zombyra drew five. He let out a relieved laugh as he put another card down.

"Now I'll summon my second copy of Sparkman (1600/1400)." Zombyra declared.

Once more, the lightning-wielding hero jumped into play. He shook one of blue and yellow fists at Tim, sparking with anger.

"Next, I use two more cards: Premature Burial and O-Oversoul!" Zombyra continued.

"Premature Burial I know, but Oversoul?" Celeste asked.

"It brings a normal Elemental Hero from my graveyard back to the field." Zombyra explained, "So I'll use these to revive Clayman (800/2000) and Avian (1000/1000)."

A circled of red light appeared on the ground, and out of it rose the blocky form of Clayman. His body was scuffed and chipped, but otherwise he was okay. Next to him appeared a glowing letter 'O' and Avain returned, stretching the Rigor Mortis out of his wings.

"Any reason why your summoning a bunch of monsters that can't be mine?" Tim asked, looking confused.

"It's because of this card that I've been saving." Zombyra said, holding it up, "I activate HERO Flash!"

A flash of light filled the sky, and above Zombyra the letters 'H', 'E', 'R', and 'O' emblazoned themselves into the air.

"I used H-Heated Heart and O-Oversoul before." Zombyra explained, "And I discarded R-Righteous Justice and E-Emergency Call when I played Graceful Charity. Now I can remove all of them from my graveyard…"

The four cards slid out and vanished, while a grid of cards appeared in front of Zombyra.

"Then I can special summon one Elemental Hero from my deck, as long as it has no special powers." Zombyra declared, "I choose my second Burstinatrix (1200/800)."

The fiery female of the team once more arose, and stood with her hands on her hips and an angry glare in her eye. She held out one fist in front of her, and the other three heroes each held up their own hands in response.

"And now each of my normal heroes can attack directly for this turn!" Zombyra announced, "So say farewell, this duel is over! Attack my heroes: Static shockwave, quill cascade, clay clobber, and magma comet!"

Each of the heroes gathered an orb of their own element in their hands, and took aim…

"If this hits, Tim's had it!" Brian realized.

The others all gasped, as the heroes launched their attacks…

------------------------------------------------------------------

Elsewhere in the Virtual World, Ruby Markowitz was in the midst of her final duel on a stretch of sandy beach.

Her opponent was Mr. Richington, who currently had 1600 life points and twenty cards in his hand. On his field were Royal Decree and his Enraged Muka Muka (9200/8600) which seemed close to exploding with anger as it glared down at Ruby. Behind Richington stood Asmodeous (his Goblin of Greed), looking quite pleased with the situation.

Ruby at the moment had 2000 life points, no cards in her hand, no monsters, and only her Skill Drain face up on the field. Behind her stood Ultimate Obedient Fiend, awaiting the order to use his deckmaster power, despite how useless that was at the moment. A well-timed Kuriboh (She always had one in her deck for emergencies) had just saved her, and Richington seemed unwilling to part with any of his cards.

"I'll just end my turn here." He smiled, "Go ahead, make my day…"

Ruby drew, and held up the card.

"I activate Pot of Greed." She stated, taking her two extra cards.

She smiled as she placed one into her disk.

"And now I activate Mystical Space Typhoon, destroying your Royal Decree!" She called out.

A blast of wind shattered the trap, and the green mist of the Skill Drain began to spread over the field. Richington and his deck master both gasped in horror as Enraged Muka Muka (1200/600) shrank back down to its starting size.

"Without his abilities, your monster is weak." Ruby smiled, "And now I'll wrap things up with Fusilier Dragon the Dual Mode Beast!"

The dragon-tank clanked onto the field, its stats remaining at (2800/2000) thanks to Ruby's trap.

"NO!" Mr. Richington shouted.

"Let's end this…" Ruby smiled, "Shadow barrage!"

Her monster began to charge its attack…

--------------------------------------------------------------

Inside the castle where Tim and Kevin had faced off before, another conflict for the last finalist slot was taking place.

Ronaldo Cortez looked over his field. Behind him stood Zaborg the Thunder Monarch, serving as a deckmaster. On his field was Command Knight (1600/1900) and a facedown card. His life points stood at a meager 300.

His opponent was Randy, the boy Victor Greenstone had helped earlier. He had no cards facedown, but his Chaos Command Magician (2400/1900) stood on the field, while Apprentice Magician stood in the deckmaster position. Randy's life points were at 2100. Both duelists were out of cards in their hands, but it was Randy's turn.

"I can't wait to tell everyone I took out one of the European champions!" Randy shouted, his hands shaking, "Chaos Command Magician, attack his Command Knight and end this!"

The magician charged up a blast, but Ronaldo smiled as he pointed to his facedown card.

"Alas, you should look before you leap." He stated, "I reflect your attack, with my Mirror Force trap card!"

Randy gasped in terror as his monster's magic was caught in mid-air and turned back on him. Chaos Command Magician screamed as he was blasted to pieces, and Apprentice Magician began to glow.

"I'm not done yet!" Randy shouted, "My deckmaster lets me summon one spellcaster whose level is exactly half of the one that I just lost. I summon Magician of Faith (300/200) in defense mode!"

The blue robed magician appeared, crouching on one knee. Ronaldo drew, and smiled.

"She shall not save you." He stated, "I summon my favorite monster, Freed the Brave Wanderer (1700/1200)!"

Command Knight snapped to attention as a new monster strode forth. He was a young man with long, blond hair and silver armor. He gave off an aura of light and courage, and held up a silver blade. He saluted Command Knight, boosting his score to (2100/1200)

"Command Knight, destroy his monster!" Ronaldo ordered.

The young knight eagerly swept her blade through the magician, and then stepped aside.

"Freed, attack directly!" Ronaldo shouted, "Blade of bravery!"

The wandering soldier held up his sword, and prepared to strike…

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Serenity, in the meantime, found herself in the middle of the labyrinth, fighting for her last few points.

Her opponent was one from earlier: A snobbish girl (about eighteen or nineteen) in a purple dress and wearing a great deal of silver jewelry. She had luxurious golden hair that fell past her shoulders, and blue eyes, but her face was twisted in a maniacal sneer.

At the moment, Serenity had 3800 life points, three cards in her hand, and her Fusion Gate on the field. Unfortunately she had no monsters…

Thanks largely to a fearsome dragon her opponent was controlling. It had red and black scales, and was covered in metal armor with sharp spikes. The end of its tail resembled a drill, and its wings looked like sharp blades.

"Looks like your little fusion monsters couldn't handle the ability of Armed Dragon Lv 7 (2800/1000)." The girl stated.

She had an empty hand, only 700 life points, and only her Armed Dragon on the field. But at the moment, it was her turn.

"Attack with bladed blaster!" The girl shouted.

The dragon roared, and fired off a barrage of sharp, metal disks. Serenity screamed as they sliced past her, dropping her score to a mere 1000.

"Your turn." The girl laughed, "But you can't summon anything that will help…"

Serenity was worried as she looked at her cards.

"_Maybe Damosel is right…_" She thought, looking at her opponent, _"But…"_

Serenity could almost see Joey, standing right behind her opponent and cheering her on. She pulled herself up, and drew her card.

"I'm not giving up Damosel!" Serenity shouted, holding up two of her cards, "I send Spirit Reaper and Nightmare Horse through the fusion gate!"

A skeleton wrapped in a purple cloak appeared, followed by a horse made of blue fire. The two creatures began to spin, merging into a pool of black energy.

"Together, they form Reaper on the Nightmare (800/600)!" Serenity called out.

From the energy rode the horse, the skeleton now its back and wielding a vicious looking scythe.

"He doesn't look that tough." Damosel stated.

"He won't need to be." Serenity smiled, "He can attack directly, he doesn't need to fight your monsters."

Damosel's eyes went wide, and she opened her mouth to protest.

"And you have nothing to stop him!" Serenity shouted, cutting her off, "Attack now with swiping scythe!"

The horse whinnied as its rider kicked it in the sides. It stormed forward, and the rider reached out with his weapon…

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Back at Tim's duel, he had no idea any of this was happening.

All he could see was a massive blast of four elements hurtling towards his face.

Lucky for him, no one could see him tapping a button on his disk…

The other Elemental Duelists winced as the four attacks struck, knocking Tim off his feet. He screamed as his life points began to drop, while Zombyra held up a fist in victory.

"And this duel is over!" He called out, smoke obscuring any view of Tim's field.

"Well, guess Tim won't be in the finals with us." Brian sighed.

"Too bad." Celeste nodded.

"Why didn't Zombyra's disk shut off?" Zeffie asked.

Mako opened his mouth, but stopped.

"She's right…" He stated, "Zomyra's disk is still on."

"Did any body here that little buzz that a disk makes when it hits zero?" Gold asked, looking at the others.

"I didn't." Tim's voice said as the smoke cleared, "All I heard was myself, getting hit by electricity, rocks, and feathers all at the same time!"

"Wait, there should have been fire in there." Zombyra stated, staring at Tim.

"Yeah, but there was also my Dimension wall." Tim smiled, pointing at his face up trap, "So the fire goes somewhere else."

"Where?" Zombyra asked.

"Turn around." Zeffie giggled.

Zombyra turned around…

Just in time for the fire to plow down from above and slam him into the ground! He screamed as the redirected attack, combined with the cost of his Premature Burial, caused his life points to plummet to nothing.

"Burn baby, burn." Tim began, his deckmaster letting out a victorious howl.

Zombyra: 0

Tim: 800

"Ouch…" Zombyra moaned as the flames stopped.

"Disco inferno!" Tim finished.

Three points of light flew from Zombyra's disk, and landed in Tim's. His counter leapt to ten, and then turned into a golden sixteen.

In three other locations around the Virtual World, three other duelists let out shouts of confusion and frustration as their own duel disks suddenly shut down right before their final attack hit.

"You made it!" Brian shouted happily.

"Attention all duelists!" Mokuba's voice echoed, "Sorry for any inconvenience, but the sixteen finalists have been chosen!"

"Great." Zombyra said, "Well, you don't need me here any more."

"_I've wasted enough time as it is."_ Johnson thought angrily.

Zombyra got up, but Tim stepped on his cape.

"Wait right there, I'm supposed to get some special prize." Tim pointed out.

"Yeah, Timmy gets a rare card!" Zeffie cheered.

Zombyra sighed, and a card appeared in his hand. He handed it to Tim and turned around.

"Okay, make sure you use this for good, not evil…And all that." He stated, "Now I have a small matter to attend to."

Before the conversation could go on Zombyra leapt into the air, and vanished in a blur of shadows. Tim looked at his card, and started grinning like an idiot.

"Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch." He said, "Sorry Cerebrus, looks like I'm replacing you."

"What!" All three heads shouted at once.

"Huh that's graditude for your." The center head whined.

"Oh shut it, this is all your fault." The right head growled.

"Both of you shut it, or I'll chew you off!" The left head yelled.

All three heads now arguing, the monster faded away. Tim shrugged as a ring of light formed by his feet.

"Time to go!" He shouted, the light flying him into the air…

He landed right next to the others, on the proper side of the barrier.

"Was all that really necessary?" Gold asked.

The yellow barrier suddenly became visible again, and began to shimmer.

"I guess so…" Mako nodded.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Rei watched as sixteen rings of light suddenly soared into the air. Pulling up her microphone, she began to speak into it.

"Okay finalists, congratulations. Now here are your instructions." Rei explained, "In just a moment, you'll land in our Virtual Kaiba Land. You are all to report to the main arena for the finals. Do yourselves a favor and try to avoid the rest of the crowd. Those who didn't lose all of their points are still capable of dueling, and they might try to challenge you."

Settling back, Rei switched off the microphone.

"So, you two are going to start another betting pool." She guessed, looking to her neighbors.

"You want in?" Jackson offered.

"Pass." Rei said.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Zombyra, in the meantime, had finally managed to reach the spot he was looking for.

"Fire walls are meant to keep intruders out. They should be easier to break down from the inside…" He stated, pressing a hand against an invisible barrier.

"Yeah, too bad you're going back to that side." Mokuba's voice rang out.

"Mokuba!" Johnson/Zombyra shouted.

A ring of light fell over the corrupted program, and it screamed as it shattered to bits.

------------------------------------------------------

Inside the prison cell of the Big Five, a ring of light appeared and dumped Johnson to the floor.

"And stay in there!" Mokuba shouted.

"Just like I said, doomed." Gansley stated.

"Well at least I tried." Johnson said, getting to his feet, "So what's plan B?"

"That was plan B." Krump grumbled, "And we don't have a plan C."

"You're joking." Johnson said, his eyes wide.

"Nope, and we have you thank for it." Lector growled, "Since you seem to like games so much, we decided on a new one…"

"It's called 'Beat on Johnson until he cries.'" Nesbitt stated, "Want to play?"

Johnson back up against a wall, and trembled as the others closed in on him.

_**Why did we call this chapter 'Justice for All?' I mean, it's not very fair to Serenity, Ronaldo, and Ruby.**_

_**Ah well, at least I made it.**_

_**There's still some time before the finals. Too bad Ronaldo wants to make it quality time with Celeste.**_

_**Our next chapter is called**_

_**Romeo and…Juliet?**_

_**And if you didn't get the cow joke, then ask the O'Leary's!**_

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Zombyra the Dark

DARK

Warrior

2100 attack

500 defense

Cry for Justice: You may skip your draw phase to add any monster with the words "Elemental Hero" in it's card name to your hand.

---

Flame Cerebrus

FIRE

Pyro

2100 attack

1800 defense

Guardian of the Underworld: Once per turn, you may discard one monster from your hand. You may then special summon one monster from your graveyard that has a star level equal to or lower than the discarded monster's

A/N: The Great Chicago Fire is often attributed to a cow belonging to one Mrs. O'Leary, when it knocked over an oil lantern in its barn. There's your history bit for the day.


	24. Romeo andJuliet?

_**My name is Ronaldo Cortez, the noble duelist. Champion of the Barcelona Regional Tournament.**_

**_I am well known as the greatest duelists in all of Spain, and I am one of the highest ranked in the whole of Europe. But it is a lonely life at the top. Every great man in history has had a woman by his side, but before this tournament I only had a group of fanatical fan girls._**

_**But I believe that I may have found love in this tournament! She is everything I desire in a woman: Intelligent, courageous, confident, and a powerful duelist to boot.**_

_**We were meant to be, even if she does not realize it!**_

**Romeo and…Juliet?**

The simulated Kaiba Land hadn't changed much since Celeste's last visit. It was still brimming with rides, booths, music, and the horror house. Now however, there were many people scattered around the park.

With the announcement of the sixteenth finalist being selected everybody else's disks had shut down. In a flash all duelists had been pulled to the virtual amusement park, where they had been exploring for the last several minutes. None of them had had enough time to find anything interesting however, as a chime sounded and a gentle female voice rang out.

"_Attention all duelists. Please report to the arena to take your seats for the finals, which will begin in thirty minutes."_ Rei's voice chimed out.

A human tide swept across the park, and every last duelist now headed down the sidewalk that was once blocked by Golem Sentry.

The virtual Arena was just impressive as the real one. A huge dome with many decorative statues of dragons around the outside. The duelists were gathering around the entrances, waiting for them to open, and some were gathering into small groups and exchanging stories of the tournament.

One group in particular consisted of Ronaldo Cortez, Kevin Fischer, and Espa Roba. The three were close to one of the doors, and relating stories of the duelists that had beat them.

"Yeah, I went up against a fire duelist named Tim Hokage." The pimply Kevin bragged, "He was pretty tough, ran a powerful Fire Deck."

"That's nothing." Roba laughed as waved Kevin off, "I got taken out by _the _Yugi Mutoh."

"The King of Games!" Kevin gasped.

"You can brag about losing to the King of Games." Ronaldo sighed, "I only lost once, but the one who defeated me took more than points…She stole my heart."

Kevin and Espa both gave Ronaldo a strange look, and took a step away from him. Kevin glanced around, and smiled as he saw a familiar looking group of six duelists heading toward one of the entrances.

"Hey, there's the guy that beat me." He observed, noticing Tim.

Ronaldo looked to where Kevin indicated, but it wasn't the younger Hokage that caught his eye. Without a word of explanation, he took off at a brisk walk.

------------------------

"Hooray! Finalists!" Zeffie cheered as she rode on Mr. Gold's shoulder

"That's right, and no-one's gonna beat the Fighting Mountain!" Gold said as he cracked his knuckles.

"Nobody…" Brian began as he and Tim jumped in front of the others.

They struck goofy poses and high-fived each other.

"Except the Amazing Dueling Hokage Brothers!" Brian and Tim shouted together.

"…Wow that was dorky." Gold commented as he shoved past, "Come you guys, we need to get inside."

"Besides, you two are Chicago's Regional champs. You should show a little more decorum…" Celeste stated.

"Like me." A lightly accented voice interrupted.

Celeste turned around and gasped as she found herself facing Ronaldo. He quickly took her hand and planted a gentle kiss on it.

"My darling Celeste, it has been too long." He sighed.

"Ronaldo!?" Celeste exclaimed.

"I was hoping to see you here my love." Ronaldo breathed.

"LOVE?!" All six Elemental Duelists shouted together.

"Perhaps you'd like to sit together during the finals?" Ronaldo offered, ignoring the previous outcry as he gave Celeste a dreamy look and draped one arm around her waist.

"Um…Celeste who is this guy?" Mako asked.

"WELL…" Tim said, beginning to spread his arms for the beginning of "We Should Be Lovers."

Brian put an end to it by clocking Tim over the head with his fist. Tim rubbed the top of his head and fell silent.

"Well…He was my first opponent here." Celeste explained as she carefully removed Ronaldo's arm, "I sort of only took one of his points."

"To prove her love for me." Ronaldo smiled.

"Or because I felt sorry for him because it was practically a shutout." Celeste said meekly.

"And I just missed out on my chance to be the last finalist." Ronaldo sighed as he reached for Celeste's hand, "But I'm sure that at least now Celeste and I can enjoy the finalists together…"

Celeste pulled away from Ronaldo and sighed.

"I'd love to Ronaldo. Unfortunately I'm competing in the finals, so I have to sit with the other finalists." Celeste explained.

Ronaldo looked at Celeste, and then burst out laughing. He double over and Celeste glared at him, putting one hand on her hip.

"I…I'm sorry Celeste." Ronaldo gasped (not seeing the other duelists had backed away), "But I could have sworn you said you were one of the finalists."

"That's because I did, and I am." Celeste said with an angry tone.

"But…But Celeste! The finals will be filled with vile, uncouth duelists!" Ronaldo said with a look of horror, "They will stop at nothing to achieve victory, even if it means doing harm to a delicate flower like yourself."

"Well we could always ask Kaiba to not participate." Tim offered jokingly, as Celeste began to tremble with rage.

"Now you listen to me Ronaldo!" Celeste shouted, wagging her finger at the Spanish champ, "I'm not some helpless little girl that needs you holding my hand! I beat you…_badly_, and I earned seven more win points all by my self."

Brian cleared his throat a bit.

"With some help from Brian." Celeste admitted, "But still, I'm more than capable of handling myself here."

Ronaldo drew back as Celeste yelled at him. Once she had stopped though, he stepped forward and took her hand once more.

"I know you wish to prove your courage by masking your fear from me." He said simply, "But there is a time and a place for…"

He couldn't any farther before Celeste pulled her hand free and slapped him with it. His head snapped to the side, a look of surprise and pain frozen on it. The others winced as the sound echoed around the area.

-------------------

"Ouch." Sota commented, "What a witch."

"Well, he had it coming." Rei sneered in response.

"Hey, he just wants to help her." Sota argued.

"This girl beat Pegasus!" Rei shouted, "She doesn't need help for the finals."

Jackson sighed and slumped down in his chair, hoping to avoid being drawn into the argument.

--------------------------

Celeste in the meantime had moved away from Ronaldo and was activating her disk. The stunned teen was nursing his stinging cheek when noticed this.

"Um…what are you…" He started to ask.

"We're going to duel." Celeste said simply, an angered look in her eyes, "Same wager as before, one point. If I win, you leave me alone about the finals _and _apologize for the way you acted. If you win, you can take my place and…"

Celeste thought for a second, and then nodded.

"…I'll personally cheer you on for the rest of the tournament." She offered.

Ronaldo's eyes went wide while Brian stepped up behind Celeste.

"Are you sure you're allowed to do this?" Brian asked.

"Well the win point readout is still on." Celeste pointed out, "And he already has nine points…"

"Your terms are accepted then." Ronaldo announced as he swung his disk into place, "On my word as a gentleman, I'll fulfill my end of the bargain should I lose."

"And on my title as a duelist, so will I." Celeste nodded, "And just because I like to keep things interesting, I'll use a different deckmaster this time."

The selection menus popped up, and both teens looked them over. Ronaldo was the first to choose monster.

"Then the duel begins again my love!" Ronaldo exclaimed as he held up a card, "And as before, my deckmaster will be Zaborg the Thunder Monarch!"

A blast of lightning struck the ground behind Ronaldo, and the armored thunder-type materialized. He crossed his arms, and definitely didn't look amused over the fact that he was useless in the last duel with Celeste.

"Okay then." Celeste responded, "Then mine will be Otohime."

Behind Celeste, a soft light began to glow. It slowly took shape, and formed into a young woman in a silver halter top and skirt. She had red hair, and was swaying as if she was in the middle of a dance.

"_So I get to be the deckmaster this time?"_ A voice sounded in Celeste's head.

Used to this by now, Celeste just smiled.

"_That's right." _She thought, _"So what do you do?"_

"_Simple, once per turn I may change the battle position of one monster on the field."_ The maiden explained, _"I call it my Dance of Delusion. But you have to discard a card for it to work, get it?"_

"_Got it." _Celeste confirmed.

"_Good."_ Otohime nodded.

"Let's duel!" Celeste and Ronaldo shouted as they each drew five cards.

Celeste: 8000

Ronaldo: 8000

"This time I shall be a true prince, and allow my princess to go first." Ronaldo offered.

"_Again with the nicknames."_ Celeste thought as she drew her sixth card, _"Is he trying to embarrass me in front of my friends?"_

"Come on Celesty, you can beat him!" Zeffie cheered from the sidelines.

Celeste smiled and nodded. She quickly placed one card onto her disk, and a soft light floated from her deckmaster.

"I'll open with Zolga (1700/1200) in attack mode." Celeste declared.

From the light came a purple robed woman in a metal mask. She hovered silently in the air, her cape billowing in an unfelt wind.

"And then, one card facedown." Celeste concluded, placing another card in her disk.

The card appeared behind Zolga, who made no move to acknowledge it.

"Your turn." Celeste said curtly.

"Very well." Ronaldo smiled as he drew with a dramatic flourish, "Then I open with Marauding Captain (1200/400) in attack mode."

Ronaldo put a card on his disk, and his deckmaster fired a bolt of lightning onto the field. It burst, revealing a courageous young soldier with blond hair, wielding a pair of swords.

"Now, I may summon a second monster by his special ability." Ronaldo declared, "So I shall summon a second Marauding Captain (1200/400), also in attack mode!"

Ronaldo put another card on his disk, and a second soldier, identical to the first, appeared.

"Now Celeste, I have you in a lock, just as you have my heart." Ronaldo sighed, "For as long as Marauding Captain is in play, you may not attack any of my warrior-type monsters except him. And since the captain is a warrior, and I have two of them, you may not attack either one."

"Darn, that's tricky." Brian commented, "How's Celeste supposed to beat him if she can't attack?"

"If I know Hikari, she'll find a way." Gold grunted.

"And now, it is your move." Ronaldo stated.

Celeste drew, and frowned a little.

"Well, I can't attack your monsters." She admitted, "But I can boost my life points. I sacrifice Zolga to summon Airknight Parshath (1900/1400)."

Zolga shattered into pixilated bits as Celeste removed her card. At the same time, Celeste put a new card on her disk and a white centaur with six angel wings galloped onto the field. He drew a shimmering blade from his scabbard, the light of which reflected off his blue armor.

"And since I tributed Zolga to summon a monster, I gain 2000 life points." Celeste explained, as an intense aura of light flared up around her.

Celeste: 10000

Ronaldo: 8000

"But my dear, you still can not attack." Ronaldo pointed out.

"A temporary condition." Celeste explained, "And when I find a way around it Airknight is going to be gunning for you."

"Until then, it is my turn, yes?" Ronaldo guessed.

Celeste nodded, and Ronaldo drew a new card. He smiled, and placed it onto his disk. The image of Warrior Dai Grepher standing alongside several other warriors appeared.

"Behold: The A. Forces!" Ronaldo called out, "And the 'A' stands for 'Allied' meaning that every warrior I control gains an extra 200 attack points for each warrior I control. I have two Marauding Captains (1600/400), so they each gain 400 attack."

The blond warriors looked to each other, and nodded. They shifted their battle stances so they were in a perfect position to defend each other.

"Interesting move." Celeste commented, "You should talk to my friend, you and him have similar deck strategies."

"But I bet he isn't the regional champion of Barcelona." Ronaldo smirked, "Besides, it is still my turn. So I summon Command Knight (2200/1900) in attack mode."

Ronaldo put a new card on his disk, and the warrior of fire materialized before him. She drew her golden blade, and let out a battle cry. Both of the captains immediately snapped to attention.

"As you know Celeste, Command Knight is such an inspiration to other warriors; they gain 400 extra attack points." Ronaldo swooned, "Just as you are an inspiration to me, driving me to duel at an entirely new level!"

"And yet you're still making basic moves." Celeste yawned (ignoring the pick-up line), "If this is a new level, I wonder just how strong the other duelists in Barcelona are."

"You have not yet seen my true potential." Ronaldo declared, "And I swear that once you do, you will feel for me as I do for you!"

"_Over-confident much?" _Celeste wondered.

"You might also note that, since Command Knight is a warrior, all of my monsters have gained another 200 points due to A. Forces." Ronaldo pointed out, "So Command Knight will attack Parshath."

As Command Knight leapt forward, Celeste sighed and tapped a button on her disk. Her facedown card lifted, and a red and purple box materialized, playing carnival music as the cylinders popped in and out.

"You remember Fairy Box right Ronaldo?" Celeste asked as she held up the golden coin (one side marked with an eye, the other was blank), "If I call this coin toss right, your monster's attack is reduced to nothing. The eye is heads, and the blank is tails."

Celeste flipped the coin into the air.

"Heads!" She shouted.

The coin tumbled to the ground, and landed with the blank side on top!

"Seems luck is not on your side this time." Ronaldo smiled as his warrior cut down Celeste's monster, "Now, Marauding Captain (2200/400) one, attack with double battle blade!"

The soldier jumped forward, swinging his swords. As he did, the carnival music began again. Celeste picked up the coin, and tossed it up.

"I can try Fairy box every time you attack." She reminded Ronaldo, "I call tails!"

The coin glittered in the virtual sunlight as it spun to the ground…

And landed on heads.

Celeste gasped and crossed her arms in front of her as Ronaldo's monster slashed at her with both his weapons.

"Now, Marauding Captain two will attack." Ronaldo ordered.

The second captain charged forward, and Celeste tossed the coin again.

"Head…No wait: tails!" Celeste gasped.

The coin flew again, and landed with the eye staring back at Celeste.

"_Why isn't this working anymore?!"_ Celeste thought frantically, _"I usually have good luck with this card!"_

She was snapped from her thoughts as the second captain sliced at her with his swords. Celeste shouted in surprise, and stumbled backwards from the blow.

Celeste: 5300

Ronaldo: 8000

"I am sorry I had to do that." Ronaldo apologized, "But remember, as tough as I am the people who actually made it to the finals will be even more ruthless."

Celeste regained her composure as Ronaldo continued.

"Please, my darling, I only wish to protect you from these fiends!" Ronaldo shouted, "Just surrender and allow me to take your place."

"He can't be serious." Mako grumbled as he turned to the others, "Can he?"

"Sure looks like it." Gold nodded.

"It's so romantic!" Zeffie sighed, "He fights her because he loves her!"

"Your parents let you watch too much T.V. Zef." Gold sighed, shaking his head.

"Come on Celeste, you can take that pompous, self important, jerk!" Brian encouraged.

"And if you can't, you can always beat Brian." Tim added.

Celeste looked over her field (ignoring Brian smacking Tim across the back of his head) and then turned to Ronaldo.

"Is it my turn?" She asked coldly.

"…Yes." Ronaldo admitted, his shoulders slumping, "But I had hoped you would reconsider entering the finals."

Celeste drew, and looked over the five cards in her hand. Fairy Box began to beep as the standby phase began, demanding its payment.

"I'll pay the 500 life points needed to keep my box in play." Celeste declared as her box ceased its beeping, "And now I summon Absorbing Kid from the Sky (1300/1000)."

As the card was placed one her disk, a child with white angel wings materialized in front of Celeste. He crossed his arms and pouted, like he wasn't really interested in being involved in a duel.

"And that's my move." Celeste nodded.

"What!" Mako shouted, "That little shrimp is no match for Ronaldo's warriors!"

Ronaldo drew his next card, and sighed.

"Why Celeste?" He asked, "I only wish to protect you, but you insist on placing yourself in danger. Why don't you simply withdraw?"

Celeste shot Ronaldo a venomous look, causing him to draw back in shock.

"I've never backed down from a duel in my entire life, and I'm certainly not going to start now!" Celeste shouted.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we now see Celeste angry." Tim joked, "Opposing duelists should now take measures against getting their ass kicked."

"Very well." Ronaldo sighed, "Command Knight, destroy her kid!"

The female warrior jumped forward, and swung her sword at the kid, who drew back. Then, the music began to pour from Celeste's box and the coin reappeared in her hands.

"Let's try this again." She said as she threw the coin to the sky, "Heads!"

The coin clattered against the ground, revealing the eye emblazoned on it staring at the sky.

"Uh oh!" Ronaldo gasped.

Command Knight (0/1900) gasped in horror as the box magically siphoned her strength away. Absorbing kid smiled, and jumped out of her way. She fell to the ground, and the kid kicked her in the ribs, causing her to shatter.

"And since Absorbing Kid from the Sky defeated a monster in battle, we multiply the creature's star level by 300, and add that to my life points." Celeste explained, "And since Command Knight had four stars, I gain 1200 life points. Plus she was still in attack mode, so you take all the battle damage."

The kid smiled, and another aura of light flared up around Celeste, bolstering her score. At the same time, Ronaldo's life points dropped by 1300.

Celeste: 6000

Ronaldo: 6700

"And without Command Knight, my warriors lose her bonus and the extra 200 from A. Forces." Ronaldo realized as his Marauding Captains dropped to (1600/400) each.

"So his monsters lose the bonus of two cards." Gold observed, crossing his arms, "That's gotta suck."

"Maybe, but my remaining monsters are still strong enough to get the job done." Ronaldo pointed out, "Marauding Captain one, attack her monster!"

The captain lunged forward, but as he did, Celeste tossed her coin again.

"Tails!" She shouted.

The coin struck the ground, this time with the blank side up.

Marauding Captain tripped, and the kid happily stomped on his back. Captain groaned and vanished, and another burst of light surrounded Celeste as Ronaldo took the battle damage.

Celeste: 6900

Ronaldo: 5400

"No!" Ronaldo shouted.

"Hooray!" Zeffie cheered, jumping up and down with joy, "Now the other warrior loses more attack points!"

It was all too true. The remaining captain (1400/400) gasped as he saw his comrade destroyed, his own attack points decreasing.

Ronaldo frowned as he looked at the Fairy Box.

"Care to have another go?" Celeste taunted with a polite grin, "It looks like I already broke your lock."

"Yes, but in both love and Duel Monsters you must keep trying even if luck turns against you." Roanldo declared with a sweep of his arm, "Now my remaining captain will attack your monster!"

The Marauding Captain jumped forward, and the music began again. Celeste tossed the coin, and smiled.

"Tails again." She stated.

The coin fell to Earth, this time with the eye staring up at Celeste again.

"Oh man, what a stroke of bad luck." Brian commented as Absorbing Kid was struck down.

Celeste: 6800

Ronaldo: 5400

"_Shoot!"_ Celeste thought as her only remaining monster shattered into pixels.

"Now for a move that I didn't want to perform because it would have broken my lock." Ronaldo said as he took a card from his disk, "But of course, I was hoping you would work to break it yourself. I knew you would wish to find your way in, and now you will see the champion that exists in me. I'll tribute Marauding Captain…"

The blond soldier saluted, and then shattered into pixels.

"To summon Freed the Matchless General (2500/1700)!" Ronaldo shouted as he placed a new card on his disk.

In place of the soldier, there was now a man wearing battle worn armor. He had blond hair and a blond beard. In his hand was a well crafted sword, covered with chips and scratches.

"Now then, since I summoned Freed, two things happen." Ronaldo smiled, "First, he gains 200 attack points from A. Forces since he's the only warrior on my field, and second, my deckmaster ability activates."

"And just what is your deckmaster's ability?" Celeste asked as Zaborg began to gather bolts of electricity around himself.

"It is called storm gathering." Ronaldo explained, "If I successfully tribute summon a monster, I may destroy one face up card on your side of the field. So I choose the only one I can: Fairy Box!"

Zaborg waved his arm, and a blast of lightning flew from it. The bolts gathered around the musical trap, and smashed it to bits.

"Unfortunately, summoning Freed means I've ended my battle phase." Ronaldo stated, "So I'll end my turn as well."

Celeste drew and winced as she saw what she held.

"_Drat, I have this great plan forming, but I can't do anything because I'm missing one piece." _She lamented, _"I hope I'll have enough stars to pull this off."_

"I set one monster in facedown defense mode." Celeste said as she put a card on her disk, "And that's my turn."

"Very well." Ronaldo nodded as a brown card appeared before Celeste, "Then I use Freed's special ability. I can forgo my draw phase to bring a level four or lower warrior from my deck to my hand."

Freed glowed with a silvery aura, and pulled a strange looking horn from his hip. He put it against his lips, and blasted out a clear note. A single card floated from Ronaldo's deck, and he snatched it out of the air, and slapped it onto his disk.

"And the warrior I choose is D. D. Warrior Lady (1900/1600)." Ronaldo announced.

A young woman with dark-blond hair and a black body suit jumped onto the field. She wielded a shimmering laser sword, and her left arm seemed to be mechanical.

"I normally do not use Different Dimension monsters." Ronaldo explained, "But I have made an exception in her case. Look Celeste, She is the perfect image of you in Duel Monster form! A beautiful young woman, and a powerful warrior of the light."

Celeste looked over the monster. There was no denying that they shared a few similarities, but they definitely weren't twins.

"_I have darker hair." _Celeste thought as she adjusted her glasses.

"Of course, I personally feel that such a gorgeous young woman has no place on the battle field." Ronaldo commented.

Celeste and the Warrior Lady both shot him ugly looks.

"If looks could kill, Ronaldo would need a body bag right now." Tim muttered.

"That's the same look my wife gave me before…oooh." Gold mumbled.

"_Now he's gonna get it."_ Celeste thought, _"If I get Joan out, I doubt there'll be enough of him left to log out of the virtual world!"_

"Freed (2700/1700), use the extra power from A. Forces and attack her facedown monster with blade of the battle scarred!" Ronaldo ordered.

Freed lunged forward, and swung his blade at the brown backed card. On it appeared a tiny, brown ball of fur with white wings. It let out a cry of 'Kuri' before vanishing in a flurry of feathers. One of the feathers landed in D.D. Warrior Lady's hair. She looked up at it, and wiped it away.

"Now, Warrior Lady will strike directly with dimension saber swipe!" Ronaldo ordered.

The warrior lady lifted her sword, but as she did she saw the white feather stuck to her hand. She frowned, and shook it off, only for the feather to land on her sword now. She spun her blade in one hand, and the feather floated down on to her nose, causing her to sneeze.

Ronaldo looked confused, as his monster started swinging her sword at the floating feather, rather than Celeste.

"What's happening?" Ronaldo asked as he heard Celeste giggle.

"That monster Freed destroyed was Winged Kuriboh." Celeste laughed, "I told Yugi they were better with wings. When it goes from my field to the graveyard for any reason, I can't take any battle damage for the rest of the turn. It's like a Waboku."

Ronaldo frowned as his monster kept swiping at the offending plume.

"Very well, I end my turn." Ronaldo sighed.

D.D. Warrior Lady finally managed to cut the feather in half, and slumped down with a sigh of relief. Celeste drew, and smiled as she saw what was in her hand.

"I summon Manju of the Ten-Thousand Hands (1400/1000)." She declared.

In a flurry of sparks, a creature that seemed to be made entirely of hands jumped in front of Celeste. His face was barely visible behind all of the hands, and he extended on of them from his back, handing a card to Celeste. Celeste smiled and accepted the gift.

"What is that card he just gave you?" Ronaldo asked.

"Oh, Manju can search for a ritual spell or monster when I normal or flip summon him." Celeste explained.

"Wait, what could she have searched for?" Brian asked, "We all agreed that we weren't going to use our elemental masters any more…"

"Maybe it's some other ritual monster." Mako suggested, "I have the Fortress Whale after all. Celeste must have found some new monster to take Cruz's place."

"Now, I play Snatch Steal." Celeste continued, sliding a card into her disk, "And I'll use it to take D.D. Warrior Lady."

A wily thief appeared before Celeste, and jumped forward. He grabbed hold of the woman's wrist and pulled her over to Celeste.

"Now I have all that I need to summon my ritual monster." Celeste smiled as she put another card into her disk, "I activate Shinato's Ark!"

A rumbling filled the area, and behind Celeste raised a huge boat. Up on the deck of the boat, a huge set of doors opened. Light began to pour out onto the field, and both Manju and the Warrior Lady stepped into it.

"Now I sacrifice eight stars worth of monsters…" Celeste began as she took the two monsters off of her disk.

The creatures turned into orbs of light, and floated into the sky. They disappeared into the boat, which began to tremble. It suddenly shattered into splinters as Celeste put another card in her monster zone.

"To summon Shinato the King of a Higher Plane (3300/3000)!!" Celeste called out.

A ten-foot tall figure descended onto the field. He had six, glorious golden wings sprouting from his back, and his skin was a deep blue. He wore blue robes, and an orb of pure light shimmered between his hands.

"Oh…" Brian gasped.

"My…" Mako continued.

"God." Gold finished.

"Exactly." Celeste smirked.

The other Elemental Duelists stared in awe at the sight of the angelic figure. Ronaldo gaped at it in a state of shock.

"Shinato, attack Freed with divine ring!" Celeste ordered.

The imposing apparition waved his hands in a strange pattern. Six orbs, each with a different kanji written in it, appeared in a circle in front of him. The orbs began to spin until they were nothing but a blur of light. The ring then flew forward, and slammed into Freed (2500/1700) who had been weakened after D.D. Warrior Lady vanished. He gasped and shattered into pixilated data.

Celeste: 6800

Ronaldo: 4600

Ronaldo just gaped in shock at the spot where Freed had been standing.

"Your move." Celeste offered.

Ronaldo remained silent. Celeste's brow creased with worry.

"Are you okay Ronaldo?" She asked.

"I'm fine." Ronaldo finally said as he drew his card, "It looks as though our duel has reached its climax though."

He silently slid two cards into his disk. The first one appeared facedown in his magic/trap zone. Then, four fluffy sheep tokens (0/0 X4) appeared in front of the champion.

"I will simply play one card facedown, and then activate my Scapegoats card." Ronaldo stated, "Your move."

Celeste drew, and cast a suspicious glance at the facedown card. She looked over her hand, and slid Hysteric Fairy into her graveyard.

"I know this probably seems mean, but I play to win." Celeste declared, "I use Otohime's deckmaster ability of dance of delusion. If I discard one card, Otohime will change the battle position of one monster on the field. And I choose your blue scapegoat (0/0)."

Otohime began to dance and sway, and a silver aura began to glow around the blue sheep. It began to sway back and forth as well, and with a happy bleat it started to float over the heads of the others.

"Shinato, attack the blue goat!" Celeste commanded.

The heavenly king waved his hands again, and another ring shaped blast of light launched forward. The blue goat stopped swaying, and its eyes went wide. It let out a frightened bleat, just before being wiped from existence. Ronaldo screamed as the blast carried through, knocking him onto his back.

Celeste: 6800

Ronaldo: 1300

"_I know he can take a direct attack from Soul without flinching, but that had to hurt." _Celeste winced.

Ronaldo just got to his feet though, a smile on his face.

"Now Celeste, it is time for you to reveal to everyone how you truly feel for me!" He called out.

Ronaldo waved one hand over his facedown card, and it lifted. It was a trap, with the image of a traveler looking down two roads. The first led to a large mountain, and the second to a dark, frightening looking wasteland.

"I activate Dramatic Crossroads!" Ronaldo called out.

"What's that do?" Mako asked from the sidelines.

"I'm glad you asked." Ronaldo smiled, "You see, since I just took battle damage, Celeste must now make a choice. She may either discard one random card from her hand, or she may let me look at her hand and take a card from it."

Ronaldo turned to Celeste, a dreamy look on his face, like the two of them were in the middle of a romance movie.

"So now Celeste, I ask that you show me what truly lies in your heart. Allow me to take a card from you, so that I will have a part of you forever!" Ronaldo exclaimed.

Celeste seemed quite taken back with the request, as she looked at her hand.

"Sorry Ronaldo. But I choose to discard one card." Celeste sighed as she turned her hand so it pointed toward the ground and shuffled it.

Ronaldo gasped, and looked as though he had just been smacked in the face. Celesete looked over the backs of her cards, and selected one (Which turned out to be a Mystic Shine Ball) and sent it to her graveyard.

"But…but why?" Ronaldo asked, his voice cracking.

"A duelist's deck is like her soul." Celeste explained, "I can't just go giving parts of it away on request. You'd have to really earn it."

"I see." Ronaldo nodded numbly.

"I…um…I end my turn." Celeste finished

Ronaldo drew, and looked over his three cards. He sighed, and waved his hand.

"I can do nothing, it is your move." He admitted.

Celeste drew her card, and discarded Threatening Roar from her hand.

"I use my deckmaster on the yellow goat this time." Celeste declared as Otohime and the yellow goat began to dance again.

"Celeste." Ronaldo interrupted.

Celeste looked over at the young man across from her. He looked up at her with a smile.

"Best of luck, I'll be rooting for you." He smiled, "Even though you discarded my affections this time, I can always count on the fact that hearts may change. And that our paths will cross again."

Celeste nodded awkwardly, and pointed to the dancing goat.

"Shinato, destroy his yellow goat and the rest of his life points!" Celeste shouted.

The divine ring flew forward once again, and wiped the goat and Ronaldo's life points from the map.

Celeste: 6800

Ronaldo: 0

The blast of the ring carried through and knocked Ronaldo off his feet. He fell flat onto his back and lay still.

"Didn't this guy hear that chivalry is dead?" Tim joked.

"Well now so is he." Gold laughed as the noble duelist stood back up.

He stumbled forward and took Celeste's hand once again.

"As we agreed, I apologize for what I said." Ronaldo grunted, clearly in a bit of pain, "It is quite obvious to me now that you are indeed a strong and capable woman…very strong."

He released Celeste's hand and turned to walk away while holding his ribs.

"Ronaldo!" Celeste shouted.

He turned around and gave her a questioning gaze.

"You're pretty good." Celeste said with a half smile, "Maybe we could duel again someday."

Ronaldo smiled and nodded, "Very well, maybe on line? I have an IM account…"

Before the conversation could get any farther however, the doors to the arena swung open. Standing inside the nearest doorway was Mokuba, who sighed with relief on seeing the Elemental Duelists.

"There you are! What's taking so long?" He scolded, "We need all of the finalists in here right now, come on!"

The others hurried in, and Mokuba tapped his foot impatiently as Celeste and Ronaldo finished their conversation. He was in too much of a rush to hear either one of their IM addresses, and just waved at Celeste to hurry up.

"Hey Celeste, what's keeping ya?" Tim asked from behind Mokuba.

"Sorry, I'm ready to go." Celeste said as she ran up.

"Good." Mokuba snarled impatiently.

"Sheesh, what's got you so ticked short fuse?" Tim laughed as he and Celeste followed the younger Kaiba into the arena.

Other doors were opening around the giant dome, and the other duelists began to file inside. The time had finally come for the finals, and no one wanted to be late.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

With the duel over, Sota and Jackson were staring each other down. Rei sighed as she picked the betting paper up from between them.

"Are you gonna place bets, or stare at each other all day?" She asked.

"We're completely even so far." Sota explained, "But that's going to change…"

"I place…Five-thousand…on…Brian taking a victory in his first match." Jackson said, hesitantly.

Rei wrote down the wager, and smiled.

"Okay then, best of luck to both of you." She said, typing in a command, "Now come on, let's watch this."

The main screen lit, and Roland appeared on it, adjusting the microphone.

------------------------

In the audience, tournament participants were taking seats as close to the arena as possible. The inside of the Virtual Kaiba Dome was easily the size of a Major-League Baseball stadium, with plenty of seating for everyone. On a large, four paneled display over the center of the arena, a highlight reel showing each of the finalists at their best was playing.

It constantly flashed with images of Yugi blasting Teach with his Dark Magician, Tim nailing Kevin with his Magic Cylinder trap, Celeste knocking Ronaldo silly in their first duel, and plenty more.

"Well, I have to admit these stadium seats are pretty comfy." Kevin Fischer said as he took a chair.

"Tempted to agree with you." Espa Roba agreed as he took a seat right behind the chess player.

Ronaldo Cortez said nothing, sitting on Kevin's left. He watched the screens, and his features lit up whenever Celeste was displayed.

Across the arena, Serenity daintily took her seat and scanned the arena floor for any sign of her brother. The actual dueling area was surprisingly bare, aside from Roland, the master of ceremonies (dressed in the black suit of one of Kaiba's employees), who was adjusting a microphone.

"Pardon me, is this seat taken?" A polite voice asked.

Serenity looked up to see John Peter, gesturing to the chair next to her. She smiled, and shook her head.

"No, you can sit here." She said, trying to be polite.

"Thank you, young lady. May the lord smile upon you." John said as he sat down and extended his hand, "I'm known as John Peter, and you are?"

"Serenity." Serenity said, a little taken back by the 'Lord smile upon you' line.

"Do you know any one in the finals?" John asked.

"A few of them, yeah." Serenity nodded, "I'm actually cheering on Joey. I was hoping to be a finalist with him, but the last one was chosen while I was dueling for the last few points I needed."

"Such a shame, but you fared better than me." John smiled, "I was taken out by Mako Tsunami, and it's actually him I'm giving my support to."

"Maybe Joey and Mako will get a chance to duel." Serenity smiled.

"I'm sure that would be quite a match." John nodded.

Only ten rows away, Ruby settled into her seat with a sigh. A teenage girl with brown hair down to the nape of her neck and wearing a pink shirt with a rose on it and white jeans took the seat next to her.

"Too bad we didn't make the finals, huh Mom?" The girl sighed.

"Yes, it's too bad Mary." Ruby sighed, "But I heard your father made it."

"Really? Daddy?" Mary asked, perking up a bit, "He's cooler than I thought. You think maybe he'll duel Yugi?"

"With your father's luck…Who can say?" Ruby sighed.

Other duelists were taking their seats around the arena, talking excitedly amongst themselves. Eventually, the lights began to dim, and the din of the crowd was silenced.

A single spot light turned on, focused on Roland who stood in the center of the arena floor.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, duelists of all ages and countries! Are you ready for the Kaiba Corp Virtual Tournament Top Sixteen?!" Roland shouted.

The audience roared its approval, and the jumbo screens went black overhead.

"Then allow to me introduce sixteen of the greatest duelists on Earth!" Roland called out, "Starting with the man who made this all possible. The CEO of Kaiba Corp, and master of the rarest cards in existence…Seto Kaiba!"

All four screens suddenly flared with the image of the elder Kaiba and his icy glare. The image on screen slammed a card onto his disk, and a Blue Eyes White Dragon soared up behind him.

At the same time, a hole opened in the ground, and out of it rose the real Seto on a small platform. His eyes were closed, and his arms crossed, like he considered himself too cool or busy to care for the screaming fans.

"Next, the world renowned King of Games, and probably the reason most of you agreed to participate…Yugi Mutou!" Roland shouted.

Yugi appeared on screen, his image holding a card overhead. The Dark Magician appeared next to him, and fired a bolt of magic into the air. Yugi rose up on a platform, much like Kaiba, and began waving to the audience (many members of it chanting his name).

"Our third finalist is the true underdog ladies and gentlemen! The luckiest duelist alive, as he'll be the first to tell you, Joey Wheeler!" Came the cry.

On screen, Joey pulled a card from his disk, and his Red Eyes Black Dragon appeared behind him in a burst of flames. Joey rose from the floor like the others, hamming it up with waves and shouts of "Hiya!" to a considerably less enthusiastic crowd.

"Next, a new comer to the world of professional tournaments." Roland smiled, "He claims mastery over the night and its shadows, give it up for Brian Hokage!"

Above, Brian waved a hand over his disk, causing Vampire Lord to swoop out a shadow next to him. On the ground, the older Hokage brother stood, waving a bit to the audience. Joey seemed pleased that at least someone was receiving less recognition than himself.

"Next comes his polar opposite folks. She's the mistress of light monsters, commanding the armies of Heaven itself. Here's Celeste Hikari!"

Ronaldo was screaming Celeste's name as the image overhead displayed her as Soul of Purity and Light rose up and draped her arms over Celeste's shoulders. Celeste herself gave him a polite wave before continuing to acknowledge the audience.

"And now, another new comer to the tournaments, the younger of the Hokage Brothers and prodigal pyromaniac. Mr. Molotov himself: Tim Hokage!"

The screen above filled with Tim, surrounded by a ring of golden flame. His Phoenix of Nepthys burst up behind him, spreading her wings and releasing her glorious cry. Tim rose from the ground, both arms raised over his head as the audience cheered for the latest finalist. On both hands, Tim's middle and ring fingers were curled up, pinky and pointer extended and his thumb over his middle and ring fingers (the traditional "Heavy Metal Salute").

"Now, his opposite, a duelist who shifts the tides of fate toward his victory!" Roland shouted, whipping the audience into a frenzy, "The Ocean Master: Mako Tsunami!"

The jumbo screen displayed Mako standing side-by-side with his Legendary Fisherman. On the ground, Mako was cheering as much as the audience as he rose up.

"Our next finalist is without a doubt the youngest professional duelist on record, aside from Rebecca Hawkins and Leon Von Shroeder. She's the flighty little girl with the wind beneath her wings. Give a round of applause for Zeffie Gale, the Duelist of Wind!"

Up above, Zeffie spun around three times and Chaos Rider Gustaph burst out from behind her on his roaring motorcycle. On the ground, Zeffie was jumping up and down waving to the audience. She was clearly over stimulated just by being in the stadium, and the other duelists on the floor were wondering when the sugar-induced coma would start.

"Our next competitor is known throughout New York City and Kansas as the Fighting Mountain! He's that big, burly, Brooklyn bruiser: Julius Gold!"

Up above, Gold held up one card, and Granmarg the Rock Monarch rose from the ground behind him. Gold was lifted out of the stadium floor, his hands in the pockets of his jeans. He gave an occasional nod or wave to the audience, once more portraying the professionalism that Zeffie obviously lacked.

"Up next, the super-genius that helped make all of this possible. His big brain and impressive dueling skills more than make up for his diminutive height: Noah Kaiba, the Cyber Spirit!"

Noah appeared on the screen above, and laughed as Shinato, King of a Higher Plane flew out from behind him. On the ground Noah was just as calm and collected as Seto, but he had a smile on his face, and did wave to the audience.

"Now, I give you a duelist who knows how to unleash his wild-side!" Roland continued, "His beastly bouncers will bruise ya, beat ya, and blast you into the stratosphere. The State Champion of Washington in the U.S.A., it's Victor Greenstone!"

Victor was on the screen above, and Behemoth charged up behind him with a frightening roar. Victor was lifted into the stadium, and seemed a little sheepish as he waved to the cheering crowd, obviously not used to a group of this size cheering for him.

"And now, ladies hold onto your boyfriends, because here comes the femme fatale of the dueling circuit. She's got beauty, brains, and a heck of a strategy in one dangerous package: Here's Mai Valentine!"

Mai appeared on screen, the Harpy Lady Sisters dancing around her. In the stadium, several of the men in the audience were whistling and shouting cat-calls as Mai rose up into place. She smiled a bit to the audience, and stole a glance at Joey before looking aside.

"Up next is one of our more…Eccentric contestants. He's the father of Duel Monsters, with every single possible strategy that exists or has yet to exist memorized. Maximillian Pegasus!"

Pegasus was laughing up above as his Toon World book burst open and showered him with light and streamers. Below, Pegasus was still laughing, and waving to the audience. He took a sweeping bow, enjoying his time in the spotlight again.

"You've met our craziest, now for our creepiest. A duelist easily recognized by his voice if not his deck: The master of insects, Weevil Underwood!"

"_Oh not Weevil."_ Brian, Yugi, and Joey all thought at once.

The Weevil on screen was standing on top of his mighty Insect Queen. The Weevil in the Stadium was snickering uncontrollably, and kept glancing toward Yugi with a malicious gleam in his eyes.

"Now, a duelist whose monsters make 'Jurassic Park' look like a petting zoo. He's the dino-duelist who never goes extinct: Rex Raptor!"

"_Rex!"_ Joey thought, _"Why didn't anyone tell me he was here?"_

Rex Raptor was indeed on the screen, a giant dinosaur with two heads and purple scales (Two-Headed King Rex) standing behind him. On the stadium floor, Rex Raptor rose up from the ground. He was wearing his usual green shirt under a brown vest, with a red, wool cap pulled over his hair. He glanced at Joey, and he clenched a fist with a smile on his face.

"And our last finalist!" Roland shouted, a shadow coming over the screen, "Presenting, the Master of Disaster, the King of Evil, your worst nightmare, direct from the pits of Hell…Ryou Bakura!"

"WHAT!" Yugi, Joey, Brian, Celeste, and Serenity all shouted together as the silver-haired youth appeared on the screen.

On screen, Bakura ran a hand across the tray of his disk. A black flame rose next to him, and turned into the cold, evil creature with blue skin and pointed ears. She wore demonic armor and carried a broken doll in her arms, and was easily identifiable as the Dark Necrofear,

"How did he get such an awesome intro?" Joey asked, looking bummed out as his schoolmate rose up on his elevator wearing a blue-striped shirt and blue jeans.

"Hello everybody." Bakura smiled, "Great to see you all."

"Bakura, how did you…" Yugi started to ask, before Bakura put a hand over his mouth.

"Now before we get to wild accusations, the ring spirit had nothing to do with this." Bakura explained in a whisper, clutching at his Millennium Ring with his free hand, "I'll explain everything once we're in the VIP seats, I promise."

"And the intro?" Joey asked.

"I happen to know a writer that works for Kaiba Corp, making advertisements." Bakura smiled sheepishly, "He owed me a small favor, so he decided to write a cool intro for me."

"There you have them ladies and gentlemen: Our top sixteen!" Roland shouted over the roar of the crowd, "And only one of them will be our champion! Now then everyone, you have five minutes to rest up and get those vocal chords ready before we announce the first match…"

The lights on the stadium shut down, casting it into darkness. Sixteen pulses of light flared up, and the audience began to chatter excitedly about the coming duels.

**_Celeste here, thankfully Ronaldo is going to keep quiet for the rest of this tournament._**

**_Next chapter, we kick off the finals with a not-to-be-missed duel._**

_**Light vs. Dark, Heaven vs. Hell, me vs. Brian! We could only call it:**_

_**Arch Rivals**_

_**See ya then!**_

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Zaborg the Thunder Monarch

LIGHT

Thunder

Six star

2400 attack

1000 defense

Storm Gathering: Whenever you tribute summon a monster, you may destroy one face-up card on your opponent's field.

---

Otohime

LIGHT

Spellcaster

Three stars

0 attack

100 defense

Dance of Delusion: Once per turn, you may discard one card from your hand to change the battle position of one of your opponent's face-up monsters.

_A/N: We know you've all been enjoying this fic, and we're glad that you have. Now for an important announcement: Due to circumstances beyond our control, we will not be updating next week. WE will resume our normal updating schedule on Friday, November December 1st. Thank you for your understanding._

_Older Hokage._


	25. Arch Rivals

_**Attention, Duelists of all ages! I am Roland, and I'll be your announcer for the remainder of the tournament!**_

**_For our first match of the top sixteen, we have a pair who have worked together in this tourney, to take out a pair of eliminators. You've seen their skills and witnessed their strategies, some of you personally._**

_**Now comes the time to place your bets!**_

_**In the West corner, Brian Hokage! The Duelist of Darkness and Master of Nightmares!**_

_**In the East Corner, Celeste Hikari! The Duelist of Light and Lady of Angels!**_

**_Outside the arena, these two are great friends. But in this duel, only one of them can walk away in one piece._**

_**It's a battle as old as time itself: Light vs. Darkness, Good vs. Evil!**_

**_We could only title this match:_**

**Arch Rivals**

High above the general audience was a large, sealed off box section with the letters "VIP" painted below a tinted window that faced the stadium. Inside were sixteen well padded chairs, complete with reclining backs and foot rests.

Sixteen pulses of light went off inside this room, and each of the finalists found themselves seated (upside-down in Tim's case) in one of the chairs. Tim grunted a bit and turned himself over as Roland also appeared in front of them.

"Well, is everybody ready?" He asked, turning to Seto.

Seto nodded, and stood up. He turned to the others with a no-nonsense look in his eyes.

"Okay, listen up. The finals are going to be simple. The sixteen of us will be randomly paired off to duel against each other." Kaiba explained.

"By that, he means he gets to duel Yugi as soon as possible." Joey whispered to Mai ,who was sitting next to him.

"No doubt." Mai agreed.

If Kaiba heard them, he chose not to say anything about it. Instead he continued with the instructions.

"It will be a standard elimination set up: Lose a duel and you're out of the finals." He stated, pointing out the window, "And you have to sit down there with the rest of the audience, these box-seats are for finalists only."

"Hope I don't lose too soon then." Brian said, leaning back, "A guy could get used to this…"

"Now just one more thing." Kaiba said, "You all made it to the finals, so be prepared to prove that you're worthy of being here. If you doubt your abilities, you'd better leave now."

The others were all silent, and Tim turned to Mako with a grin.

"Well Mako, it was nice you could come…" He started.

"He said if _I_ doubted my skills." Mako retorted, "Besides, what would he do if we did leave?"

"Replace you with a dueling monkey?" Tim joked, "Oh wait, my brother…"

Tim didn't get any further before Brian reached back from his seat and smacked him in the back of the head. Tim winced and rubbed the back of his skull.

"Hey, you didn't let me finish!" Tim protested.

"I didn't have to." Brian said, "Now let's let them finish."

There were no more comments. Kaiba nodded to Roland, and returned to his seat. Roland stepped up, and the window in front of the finalists suddenly went black, like a turned-off television.

Before anybody could ask what was happening, Roland vanished in a pulse of light.

-----------------------------------------

The audience was starting to get restless, when a flash indicated Roland's return to the arena.

"Sorry for the delay folks, the time has now come!" Roland shouted, the screen overhead lighting up, "Let's choose our first pair for the finals!"

A white line appeared in each screen, separating them down the center. Each side of the screen began to flash with pictures of the sixteen finalists, faster and faster until both sides were a blur.

-----------------------------------------

Meanwhile, in Domino City, Japan, a group of dedicated Yugi and Joey fans had gathered. They were in a small living room, with a television up against the wall and a blue couch facing it. A small table in front of the couch held a few bowls filled with various snack foosd.

Tea Gardner, one of Yugi's few female friends, was running her fingers through her brown hair. She was seated on the couch in the home of Siamun Mutou (Yugi's grandfather) and had been in such a rush to make it there that she hadn't even bothered to change out of her waitress uniform from work.

"Relax Tea, you made it just in time." Said a kindly voice.

Tea looked over her shoulder and smiled. Yugi's grandfather stood there, his white hair poking out from under the green-bandana that covered the top of his head. He was still wearing his green overalls and blue shirt, having just closed up the shop to watch the finals.

"You're sure Yugi hasn't dueled yet?" Tea asked, "We all promised that we'd watch when Kaiba announced the finals would be live…"

A young man, whose brown hair terminated in a point in front of his forehead, smiled as he adjusted his brown jacket.

"Tea, calm down." He said, "Duke and I have been here watching this for the last hour and all its been is highlight reels…"

"With very few highlights of Serenity, much to Tristan's disappointment." Commented the final occupant of the room.

This one had black hair held back by a red headband. He wore a red vest, with black shirt and pants, and for some reason had black-eyeliner on. Tristan Taylor turned to the youth with a sneer.

"Hey, you were looking for her too Duke." He pointed out.

Duke Devlin merely shrugged, as the television showed Roland appearing back in the arena.

"Yeah, but that's…" He started.

"Oh, quiet!" Tea shouted, pointing to the screen, "They're choosing the first match, turn the volume up!"

Grandpa fumbled the remote from the pocket of his overalls, and managed to turn up the volume just as the pictures of the finalists began to flash across the top of the screen.

"Here's hoping…" Grandpa said happily.

----------------------------------------

Back in the VIP section, the blackened window had lit up with the same flashing pictures, and the finalists were watching with baited breath. Joey leaned forward to Kaiba with a smile.

"Get ready Kaiba, because when that pairs the two of us up…" Joey whispered.

"Wheeler, please. You do such an excellent job of embarrassing yourself that you don't need to try any harder." Kaiba declared.

Yugi, in the meantime, leaned closer to Bakura who was in the seat next to him.

"So Bakura, how is it you're in the tournament?" Yugi asked, "Last you told us, you were going to be in Paris with your dad on a business trip, as a reward for your grades."

"I still am, I'm playing from Kaiba Land Europe." Bakura whispered back, " My dad's the curator of Domino City Museum, and was looking to arrange the loan of a few paintings from the Louve. I had my cards with me, and it turns out that Kaiba has been keeping an eye on duelists that have been in his tournaments before."

"So he sent a few guys to 'invite' you." Yugi guessed.

"They were actually very reasonable, and my dad needed an excuse to stay in the city for a few days to do some sight-seeing." Bakura smiled, "So I was glad to participate in a tournament by my own choice."

"And the Millenium Ring?" Yugi asked.

Bakura frowned, and fingered the trinket.

"I…don't know." He confessed, "The spirit has been unusually quiet over the past year. He hasn't done anything or usurped my control over my body. But it gives me an uneasy feeling, like the calm before a storm. I think he's saving his energy for something big and I don't know when he might be ready."

Yugi put a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Don't worry about it; just let Joey and me know if he acts up." Yugi smiled, "We've beaten him before."

Bakura nodded, and turned back to the screen.

Joey, in the meantime, was beginning to tremble with anger. Before he could think up any responses to Kaiba's insult, the screen stopped flashing, and a musical chime rang out.

---------------------------------------

In the arena, the audience cheered upon seeing the faces on the screen. Roland raised one hand, gesturing to the images.

"Our first match has been decided: Brian Hokage vs. Celeste Hikari!" Roland called out, "Duelists, you have two minutes to prepare your decks for battle!"

The audience cheered as a two-minute countdown appeared on the screen.

-----------------------------------------

In Grandpa Mutou's living room, Tea sighed and hung her head.

"_Celeste is in that tournament?"_ She thought, _"Well, at least she isn't dueling Yugi again…"_

-----------------------------------------

In the box seats, Brian and Celeste both looked to each other and nodded.

"Okay then, we're up." Brian said, a grid of cards appearing before him.

Brian looked at the cards as they hovered in front of him, and thought for a bit. He quickly moved Invader of Darkness and Brain Control to the side, and added the two cards Pikeru and Curran had awarded him. He then took his Interdimensional Matter Transporter, and swapped it with a card from his side deck.

"_Putting my deckmaster on the field has worked before, but it's too risky to try three times."_ He said to himself, _"This time, I won't do it unless it means I'd win. Otherwise I just put myself in danger."_

Looking over his shoulder, Brian saw Celeste hard at work on her own deck. The backs of her cards were facing him, and she took a glance up from her work as Brian closed his deck list.

"_She's too far away to see what changes I made."_ He assured himself.

Apparently though, Celeste felt the need to show Brian something. She tapped one of her cards, causing it to spin around and reveal an Exile of the Wicked. She moved it to her side deck, and took out another card in its place.

Brian seemed greatly relieved.

--------------------------------

Celeste smiled as she looked at the monster she was adding in place of Exile of the Wicked.

"_No way I'd use such a cheap card on Brian."_ She thought, _"I'll save it for a fiend duelist that deserves it."_

She then moved Dunames the Dark Witch and another monster known as Agent of Force: Mars to the side deck, adding the two cards she had won earlier.

"_And these should make a nice surprise for him."_ She thought with a smile.

"Attention Brian and Celeste: Your time is up!" Roland announced, "Prepare for battle!"

Two rings of light fell over them, and Brian and Celeste vanished.

--------------------------------------

In the main arena, the ground was dark and obscured. Members of the audience were getting antsy again, when a single spotlight fell onto Roland who was standing in the middle of the arena.

"In times long past, before man ever existed, there were the angels." Roland intoned, "These divine beings existed to maintain peace and order within the budding planet of Earth. But one of their kind decided he'd rather rule over this young world."

The light began to swell, revealing that the arena floor was now made of stormy, gray clouds. Around the edges stood shattered pillars of white marble, and lightning crackled between the monuments.

"This rebellious angel went to war with his former comrades, and thus was born the forces of darkness and chaos." Roland declared, "And in our own Stormy Heaven arena today, we're about to have a reenactment of the first battle between angels and demons!"

The clouds parted in two separate areas, and Brian and Celeste rose up through them. They both waved to the cheering crowd and then squared off against each other.

"I give to you, for your viewing pleasure, Brian Hokage, one of the top duelists of Chicago, versus Celeste Hikari, regional champion of Los Angeles!" Roland shouted, "It's Brian's fiends versus Celeste's fairies! We could only title this match: ARCH RIVALS!"

"Catchy." Brian nodded as the audience roared.

"A bit inaccurate, but I like it." Celeste agreed.

"So, no hard feelings despite the outcome." Brian smiled, "I'd hate for you to walk away mad when I win."

"Same here." Celeste smirked.

"Alright now, Brian, you use demons, and Celeste, you use angels. Both of them govern over good and evil." Roland declared as he rose over the heads of both duelists on a puff of clouds, "But in here, that's my job! So Brian, no making contracts with dark forces in the middle of the match. Celeste, no calling divine punishment down outside of your cards."

"No promises." Both of them joked at the same time.

"Alright then, that's good enough for me." Roland declared, "Select you deckmasters!"

"I choose Asura Priest!" Celeste declared.

Behind her, the many-armed fairy arose, skin as blue as ever. He nodded his head, and stroked his three chins as he prepared for combat.

"I think I'll change the pace a little." Brian smiled, "Dark Ruler Ha Des will be my deckmaster!"

From behind Brian, a column of black fire arose. Out of the flames stepped his regal fiend, holding a goblet of green liquid.

"Excellent, I was hoping to have an active role here." The demon king said in a low voice.

"Happy to oblige." Brian smiled, "So what's your power?"

The royal monster leaned close to Brian, and whispered something in his ear. Brian nodded, and drew five cards.

"Alright then, time to choose the first turn…" Roland said as Celeste picked up five cards as well.

Asura Priest began to glow with a blue aura, while Ha Des was surrounded by a black one. Over each of their heads appeared a number: Ha Des had four, Asura Priest was a six.

"Celeste's deckmaster picked the higher number, so she may go first." Roland announced, "Let's get it on!"

Celeste drew her sixth card, and smiled.

"Let's duel!" She and Brian both called out.

**Celeste: 8000**

**Brian: 8000**

Celeste plucked two cards from her hand, and set them into place.

"I'll open with two facedown cards." She said as they appeared before her, "And then I'll summon Absorbing Kid from the Sky (1300/1000)."

In front of the two cards appeared the angel-winged child. He crossed his arms and stuck his tongue out at Brian as he began to pout again. Celeste just smiled.

"Your turn." She stated.

Brian drew, and looked at his card. He laughed sheepishly as he scratched back of his head.

"Oops, almost forgot about this." He said, turning the card around.

Celeste gave it a look, and immediately regretted that choice. The card had a picture of a hideous mask made of what she hoped was leather.

"This is called the Mask of Remnants." Brian explained, "It's a powerful card, but not when I draw it in my draw phase. If that happens, I need to shuffle it back into my deck. So I just wasted my draw."

The card vanished, and Brian's deck shimmered for a second.

"But I'm not worried Celeste. Did you forget that I was watching your duel outside?" Brian asked, "I bet one of those cards is your Fairy Box. But I just need more luck than you to avoid that…"

Brian threw a card down, and a Ha Des spat an orb of black fire onto the field.

"I summon Opticlops (1800/1700) in attack position." Brian stated.

From the orb emerged the muscular, orange monster. It focused its eye on Celeste's creature, which cringed in fear.

"Opticlops, knock that kid back to the sky with opti-laser!" Brian shouted.

The fiend fired a beam of black energy from its eye and it flew right at Celeste's monster. The kid ducked and hid behind his wings…

When a silver shield jumped in front of the blast. The black energy hit the shield, and a bell-like tone rang out. Celeste smiled as she began to glow with green energy and her monster peeked out from behind the barrier.

"Huh?" Brian gasped.

"You forgot about my Draining Shield card didn't you?" Celeste snickered, "Don't forget, we teamed up to duel Pikeru and Curran, we saw a lot of each other's decks. You know a few of my tricks, and know a few of yours. And now my shield stopped your attack, and added your monster's attack to my life points."

**Celeste: 9800**

**Brian: 8000**

"Shoot." Brian grumbled, "So much for an early lead."

------------------------

In the VIP seats, Yugi and Joey were watching the duel with quite a bit of interest.

"So, who do you think will win?" Joey asked.

"Hard to call." Yugi said, "After all, Celeste's low level monsters aren't very strong. Her higher level monsters are extremely powerful, but costly to summon. Her biggest strength lies in her deck's power to recover her life points. She can reverse almost any damage Brian deals her, given enough time."

"And her deck is more focused than his is." Joey nodded, "After all, when we last dueled his deck had fiends, zombies, a dragon…"

"Oh, that was Brian's old deck." Tim said from behind Joey.

"Really?" Joey asked, turning around.

"Yep." Tim nodded, "I gave my deck a little tweaking since last year, but Brian completely overhauled his. Like Roland said, it's now a Dark-Fiend deck, and it's harder to take down than Madonna's career."

"Hm…Fiend monsters can be very powerful." Yugi noted, "This duel could go either way."

----------------------

On the ground, Brian looked over the rest of his hand.

"Eh, I'll end my turn since I can't do anything else." He shrugged.

"On that note, I chain my Solemn Wishes trap." Celeste declared, her other card flipping up, "Now when I draw cards, I get 500 life points."

"Oh crud…" Brian grumbled as Celeste drew, causing a shower of light to fall over her.

**Celeste: 10300**

**Brian: 8000**

Celeste smiled as she saw what she had just drawn.

"Well this worked better than I hoped." She said as she swapped cards on her tray, "I tribute Absorbing Kid from the Sky to summon Airknight Parshath (1900/1400)."

Celeste's deckmaster shimmered with blue light, and the kid swooped into the air. A path of blue mist extended from the sky down to the field, and down the path rode the winged centaur. He brandished his sword, and glared at the Opticlops.

"Oh double crud." Brian sighed.

"Attack with angel blade!" Celeste shouted.

The heavenly creature trampled forward, his face a mask of righteous anger. He stabbed his weapon into Brian's fiend, which glowed with a yellow light before it shattered.

"And since he damaged you life points, I get to draw one card." Celeste said as she took the top card from her deck, "And that sets of Solemn Whishes again."

Celeste was surrounded by shimmering rain as she drew, her life points rising again.

"What's more, since he destroyed a monster, Airknight can use my deckmaster's power and attack a second time." Celeste smiled as Asura Priest shimmered with blue energy.

"Activated, backup daggers has." Asura Priest intoned.

"Attack again, angel blade!" Celeste shouted.

Brian let out a cry of pain as the angel fighter slashed him with the glowing sword. He stumbled back several steps, while Celeste smiled as she drew another card and her life points leapt again.

**Celeste: 11300**

**Brian: 6000**

"It looks like Celeste is taking a commanding lead so far!" Roland announced, "Her angelic cards have already given her a lead of over 5000 life points."

"That's good enough for now." Celeste stated, "Your move Brian."

Brian drew and looked over his hand.

"I summon my Giant Orc (2200/0)." He declared.

From the clouds ascended the huge fiend, bouncing his bone club on one shoulder. He hefted it up as he glared at the Airknight.

"Okay Orc, take down her monster with bone club beatdown!" Brian ordered.

The fiend charged forward, and slammed his weapon right into Parshath's head.

"My Airknight!" Celeste gasped.

The monster groaned before shattering to pieces. Orc, now exhausted from his efforts, wandered back to Brian's field and fell to a sitting position. He began to absentmindedly chew on the bone, like an oversized attack dog.

**Celeste: 11000**

**Brian: 6000**

"That's my turn Celeste." Brian declared.

Celeste drew, and smiled at the monster on her new card. The Solemn Whishes light fell over her again, boosting her life points even further.

"Okay Brian, time to up the ante a bit." She smiled as she put down another monster, "I summon Agent of Creation: Venus (1600/0)."

Onto the field descended a serene figure. She wore gold and green robes, with golden wings extending behind her. She had a peaceful look on her face, and her shimmering hair fell down almost to her feet. Around her orbited three orbs, one of which was blue, the second red, and the last was purple.

"Hm, reminds me of the time my hair was that long. What was I thinking?" Celeste muttered, twisting her waist-length braid around one hand, "'Course this is still kind of tough to take care of…"

"Um, Celeste, does your monster do anything or does it just stand there looking pretty?" Brian asked.

"Oh, sorry. My monster does have a special power." Celeste smiled, "As the Agent of Creation, she…Well she creates things. For every 500 life points I give up, I can summon a specific monster from my deck or hand. So I'll surrender 1500 points to summon all three of them."

Celeste began to shimmer with white light, and let out a gasp as the light was pulled from her body. It formed into three orbs, each roughly the size of a basketball, and each one a sky-blue color.

"These are the Mystic Shine Balls (500/500)." Celeste said as two cards floated from her deck and one came from her hand.

The cards settled onto her disk, and the orbs began to hover around the monster that summoned them.

"Only 500 points each?" Brian asked, "What good are they?"

"Well, your Orc has no defense points, and they are in attack mode…" Celeste smiled.

"Oh triple crud." Brian grumbled.

"Mystic Shine Ball one, attack his Orc!" Celeste ordered, pointing at one of the orbs.

The crystal sphere swooped down, and slammed into the enemy's stomach. The Orc groaned under the attack, and shattered to pieces.

"Shine Balls two and three, attack directly!" Celeste commanded.

The other two orbs swooped down, and slammed into Brian. The first hit him in the stomach, forcing him to his knees, the second nailed him in the face.

"Ow, ow!" He shouted as the attacks bounced off.

"Venus, you go too." Celeste stated.

The orbs around Venus began to spin faster, and Brian's eyes went wide.

"Uh oh." He said.

The three orbs swooped down, and pummeled him mercilessly in the face, chest, and stomach!

"Ow, ow, OW!" He shouted, falling flat on his back.

**Celeste: 10000**

**Brian: 3400**

"And an impressive combo from Celeste knocks Brian flat!" Roland exclaimed over the roar of the crowd, "Her monsters may embody peace and order, but they sure can bring on the hurt."

-----------------------------------

"Ooh, that looks painful." Serenity winced.

"An excellent combination however." John commented, "Celeste spent a fair amount of life points, but her previous tactics means she still in the lead."

Across the arena, Kevin and Espa both flinched. Ronaldo jumped to his feet, and began to cheer.

"Yes Celeste! Show him what you are made of! Display the skills that defeated me, and won my heart!" Ronaldo yelled.

Kevin and Espa yanked him back down, and Kevin glared at the Spaniard.

"I'm trying to enjoy the match, but jump up like that again and you'll know what a duel disk to your skull feels like." Kevin grumbled.

"My apologies." Ronaldo said sheepishly.

"At any rate, Celeste may have made a crucial error." Kevin stated, "And if Brian plays his cards right, he can take advantage of it."

-----------------------------------------

Back up in the VIP box, Weevil was glaring at the duel below as Brian was slammed to the ground.

"I can't believe I lost to this wimp! He's getting clobbered by bubbles!" Weevil spat from his seat.

Gold, who was unfortunate enough to be sitting next to Weevil, let out a sigh as he turned to the insect-duelist.

"I don't think Hokage is out just yet." Gold said, "He probably has a plan, one to turn this around."

----------------------------------------

Brian got to his feet, and looked at his read out.

"Huh, I'm already in the red." He noticed, "Guess I'll need to be more careful."

"Your turn Brian." Celeste giggled with false innocence.

After all, there was no use in pretending that wasn't fun.

Brian drew, and looked across his cards.

"Let me see, I think I'll start by summoning my Archfiend Soldier (1900/1500)." Brian stated, putting down yet another monster.

Out of the clouds came the armored fiend, wielding his serpentine sword. He pointed it right toward Celeste, and smiled with glee.

"Now let's take this duel to my home turf." Brian said as he opened his field zone, "I activate my Yami field spell!"

The clouds grew darker, and the pillars began to warp and sway. They changed from white marble to black obsidian, and the lightning between them turned purple. The ceiling of the arena turned pitch black, and the entire room seemed to get quite a bit darker.

"What…" Celeste began to ask.

"Well Celeste, looks like it's time to turn the duel in my favor." Brian smiled, "As long as the field is under the influence of this spell card, all fiend monsters get an extra 200 attack and defense."

Archfiend Soldier (2100/1700) began to crackle with purple lightning as he hefted his sword.

"And, it also has a negative effect on your monsters." Brian smiled, "This spell drains all fairies of 200 attack and defense."

"No!" Celeste shouted.

It was all too true. Venus (1400/0) gasped as her own orbs began to dim, and each of the Shine Balls (300/300) began to shiver in mid air.

"Nice, looks like I'm in control now." Brian smiled, "And I think I'll give myself a little boost with this special spell card: Demonic Tribute."

A card with the image of a frightening altar, to which was strapped a young woman who was screaming, appeared. Over the women stood Dark Ruler Ha Des, clutching an ornate dagger.

"The art is a little gruesome, sure, but for this new strategy nothing is better when you need a quick boost." Brian smiled, "It's also sort of complex, so I'll explain. What I've done now is begun a powerful ritual, which must be completed. I name one monster on your field, like Agent of Creation: Venus."

Venus looked worried as a ghostly dagger appeared over her head. Archfiend Soldier smiled as he licked his sword.

"Next, I have to successfully destroy the monster I named in battle, using a fiend monster." Brian continued, "I'm not allowed to play anything else this turn until I do so."

A black mist settled over Brian's field, and he smiled as he pointed to the cowering fairy.

"Attack! Blade of demise!" Brian shouted.

The Archfiend Soldier lunged forward, and sliced his weapon right through Venus. She gasped as, rather than shattering, she burst into black fire. The flames surrounded Brian, and he smiled as a tingle ran over his skin.

"Now then, the ritual is complete. As my reward for finishing it, I gain life points equal to double the attack of the monster I destroyed." He stated.

"What if you had failed?" Celeste asked, "That card has to have another drawback."

"Sure it does." Brian said, "If my attack failed, I'd have to make a sacrifice instead. My strongest monster would be destroyed, and double its attack points would come out of my life points."

**Celeste: 9300**

**Brian: 6200**

"See Celeste? I padded my own points and reduced yours in one blow." Brian s smiled.

----------------------------------------

"You may as well pay up now Sota." Jackson smiled.

"The duel isn't over yet." Sota protested.

"It might as well be." Jackson snickered, "I doubt Brian will let Celeste summon any more powerful monsters."

"I doubt Celeste will let him stop her." Sota responded.

"I doubt either you will have any money left at the rate you're betting it." Rei retorted, "Now be quiet."

------------------------------------

"Now that I succeeded with my card, I'm allowed to play other ones." Brian said as he placed two cards into his disk, "So I'll set two cards facedown and end my turn."

The cards appeared behind Archfiend Soldier, and Celeste drew her card with a worried look. The Solemn Wishes card once more showered light over her head.

"_Ugh, the one time I need a tribute monster and I don't draw one!"_ She fretted, _"Where's the love?"_

"Looks like Celeste is starting to lose momentum folks." Roland announced, "Brian has made a dramatic turn around, using this field to weaken Celeste's monsters while strengthening his own!"

"I summon Hyseric Fairy (1600/300)." Celeste said, looking worried.

The bookish fairy swooped into play, and looked around at the dark world she landed in. She frowned as the shadows leeched away her power, and looked to her controller with a sad expression.

"Sorry, I don't want to be here either." Celeste apologized, "But let's make the best of the situation. I need your ability."

Hysteric Fairy nodded, and held up her book.

"Okay then, I'll tribute two Mystic Shine Balls to gain 1000 life points. It's a refund on what I spent to summon them." Celeste declared.

Two of the orbs melted into light, which was gathered into the angel's book. She opened up a page, and a beam of light surrounded Celeste, boosting her score even further.

**Celeste: 10800**

**Brian: 6200**

"You keep bringing your life points up, I'll keep knocking them back down." Brian challenged, "Anything else?"

"Other than moving my last Mystic Shine Ball to defense mode, no. Celeste sighed as the final orb fell to the level of her waist.

Brian drew, and pointed to one of his facedown cards.

"Alright then. I'm tired of you restoring points so I'll use Dust Tornado to destroy that Solemn Wishes card." He stated.

The trap lifted, and a blast of wind shot out, wiping out the glowing trap on Celeste's field.

"Next, I'll activate my other facedown card: Call of the Haunted." Brian smiled, a spooky purple mist rising up in front of his trap, "And I'll use it to resurrect Opticlops (2000/1900)."

The smoke turned into the orange fiend, who let out a roar as he drew power from the shadows around him.

"And then, I'll summon Witty Phantom (1600/1500)." Brian declared.

Next to Opticlops appeared another orange fiend. This one dressed in a purple tuxedo with matching hat. He smiled as he took in the shadowy arena, and bowed deeply to the audience.

"Okay then, let's do this." Brian smiled, "Witty Phantom, destroy that Shine Ball with high-class crash!"

The phantom stepped forward, and strut his way over to the shiver orb. He made a slight bow, before backhanding it and sending it flying into one of the pillars, where it shattered into dust.

"Opticlops, destroy her Hysteric Fairy with opti-laser!" Brian commanded.

The one-eyed fiend launched his black beam again, and this time nothing interrupted the attack. It struck Hysteric Fairy right in the chest, and she screamed as she burst into pixels.

"Archfiend Soldier, attack directly!" Brian called out.

Celeste braced herself as the fiendish warrior lunged forward and drove his weapon into her chest. Celeste gasped and stumbled back, surprised to see a small wound remain open on her chest before it vanished completely. The crowd let out a cry of approval at the attack.

"_Okay, mildly creepy."_ Celeste thought, _"Kaiba has improved the realism for the finals…"_

**Celeste: 8300**

**Brian: 6200**

"That's all I can do Celeste." Brian declared.

Celeste drew and frowned as she placed a monster facedown on her disk. It's holographic replica appeared before her.

"Okay Brian, I'll set one monster in defense mode." She sighed, "Go ahead."

Brian drew his card, and smirked once more as he looked to his deckmaster.

"Think it's time to use my deckmaster." He declared, "I activate Ha Des's power of demonic reinforcements."

Ha Des laughed as he extended one hand. Brian began to glow with black flames, and he braced himself against the pain of the fire.

"My deckmaster is much simpler than the spell I played." Brian explained, "Now by surrendering life points in multiples of 500, I can give a Fiend-type monster the same amount in attack points."

"Oh no…" Celeste moaned.

"Don't worry, the boost can't exceed 2000 points." Brian explained, "And since that's expensive, I think that I'll just give 500 points to my Witty Phantom."

Witty Phantom (2100/1500) gasped as a blast of fire surrounded him. His muscles bulged, and tore the sleeves of his tuxedo. He smiled as he flexed them, looking like a well-dressed miniature of the Opticlops he shared the field with (minus the horn and plus one eye).

"And now that that's done…" Brian said as his life points took a short dip, "Witty Phantom, attack her facedown monster!"

The phantom jumped forward with glee, and slammed his foot against the hidden card. On it appeared a young woman in yellow robes, carrying a golden harp. She screamed as the attack shattered her.

"Spirit of the Harp (600/1800)?" Brian asked, "That the best you got Celeste?"

"For that turn, yes." Celeste admitted.

"Ah well." Brian shrugged, "Now my other two monsters have a clear path to your life points."

Opticlops launched his eye beam again, and struck Celeste right in the stomach. Archfiend Soldier jumped forward as she doubled over, and knocked her down with the hilt of his sword.

**Celeste: 4200**

**Brian: 5700**

"And in a stunning upset, Brian Hokage takes the lead!" Roland announced.

The audience flew into a storm of cheers (from those who decided to support Brian) and boos (from Celeste's fans). Celeste got back to her feet and brushed off the remaining sting of the attacks.

------------------------------------

"That had to hurt." Tristan commented with a wince, "Man, that Brian uses some mean monsters."

"What do you expect from fiends?" Duke asked as he picked up a bowl of popcorn, "They're some of the roughest, most vile monsters in the game, but they're powerful none the less."

"Well, that still seemed kind of over the top." Tea said with a frown, "What do you think, Grandpa?"

Grandpa just smiled at Tea.

"Now Tea, let's not forget that they are both professional duelists." He said, "I'm certain that both of them have taken, and executed, worse attacks. Why, if were just ten years younger I bet an attack like that wouldn't have even winded me."

"Even so, I don't think I'd like to take on Brian any time soon." Duke said, munching on a handful of popcorn, "On the other hand, Celeste is probably tough also, seeing as she got up after that."

"Duke, quit hogging the popcorn." Tristan scolded, snatching the bowl away, "Let's just enjoy the show for now."

----------------------------------------

Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, three more friends were gathered around the T.V. to watch the duel. They were in a pretty standard girl's bed room, with a pink shag carpet, a bed covered with white sheets and pink pillows, several stuffed animals (most of them pink) lying in a corner, even the TV was pink.

Maybe standard was the wrong term in this case.

"Ooh…I do not like that fiend guy." Said a blond girl from her position on the floor.

She was dressed in pink tank top and shorts (obviously the owner of the room).

"You're just saying that because he's beating Celeste like a piñata, Barbara." Said a girl in black clothing with dark hair and eye-liner from her seat up on the bed.

"You know Chris, I thought since we all agreed to watch this, we'd all be rooting for Celeste." Said a well-tanned young man in a white t-shirt and blue shorts (he was sitting in a backward-facing desk chair, leaning on the back part), "After all, she is our friend."

"True George, but she made a sloppy move there." Chris responded, "She didn't set anything to try and protect her Shine Balls. Otherwise she could have used them as sacrifices."

"Let's just hope she finds a way out." Barbara said, looking back to the screen.

-------------------------------------

"It's your turn Celeste." Brian said with a nod.

Celeste drew her hand back to four cards, and quickly placed her newest card into her disk.

"I play Graceful Charity!" She said desperately.

Celeste swiftly drew three cards as the winged woman soared overhead and bathed her deck with light. Celeste's eyes lit up as she saw one of the cards, and she selected her two discards.

"Now then, I'll just drop these two cards…" She said as she put the cards into her disk.

The angel above took two holographic cards and faded from view.

"And then I'll bring one of them back with Premature Burial!" Celeste intoned, a circle of red light appearing before her, "Come to the field: Guardian Angel Joan (2600/1800)!"

The red light turned white for a minute, and out of the circle rose the glorious, strawberry-blond angel. Her dress seemed a little less radiant, and her wings seemed dimmed, but she still shone with light and hope even in the dreary background.

"Joan! Aw shoot!" Brian shouted, "I didn't…I hadn't planned…"

"Let me guess, you didn't have a plan for when I got my strong monsters out." Celeste guessed.

"I thought if you didn't have monsters on the field, you wouldn't be able to summon her." Brian stuttered out.

Celeste put one hand on her hip in response.

"Honestly, how long have we known each other?" Celeste challenged, "You know me better than that Brian. Joan, destroy Witty Phantom!"

Joan raised one hand, and launched an orb of pure light from her palm. Witty Phantom gasped as he was absorbed by the light, and vanished into nothing.

"And then we get to the good part, for me at least." Celeste continued, "Joan gives me the original attack strength of any monster she destroys in battle. It's like your Demonic Tribute card, only half as powerful and without the drawback."

Brian looked distressed at this turn of events, and then let out another groan as Asura Priest began to glow.

"Your deckmaster power…" He realized.

"That's right." Celeste smiled, "Attack and destroy his Archfiend Soldier! Light of Heaven!"

Joan fired off her blast again, and Archfiend Soldier screamed as he was vaporized. Brian let out a shout as the remaining light scorched his skin, and Celeste smiled as a beam of light fell over her and boosted her life points.

**Celeste: 6700**

**Brian: 4700**

"And then I'll set this card facedown." Celeste said as she slid a card into her disk, "Go ahead."

The facedown card appeared as Brian drew.

"I activate Card of Sanctity!" He called out, a flash of golden lightning arcing across the field.

"Thanks, I get a few extra cards too." Celeste smiled as she reached for her deck.

Celeste drew four cards, while Brian picked up a full six. He breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the last one he drew.

"I was afraid I wouldn't draw this guy." Brian said as he removed Opticlops from his disk, "Celeste, do you remember the monster I used to beat Pikeru and Curran's Giant Orc?" Brian asked.

Celeste said nothing, but turned pale as she remembered.

"I thought so. I tribute Opticlops to summon Great Maju Garzett (?/0)" Brian declared.

Celeste stumbled backward as Brian's armored fiend rose onto the field. Opticlops faded into the shadows, and a bolt of energy empowered Garzett (3600/0).

"And don't forget, he's a Fiend-type." Brian smiled as his monster grew to (3800/200), "Attack Joan with channeled darkness!"

Garzett roared, and fired a wave of blackness from his mouth. Joan staggered under the assault, but quickly succumbed and faded away.

**Celeste: 5500**

**Brian: 4700**

"_Shoot! I thought that he'd use a spell to destroy Joan."_ Celeste thought, _"Even if I used my own Call of the Haunted now, bringing her back would be a waste!"_

"I'm laying this card facedown, and ending my turn." Brian declared as he slid a card into place.

"Brian seems unstoppable! Will Celeste be able to turn this around?" Roland asked.

---------------------------------

"It does not look likely." Espa Roba sighed as he leaned back.

"No! Celeste can not lose!" Ronaldo shouted, staying firmly in his seat under Kevin's glare.

------------------------------------

"You know, I don't really see much of a chance for Celeste." Joey said, "Brian has a monster on the field that's stronger than a Blue-Eyes White Dragon. What can she do about that?"

Kaiba said nothing, but was glaring at Brian's monster without a word as though its very existence, physical appearance set aside, were a crime against nature.

"I wouldn't count Celeste out." Yugi warned, "After all, power can be more fragile than it looks."

-----------------------------------

Celeste drew her next card, and clapped a hand over her mouth.

"_I don't…This is exactly what I needed!"_ She realized.

"I activate Call of the Haunted to revive one of my Mystic Shine Balls (300/300)!" Celeste called out, her facedown card lifting.

A purple mist floated over the field, and formed into a shiny crystal ball. Brian gave it a confused look as Celeste opened her own field slot.

"Now then, I think I'll get rid of your field for one of my own." She stated, "I activate Sanctuary in the Sky!"

The lights in the arena suddenly flared up, blinding everybody for a few seconds. During that time, the clouds turned puffy and white, and the pillars turned to white marble once more and even repaired themselves. The lightning arcing overhead faded away, and the sweet scent of roses and vanilla filled the air.

With the darkness thus banished, both monsters on the field reacted accordingly. Great Maju Garzett (3600/0) looked like it was going to be ill, while the Mystic Shine Ball (500/500) seemed to catch and amplify the light around it. It shimmered with a diamond-like glow.

"Now that we're in their home turf, neither one of us can be hurt in a battle involving one of our Fairy-type monsters." Celeste explained, "Oops, you don't have any do you?"

"Doesn't matter, my monster is still stronger than your bubble." Brian pointed out.

"Who said I planned to attack with this?" Celeste stated as she swapped cards again, "I believe the term 'tribute bait' is appropriate. I offer it as a sacrifice to summon the latest addition to my deck: Eos, Goddess of Dawn (2000/1400)!"

The orb faded into a rosy beam of light, which turned into a column. Inside the column appeared a young woman wearing rosy-pink and gold robes. Her eyes glowed a dim yellow, and her hair was gold with reddish highlights. She seemed to give off a faint orange aura, like the light of a rising sun.

"Only 2000 points? You might has well have kept your bubble." Brian shrugged.

"But I didn't, because this monster has a special ability." Celeste stated, "Your creatures of darkness rule the night, but she embodies the one thing that drives them away: The sun!"

Eos pointed at Brian's sole monster, which groaned as a rosy light focused on it.

"You can't keep the sun from rising, and your demons can't fight the light of day." Celeste called out, "By summoning Eos, I can destroy any Dark monster on the field that's stronger than she is, and Garzett fits the bill perfectly."

Great Maju Garzett screamed as he burst into particles under the purifying light. Brian responded by waving a hand over his duel disk.

"I chain to my monster destruction with Waboku!" He shouted, a trio of priestesses jumping up in front of him, "Now you can't damage me with Eos."

"Fine then, I end my move." Celeste shrugged, "But next turn…"

She let that hang in the air as Brian drew. He smirked a bit as he set a card onto his disk.

"Okay Celeste, I set a monster facedown and call it a turn." Brian stated, the hiding monster materializing on the field.

"I call it a bluff." Celeste responded as she drew.

"Care to test that?" Brian asked.

"Both duelists are playing head games with each other folks." Roland announced, "Psychology truly is half the battle."

Celeste put another card onto her disk.

"I don't have to take a chance on this one." She stated, "I've got one of my most powerful monsters right here. I summon Warrior of Zera (1600/1600)!"

From behind Celeste's deckmaster stepped a young man dressed in green armor. He carried a sword in one hand, and looked like he was ready for any battle.

Brian just gaped at this new monster.

"Okay, time out." He protested, "Zolga is a fairy, so I can understand that. But this guy looks more like a warrior!"

"He is." Celeste nodded.

"Then why is he in your deck?" Brian asked.

--------------------------------

"Um…Why is that in her deck?" Chris asked.

"No clue." George responded.

"I think she mentioned looking for one…" Barbara muttered, "But she said it was part of a combo."

All three of Celeste's friends looked at the screen together as their friend removed the card from her disk.

--------------------------------

"You see Brian, Zera here is seeking the power of the Archlords, the great angels that watch over humanity." Celeste explained, "And since he made it to the Sanctuary in the Sky he can fulfill his destiny, and become one."

Zera began to shimmer with brilliant light. His sword pulsed, and turned to pure silver, while a pair of wings extended from his back. His skin turned lavender and a silver helmet now covered his head as Celeste put the new card into play.

"These are the cards I got from Pikeru and Curran." Celeste declared, "The first was Warrior of Zera, and the second one is Archlord Zerato (2800/2300)!"

Zerato now swung his sword forward, a look of determination in his eyes. Brian drew back a bit at the sight of this mighty angel, while Celeste held up another card.

"Now we get to his effect." Celeste smiled, "As long as Sanctuary in the Sky is in play, I can discard one Light monster from my hand to destroy _every _monster on your side of the field."

"Every monster!" Brian shouted, as Celeste placed a Shining Angel into her graveyard.

"Did I stutter?" Celeste asked, "Every…last…one."

Zerato raised his sword, and a bolt of lightning annihilated Brian's facedown Night Assailant. The cloaked fiend vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving nothing between him and Celeste.

"Attack him with the shining blade of Heaven!" Celeste shouted, pointing at Brian.

Zerato flew forward on his mighty wings, and lifted his sword to smite the opposing duelist. Before he could, Brian shoved a card into his graveyard, and a wall of squeaking puffballs appeared before him. They were all blasted to dust by Zerato, but Brian was unharmed.

"Thank you Kuriboh." Brain sighed in relief.

"Too bad he only blocks one attack." Celeste declared, "Get him Eos!"

Eos pointed at Brian, and a beam of pure light fell over him. Brian screamed as wisps of smoke curled from his skin, and the 2000 life points were purified right out of his body.

**Celeste: 5500**

**Brian: 2700**

"That's it, your turn." Celeste stated as she waved one hand, "Use your next move wisely."

----------------------------------------

"That might be tough." Yugi observed, "Just one discard and Brian's wide open."

"Sheesh, that thing's almost unbeatable." Joey said.

"No monster in this game is truly unbeatable." Mako quoted, "You more than anyone should know that Joey."

"Sage words." Victor nodded.

--------------------------------------

Brian drew, and smiled as he slammed the card into his disk.

"How's this for using my move wisely? I play Nightmare's Steelcage!" Brian shouted.

Iron bars suddenly flew from the clouds below, and surrounded Celeste and her monsters. Zerato and Eos both looked shocked as they flew about, trying to discover a method by which to escape.

"You can tell those two to calm down, the cage will disappear after two of your turns." Brian stated, "Until then, neither one of us can attack."

Brian placed another card onto his disk, and a hidden monster now appeared.

"I'll set this facedown, and end my turn." Brian stated.

Celeste drew, and looked over the five cards she now held.

"I'll pass the time by equipping Zerato with the Cestus of Dagla." Celeste declared, sliding a card into play.

A pair of golden blades appeared before Zerato, who hooked them to the hilt of his sword. His blade now shone with golden light, and his attack boosted to (3300/2300)

"But I won't use his effect yet." Celeste stated, "It would be a waste until I can actually attack again. I pass the rest of my turn."

Brian drew, and set two more cards on his disk.

"Another facedown monster and one facedown card, that's all." He said, a second monster appearing before him.

Celeste drew, and looked at the card.

"_Winged Kuriboh lv 10? I'll save this for Zerato's effect on my next turn."_ She thought.

"I pass this turn. Go ahead." She stated.

The cage faded away into black smoke, and both of Celeste's angels moved into battle-ready positions. Brian drew his card, and then turned both of the cards on his disk.

"Okay Celeste, I flip both of my monsters into attack mode." He stated, "Meet Dark Mimic Lv. 1…"

A treasure box lined with teeth lifted up, and opened it top. A single card floated off Brian's disk and he took it.

"Who, of course, let's me draw one card when I flip him." Brian continued, "And my Grand Tiki Elder (1500/800)."

From the second card rose a strange sight. From the waist up, he was a man with green skin, wearing a purple cape and a purple mask. From the waist down, he looked like a strange snake of some kind, with no scales, only smooth skin. He began to chant in a strange language, and both of Celeste's monsters looked at this strange creature.

"I know what you're thinking. 'Why flip those two? They're far weaker than either of my monsters. And with my deckmaster he'd be finished.'" Brian declared.

"The thought had crossed my mind." Celeste nodded.

"Well these two are actually tribute bait, and I have to thank you for not destroying them." Brian said as he tapped his disk, "But first I need the monster. So I activate the trap known as Pure Evil."

Yet another card with a truly frightening image arose. It showed a dark castle with a foreboding gate. The silhouette of Dark Master Zorc stood atop the gate, with lightning flashing in the background. Brian's deck began to glow with strange energy, and a card slid out.

"This trap lets me take any level eight or higher Fiend monster, and add it to my hand." Brian explained as he claimed the card, "And now I'm gonna summon him, by tributing Grand Tiki Elder and Dark Mimic."

"A double sacrifice? Nice." Celeste smiled.

"You won't think so in a minute." Brian said as his monster faded away, "This creature is so powerful, I can only summon him by tributing at least one copy of either Grand Tiki Elder or Melchid the Four-Faced Beast."

A horrible growl echoed from behind Brian, who smirked a bit.

"Meet the monster Pikeru and Curran gave to me: Masked Beast Des Guardius (3300/2500)!"

The creature that arose could only be described as a living nightmare. It was covered in slimy scales, and stood on two, massive legs. It lifted its arms overhead, displaying a set of gruesome claws on each of its hands. It sported three masks, one on its face, and one on each shoulder, while from its back emerged a series of sharp spines.

"Meet a demon that was created during the brief moment before the creation of light." Brian intoned in a creepy voice, "It was so hideous, even other demons couldn't look at it without dropping dead from fright. This creature wasn't truly evil though: it recognized the importance of maintaining a balance in the world. So it crafted itself the masks that it wears, so that no one could die by seeing its face."

The demonic creature let out another roar, and turned its masked gaze upon Celeste's monsters.

"Of course, he recognizes the need for balance like I said. He represents darkness, your fairies are light, and right now the power of light on the field far outweighs the darkness."

"He won't help you." Celeste stammered out, "He can't defeat Zerato, and on my next turn Zerato's effect will destroy him!"

"Not if my deckmaster has anything to say about it." Brian smiled, "Ha Des, I'm giving up 500 life points to empower Des Guardius."

Brian glowed with black fire again, and the aura of flame leapt from his body to the Masked Beast. It roared as the flames coursed over it, increasing the already impressive build of its muscles (3800/2500).

"Des Guardius, destroy Zerato with wrath of the masked!" Brian shouted.

Celste and Zerato both screamed as the mighty fiend lunged forward and plunged its claws through the archlord's body. The once-great Zerato fell limply to the ground, and shattered into bits.

"Of course, your field spell spares you from the damage." Brian nodded, "But nothing will save you once I get in a direct attack."

**Celeste: 5500**

**Brian: 2200**

Brian looked at his remaining cards and shrugged.

"Your move." He offered, "Good luck."

Celeste drew, and gave the card she was holding a glare.

"_Out of all the times to draw my last Cestus of Dagla."_ She thought, sliding it next to the other copy of the card still in her hand, _"And it's completely useless. At least for now…"_

"I pass, there's nothing I can do." She sighed.

Brian drew, and pointed toward Eos.

"Well, nothing left to do than attack like crazy!" He shouted, "Destroy Eos!"

Des Guardius lunged forward, and plowed his claws right through the goddess's body. She screamed as she burst into motes of light, while Celeste silently thanked her field card for protecting her again.

"And it's your turn again." Brian smiled.

Celeste drew, and her eyes went wide.

"_Miracle draw."_ She thought with a smile, placing the card into her disk.

"I activate Shinato's Ark!" She called out.

From the heavenly light above descended the shimmering wooden ship. Celeste held up Winged Kuriboh Level 10, and placed it into her graveyard.

"Now, I need eight stars worth of monsters, so my Winged Kuriboh Lv. 10 will take care of that." She stated, the draconic furball appearing before her.

A beam of light came from the ship, and absorbed the dragon-like fairy. The boat started to shake like mad, as though something were trying to get out. Celeste put a monster onto her tray and smiled.

"Now I can summon Shinato, King of a Higher Plane (3300/3000)!" She called out.

The ark shattered, and out of the wreckage emerged the glorious six-winged fairy lord. His blue face stared solemnly at Des Guardius, not showing a hint of fear even as the demon growled at him.

"Hey Celeste, your monster is strong, that's a given." Brian pointed out, "But Des Guardius is still stronger."

"Not for long…" Celeste smiled.

--------------------------------------------------------

In the computer room, Jackson and Sota both stared at Celeste's powerful monster.

"Well, it's strong." Jackson reasoned, "But it's not strong enough."

"Don't forget, this is the girl who beat Pegasus." Sota pointed out.

"So has Yugi Mutou, Mr. Kaiba, Mai Valentine…" Rei listed off, "It's really not as big a deal as it used to be."

"Celeste has a plan." Sota said, "I don't know what it is, but that look says she has a plan."

------------------------------------------------------------

Celeste placed both of her remaining cards into the spell zone on her disk.

"I equip Shinato with two copies of the Cestus of Dagla." She stated as four glowing blades appeared in the air, "Giving him an extra 1000 attack points."

"You're giving him two of them!" Brian shouted.

"A stunning upset, Celeste may have this duel in the bag!" Roland shouted.

The audience began to cheer again as the four blades merged into two golden rings. Each ring had a handle in the center, and Shinato grasped them, one in each hand, as his attack sky rocketed to (4300/3000).

"Attack!" Celeste shouted, "Divine ring!"

Shinato raised his arms, and the six golden orbs of light appeared. They spun into a ring of gold, and launched forward. Brian braced himself as Des Guardius was blown into atoms, letting out a final cry of rage.

"And since Shinato damaged your life points…" Celeste smiled.

Shinato waved one hand, and his weapons transferred the lost points to Celeste.

**Celeste: 6000**

**Brian: 1700**

"It's not over yet." Brian declared.

"I beg to differ, I do have my deckmaster." Celeste declared, not noticing that Asura Priest wasn't glowing.

"But you won't have a monster to use it with." Brian smiled as a card flew out of his deck.

He caught the card, and slid into play. In front of him rose a familiar sight: The hideous leather mask he had returned to his deck during his first draw phase.

"Remember this?" Brian asked.

"Yeah, the useless thing you had to shuffle back into your deck." Celeste nodded.

"Only now that Des Guardius is gone, it's not so useless anymore." Brian explained, "The Mask of Remnants is a special spell card that can only be played in the turn Des Guardius is destroyed. It even works if it's your turn."

Celeste looked confused, as the mask began to glow. Brian smiled as he took the relic in one hand and held it up.

"You see Celeste, this mask has been infused with the will of Des Guardius. And right now, he's pissed off at being destroyed." Brian explained, "So he's gonna get even with the guy that destroyed him."

Brian tossed the mask forward, and it flew right toward Shinato. The fairy lord gasped as the mask attached to his face, and screamed as black electricity arched over his form.

"Shinato!" Celeste gasped.

"Well would you look at that, it's a perfect fit." Brian smiled, "Okay Shinato, come over here!"

The mighty angel spread his wings, and flew away from Celeste. She watched, open-mouthed, as her monster settled in front of Brian, completely silent.

"Um…Wow, didn't see that coming." Roland commented, "In a stunning upset, Brian has gained control of Celeste's monster!"

"That's what my spell does." Brian explained, "Once Des Guardius is destroyed I can activate Mask of Remnants from my deck. Then it acts just like a Snatch Steal card, except I don't have to give you any life points."

Celeste looked at her empty hand, and her field that lacked anything other than the two Cestus cards and her sanctuary card.

"Nothing I can defend myself with." She sighed, "I'll be able to survive an attack…"

"That's debatable." Brian said as he drew, "I'm not the kind that would sink low enough to attack someone with their own monster. I'll start this turn with my Monster Reincarnation card."

The stylized ankh appeared, and Brian discarded Ryu-Kishin Powered. A card emerged from his grave, and he held it up.

"I'll bring my Great Maju Garzett back to my hand." He declared, "And now I'll tribute Shinato to summon him!"

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh no…" Barb moaned, clutching her knees.

"6600 attack points." Chris muttered, "Well, Celeste had a good run."

"I think she only got four duels today." George responded.

"I said good, not long." Chris sighed.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shinato vanished into an orb of darkness, out of which emerged the red-skeletal fiend again. Great Maju Garzett (6600/0) roared as a huge amount of dark energy infused into its body. Celeste nervously stepped back, and braced herself for the attack.

"Finish her off, channeled darkness!" Brian ordered.

Garzett opened his mouth wide, and a massive beam of black energy fired out. Celeste screamed as the darkness washed over her. Behind her, the pillars of the sanctuary shattered under the wave of dark energy, and the cloudy floor was divided right down the middle by the sheer force. Thankfully, the attack fizzled out right before it struck the front row of the audience.

Celeste picked herself up, trembling from the after-shock of the attack.

**Celeste: 0**

**Brian: 1700**

"And with the strongest attack ever seen in this arena, Brian Hokage claims victory in the first match of the finals!" Roland announced.

The audience cheered, and Celeste got up.

"Good game." She said, starting to walk over to Brian.

Before she could get any farther though, the clouds beneath her opened up. Celeste let out a cry of surprise as she fell through them.

----------------------------------------------------------

"CELESTE! NO!" Ronaldo howled, jumping up.

CLANG!!

Ronaldo slumped back into his seat, little stars of pain exploding in front of his eyes.

"I warned you." Kevin muttered, checking his disk for damage.

As he finished his inspection, Celeste suddenly fell from above, landing in the seat right next to him. Kevin looked up, and smiled.

"Oh hello." He said, "You know, I thought you did great up there."

"Thank you." Celeste said, looking around, "Too bad I don't get to use the VIP seats anymore."

"Celeste?" Ronaldo asked, looking up from his daze.

Celeste stared at Ronaldo, and one thought ran through her mind.

"_It's gonna be a looong tournament."_ She sighed, trying her best to smile at him.

_**What a match, folks! And that's just our opening!**_

**_But after a first duel like that, what can we do for an encore? How about showing a match that just needs to be seen?_**

_**Next time, we'll see just how well Mai Valentine can perform against Maximillian Pegasus in an even duel.**_

_**We call it**_

_**Aviation vs. Animation**_

_**Stay glued to your seats, or else we start without you!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Eos, Goddess of Dawn

Fairy/Effect

LIGHT

Five star

2000 attack

1400 defense

Image: An angel with yellow wings, wearing a pinkish-red toga. She has orange hair, yellow eyes, and a rosy glow around her.

When this monster is summoned in any way, destroy one monster on your opponent's field. The monster targeted for this effect must have a higher attack score than this card, and be DARK-attribute.

---

Demonic Tribute

Spell

Image: Dark Ruler Ha Des standing over a screaming woman, holding a knife.

Select one monster on your opponent's side of the field. This card remains on the field until either the selected monster is destroyed in battle with a Fiend-type monster you control, or this turn ends. If the selected monster is destroyed in battle with a Fiend-type monster you control, you gain life points equal to double its attack score. If this card destroys itself at the end of the turn, destroy the strongest monster on your field, and take damage equal to double the destroyed monster's attack.

---

Pure Evil

Trap

Image: A dark castle looming overhead, with the shadowy image of Dark Master Zorc looking down from the top of the gate.

Add any Level Eight or higher Fiend-type monster from your deck to your hand.

---

Masked Beast Des Guardius

DARK

Fiend

Eight stars

3300 attack

2500 defense

This Monster cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This Monster can only be Special Summoned by offering two Monsters as a Tribute, at least one of which must be "Melchid the Four-Face Beast" or "Grand Tiki Elder". If this Monster is destroyed, you may search your deck for one "Mask of Remnants" and Equip it to an opposing Monster.

---

Mask of Remnants

Spell/Equip

Image: a hideous, red mask that seems to be stitched together from human skin.

When you draw this card, shuffle it into your deck. This card can only be activated via the effect of "Masked Beast Des Guardius". Take control of the Monster Equipped with this card for as long as this card remains Equipped

_Both of the above two cards are actual Japanese cards that haven't been released in the United States yet. Creative rights for them goes to the owners of the Yu-Gi-Oh card game._

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Dark Ruler Ha Des

DARK

Fiend

Six star

2450 attack

1600 defense

Demonic Reinforcements: Once per turn, you may pay life points in increments of 500 to increase the attack of one Fiend-type monster you control by the same amount. You can not increase the attack of a monster by more than 2000 points in this way, and you may not use this power on the same monster more than once per duel.


	26. Aviation vs Animation

_**Roland here again, your Master of Ceremonies for the finals of the Virtual World Tournament!**_

_**Over the years, there have been plenty of interesting challenges in the dueling world, and even more interesting duelists. But the two that are coming up are definitely among the most interesting.**_

_**In the red corner, with silver hair and good-natured attitude, the Father of Duel Monsters: Maximillian Pegasus!**_

_**In the blue corner, the Femme Fatale of the duel circuit, who brings new meaning to the term "Killer Looks!" The ever-popular Mai Valentine!**_

**_Only one of these competitors will be leaving the arena after this bloody fight… _**

**_Followed by the other one after they're declared the winner. Get ready duel fans, we call it…_**

Aviation vs. Animation

Up in the VIP section, thirteen of the remaining fourteen finalists were applauding as Brian Hokage was warped back to his seat. Seto Kaiba, the only one who wasn't clapping, he just cast his gaze back to the window as it darkened again.

"Well, that wasn't a _complete _waste of my time, so I guess it was okay." He said, looking to Brian, "Just don't expect an easy win in the next round."

"Ah, ignore him." Tim smiled, "You were awesome bro!"

"Thanks." Brian said, "But man, Celeste almost had me down there."

The finalists fell silent again as the pictures began to flash across the window.

"Get ready Kaiba..." Joey smiled, "The minute we get paired up, you're going down."

"Not in this lifetime Wheeler." Kaiba growled back.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Down on the arena floor, Roland looked up to the screen above to await the next pair of duelists. In the audience, folks were still chatting about the last match, and Celeste was receiving plenty of attention from her neighbors.

"I do not believe that that vile, uncouth, fiend-duelist had the nerve to attack you directly!" Ronaldo stated, raising a fist to emphasize his statement.

"Please remember you're insulting one of my friends." Celeste warned.

Ronaldo looked sheepish, and lowered his hand.

"Ahh, of course. I do apologize Celeste." Ronaldo smiled.

"It's alright." Celeste sighed.

"Man, if I were Kaiba I'd be afraid of that Brian guy." Kevin smirked, "That Great Maju-whatever could knock a Blue-Eyes into next week!"

"If it was summoned by tributing a monster with more than 1500 attack points." Espa pointed out.

"That's usually not a problem." Kevin stated.

Two loud bells rang out, drawing the quartet's attention up to the screen. On it were pictured the next two duelists, and Roland raised his microphone again.

"There you have it folks, time for our next duel!" He shouted, "It's Mai Valentine vs. Maximillian Pegasus!"

Above Roland hovered the images of the two duelists, and a two-minute timer appeared.

-------------------------------------------------------

In the VIP box, Pegasus gave Mai a nervous glance. The blond sighed, and smiled at him.

"Don't worry Mr. Pegasus, I'm not using any evil cards this time." She stated, "But I was hoping to have a chance to…"

"Apologize for the last time we met, where you imprisoned my soul in another dimension?" Pegasus guessed, "Yugi-boy explained the situation to me, so all is forgiven Mai."

Mai seemed relieved, but a bit pained at the horrid memory of two years ago being brought up again. Still, she took her deck and began to leaf through it.

"_Okay Mai, focus."_ She thought, _"Can't live in the past forever. You don't need a stinking seal to beat him, you were strong before you had it and your stronger now that its gone…"_

Mai swiftly swapped two cards (a trap and a spell) into her deck, smiling as she did so.

"_He knows every card in the game, so it'll be tough to surprise him. Still, these should help." _Mai thought.

She then moved another two monsters from her side-deck into the main deck, and pulled out four cards from the main deck (Harpie Girl, Dunames the Dark Witch, Sonic Shooter, and Unfriendly Amazon) to make room for what she had added.

"_And I've been looking for a good excuse to test these two out…"_ She smirked.

Pegasus, in the meantime, looked over his cards. He smiled as he added one and removed Eternal Rest. He then put in three more cards (Two spells and a trap) while removing two more copies of Eternal Rest and his Astral Barrier.

"_Perfect. Now comes the unveiling of one of my greatest cards."_ He thought with a smile.

"Time's up!" Roland shouted.

The two vanished, leaving the other thirteen behind. Kaiba had a frown on his face that was even deeper than usual. He had seen the card Pegasus added, and while he was familiar with the artist's deck…

He had never seen that card before.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

The field was covered in darkness again, with only Roland visible in the center. He smiled to the audience, and began his intro.

"In this world, there have existed numerous majestic creatures." Roland called out, "Many of them are only known of today because they were preserved in art. The art ranged from pictures, to songs, to stories, but one of the most fantastic creatures was a gigantic bird that lorded over the sky!"

The arena lit up, and Roland now stood on a ground that seemed to be covered with large branches and huge feathers and clumps of fur. Behind him stood a massive egg that was pure-white in color.

"This bird was known as Ziz, a massive creature created to rule over all creatures of the air and maintain a balance between that predators and prey. It was said his wingspan could blot out the sun itself, and that at the end of times he'd serve as one of the main-courses in a feast offered to the faithful."

Mai and Pegasus were transported to opposite side of the nest, and looked about in awe. A chilling breeze blew over them, and they both shivered a bit (Mai especially since she wasn't wearing anything warmer than her usually mini-jacket.)

"And now, we've come to Ziz's Nest for our next duel!" Roland called out, "So let's prepare for a match of biblical proportions! I give you that Harpie Queen: Mai Valentine…"

Cat calls and whistles came from the audience, and Mai flashed them a smirk and wink.

"…And the creator of the world's favorite card game: Maximillian Pegasus!" Roland concluded.

Pegasus waved, and blew a kiss to the audience as they cheered.

"It's time to Mai to pit her own birds against Pegasus's anime-inspired attack force." Roland called out as he lifted into the air on a gust of wind, "We're calling it: ANIMATION VS. AVIATION!"

The audience cheered again, and Mai held her head.

"_Who is coming up with these titles?"_ She thought with a sigh.

Roland settled on top of the egg, and sat cross-legged.

"Seeing as Ziz is absent at the moment, I'll take his place as ruler of the roost." Roland declared, "Okay, Mai try not to poke out Pegasus's other eye. Pegasus…Try not to be distracted too much by your opponents…physique."

"Got it!" Mai said.

"I'll try…" Pegasus smiled, "Must remain professional after all."

"Then bring out your deckmasters!" Roland ordered.

Mai and Pegasus each held up a card, and Pegasus smiled.

"It's no contest for me: Come out my Thousand-Eyes Restrict!" He called out.

The ground behind him burst upward, scattering branches and feathers all over the place. Behind Pegasus sat his amazingly-creepy, brown skinned eye-ball monster, all of its eyes currently closed.

"Then I'll choose my Harpie's Pet Dragon!" Mai called out.

A blast of fire shot from the ground behind her, and out of it emerged a dragon that stood at least twice as tall as Mai. It had red scales, and a fringe of black feathers around its eyes. A single, golden chain trailed from a golden collar around its neck.

"Interesting choices." Roland nodded, "Now let's see who goes first!"

The dragon shot a blast of fire into the air, while Restrict countered with a beam of black energy. The two blasts collided and exploded in mid-air, showering sparks down toward Mai's field.

"Mai Valentine, you may have the first move." Roland declared, "Let's get started!"

Mai picked up six cards, while Pegasus drew five.

"Duel!" They both shouted.

**Mai: 8000**

**Pegasus: 8000**

Mai looked across her cards, and thought for a minute before selecting one.

"I open with Birdface (1600/1600) in attack mode." Mai decided.

Her dragon let out a roar, and from the sky swooped the first monster of the duel. It was a large bird, standing upright like a human. He was covered in green and yellow feathers, and wore a breastplate made of blue metal.

Behind Pegasus, Restrict opened up its many eyes, eliciting screams from the audience as well as Mai's monster, and covered the field in an eerie, green glow.

"Just so you know, with Restrict as my deckmaster, you aren't allowed to attack with a monster in the same that you summon it." Pegasus warned.

"I can't attack anyway. Your move." Mai stated.

Pegasus drew, and smiled as he held up a card.

"Okay then, I start by summoning my Toon Gemini Elf (1900/900)." Pegasus announced.

Some of the green lights that covered the field began to change colors, to brilliant shades of blue and purple. The lights formed into a pair of women (One blond with a blue dress, the other a red-head in a purple dress) both of whom seemed to have been from a cartoon show. They smiled, and winked their oversized eyes to Mai as Pegasus chuckled a bit.

"Ugh...Those annoying toon monsters." Mai sighed, "Hey wait a second, don't you need Toon World on the field to summon them?"

"You're thinking of the last I summoned them, when it was already on the field." Pegasus smiled, "Well not in this case. My Toon Gemini Elf, while it benefits greatly from Toon World, doesn't actually require it to be on the field. Of course, they still can't attack during the first turn I summon them, so I'm laying card facedown."

Pegasus slid a card into his disk, and it appeared behind his elves.

"That's it, go ahead." He offered.

Mai drew, and quickly tapped her field slot. It popped open, allowing her to insert a card. The ground began to tremble a bit, and Mai smiled at Pegasus.

"Okay Pegasus, I'm starting my turn by playing a field-spell card." Mai explained, as rocky spires began to rise up around the nest, "I activate Harpies' Hunting Ground!"

The spires came up higher, until they were about ten feet over the edge of the nest. Several small creatures began shuffling about on the ground, sniffing around the feathers and fur clumps that cushioned the nest. They looked like flying squirrels of some kind, roughly the size of rabbits.

"Who'd have thought Harpies would hunt Nimble Momongas?" Roland observed.

"The Harpies aren't the only ones that hunt here." Mai warned, "The Harpies may be in charge, but any Winged-Beast on this field gets a bonus 200 attack and defense points."

Birdface (1800/1800) let out a shriek, and dove forward. There was a squeak of fear, followed by a snap and a gulp as one of the momongas was turned into a quick snack. The remaining creatures shrieked, and dove for cover beneath the branches and feathers.

"I really must have a word with Kaiba-boy about how he programs these holograms. They seem a bit graphic." Pegasus sighed, "But anyway, your monster is still no match for mine."

"That's where my first Harpie comes in." Mai explained, putting down a monster, "I summon Harpie Lady 1 (1300/1400)!"

From the sky descended the gorgeous figure of one of Mai's signature monsters: A young woman wearing a purple body suit, with her hands and feet resembling the talons of a bird of prey. Her arms were covered with green feathers, and she had straight, red hair that came down past her shoulder blades.

"Now then, my first Harpie…" Mai started.

"Please Ms. Valentine, I'm well aware of what each of your cards does." Pegasus interrupted, "I'm the one that approved each of them. Harpie Lady 1 gives 300 attack to all creatures of Wind, including herself, plus she gains the 200 point bonus from your field card."

Harpie Lady 1 (1800/1600) flapped her wings, and a gentle breeze flew over the field again. Mai didn't seem to mind this one, it was warmer than the last, and it gave her monsters a lift into the air allowing them to hover on the thermal breeze. Her Harpie was slightly higher than Birdface (2100/1800), a fact that seemed to please her.

"And now that you summoned a Harpie Lady, you must use the effect of the Hunting Ground to destroy one spell or trap on the field." Pegasus pointed out.

"I know, and I'm aiming at your facedown card!" Mai called out.

Her first Harpie swooped higher, then dove down upon the hidden card. Pegasus watched with interest as bits of paper and green binding were scattered to the winds. He held up the card that had been destroyed before putting in his grave, causing Mai and the audience to gasp.

It was his Toon World card!

------------------------------------------------

Ruby was staring at this turn of events, and opened her mouth to speak.

"Man, I heard that Pegasus was a little kooky, but he just let his best card get destroyed." Mary cut her off.

"I was just thinking that." Ruby said, "And he doesn't even seem worried."

Nearby, Serenity gave John a confused look.

"Um…Isn't it bad that his best card was just destroyed?" She asked.

"Normally yes, but…" John thought for a minute before continuing, "Maybe since it's so early, he has a plan to bring it back."

Across the arena, Celeste, Espa, Ronaldo, and Kevin were all staring slack-jawed at the field.

"Well, I guess Mai just won this duel." Espa finally choked out

"Maybe he has more than one." Celeste suggested.

"No. I heard that he had stopped production on that card after the first one was printed." Kevin explained, "So he can only have one."

----------------------------------------------------------

In the VIP booth, Joey was cheering Mai's name while the others were talking amongst themselves.

"Okay, I was at Duelist Kingdom and saw Pegasus do some crazy things in his duels." Bakura pointed out, "But letting his best card get destroyed takes the cake!"

"He must have a deeper plan." Yugi said.

"Or maybe he's completely lost his mind." Kaiba stated, "I expected it to happen sooner or later…"

"Who cares? Mai's winning!" Joey cheered, "Come one everybody, let's cheer her on!"

"He's lucky that she can't here us up here. Mai doesn't like having cheerleaders." Yugi sighed.

In his mind, Yugi heard a stifled yawn.

"_Hm…I feel refreshed. I should do this more often."_ Yami thought, his mind re-linking with Yugi's, _"Did I miss anything Yugi?"_

"_Mai destroyed Pegasus's Toon World…During the first turn…And he didn't even bat an eye."_ Yugi explained.

"_I see…"_ The ancient spirit thought, _"Perhaps he had a few to many drinks before the finals…Oh, is this first match of the finals?"_

"_No, Brian and Celeste dueled and Brian won._" Yugi explained, _"I would have woken you up for the duel but I wasn't sure how to do that when you're in the labyrinth part of your mind."_

"_Don't worry about it, Yugi, you can tell me about the duel later."_ Yami thought, _"For now, I think I'll just watch this one."_

---------------------------------------------

Mai was deeply confused about the matter. Pegasus didn't seem at all worried about the destruction of his most infamous card.

"_He must be planning something."_ Mai decided, _"But until it happens, I'll just have to wear him down. I can't attack with Harpie Lady 1 this turn, thanks to his deckmaster, but Birdface has a clear shot."_

"Birdface, attack his elves with cross-wind whiplash!" Mai shouted.

The bird-man slammed its wings together and two blasts of air slammed into the elves from either side. They screamed as they were tossed beyond the ridge of spires that surrounded the arena, and stopped in mid-air. They seemed relieved until they noticed that there was nothing beneath them. They gasped, grabbed hold of each other, and then plummeted out of sight.

A dull thud followed by a blast of sparks signaled their animated demise.

**Mai: 8000**

**Pegasus: 7700**

"Ah well, easy come easy go." Pegasus shrugged.

"The same will be said for your life points soon." Mai stated, "Now I'll lay one card facedown and end my turn."

The facedown card appeared, and Pegasus drew.

"Well let me see…" He smiled, putting two cards onto his disk, "I believe I'll set one monster in defense mode…"

A facedown monster appeared, and a few momongas scampered underneath it.

"And I'll follow it with another facedown card." Pegasus smiled, another card appearing, "I'll end my turn…"

"And I'll chain my facedown card!" Mai interrupted, "Go Icarus Attack!"

Mai's card lifted, and began to shimmer with red energy. She smiled as she pointed to Birdface.

"Now by tributing a Winged-Beast I control, I can destroy two of your cards." Mai explained, "I give up Birdface to wipe out your field!"

The armored eagle burst into a blast of red light, which shot forward and consumed Pegasus's two cards. The monster was shown to be a young woman wearing blue robes with purple hair, and the trap was a glowing book with an eye carved onto the cover.

"Oh dear, it seems you destroyed my Magician of Faith and Hidden Book of Spells." Pegaus said with mock-terror, "Without those how will I ever recover my precious Toon World?"

"_Urgh…What is he doing?"_ Mai thought, trying to maintain her temper, _"I trashed his Toon World and his best chances of getting it back. Why is he acting like he's just playing with me?!"_

Mai drew her card, and looked at it.

"Okay, Harpie Lady 1, attack directly with aerial-acrobat attack!" Mai shouted.

The Harpie swooped higher again, and dove down in a graceful spin. Pegasus braced himself and was launched backward a few steps as the dive-bombing bird woman slammed into him.

**Mai: 8000**

**Pegasus: 5900**

Pegasus just shook the attack off with a smile.

"My, my. You can be quite vicious can't you Ms. Valentine?" Pegasus smiled.

"Oh can it, I know you're up to something Pegasus." Mai declared, "When I figure out what you're trying to do I'll make sure to stop it."

"We'll see about that." Pegasus said with a sing-song voice.

Mai growled a little before reigning herself in, and placed another card onto her field.

"I summon Harpie Girl (500/500) in attack mode." Mai declared.

From above flitted a young girl with blond hair. She had pink feathers sprouting from her arms and, like the Harpie Lady, her hands and feet sported bird talons. She wore a skimpy, black outfit, and waved shyly to the other Harpie on the field. The Harpie Lady 1 gave her a nod of acknowledgement and fanned some of the wind toward her. The Harpie Girl (1000/700) chirped happily as she was lifted up on the breeze.

"That's it for my turn." Mai declared.

Pegasus drew, and placed another two cards down.

"Very well then." He smiled, "I'll set one card facedown, and summon Toon Goblin Attack Force (2300/0) to the field."

First, a facedown card appeared in front of Pegasus.

Then, a loud explosion sounded off in the distance, and four, green balls flew over the spires and splatted against the floor of the nest. The quivering globs suddenly reformed into a quartet of short goblins with huge, cartoonish eyes. They were carrying wooden swords and wearing bronze armor, and were laughing their heads off from their entrance. Several audience members were chuckling as well as Pegasus nodded.

"Seeing as they can't attack when I first summon them, it's now your turn." He offered.

Mai drew her next card, and thought for a second.

"She won't be allowed to attack this turn, but she'll get rid of your facedown card." Mai stated, holding up a monster, "I summon Harpie Lady 2 (1300/1400) in attack mode!"

From the sky descended another Harpie, this one dressed like Harpie Lady 1 but with short, orange hair. She smiled as she turned a flip in mid-air, slammed Pegasus's facedown card into bits, and then landed next to her sister who granted her a boosting breeze (1800/1600).

"I guess I didn't need Solemn Whishes if I'm not using Toon World." Pegasus sighed, "But that monster can't get past mine."

"No, _she_ can't." Mai smiled, "But my Harpie Girl can go around your monsters with this."

Mai held up another spell, which began to glow.

"I activate Secret Pass to the Treasure, giving one monster with 1000 attack or less the chance to attack directly for this turn." Mai announced.

Harpie Girl reached into her outfit, and pulled out a scroll of paper. She unrolled it and began to study it intently before nodding her head.

"Now attack directly my Harpie Girl, with chickadee charge!" Mai ordered.

The girl nodded and jumped as high she could. She spread her feathered arms, catching an updraft, and came down feet first onto Pegasus's shoulders. He grunted as he got knocked onto his stomach by the blow.

**Mai: 8000**

**Pegasus: 4900**

"That's it for my turn. Make your move." Mai challenged.

Pegasus stood back up, drawing a card as he did.

"Well, seeing as my goblins are free to attack now, I think that's just what they'll do." Pegasus grinned, "Attack Harpie Lady 1 with cannonball catastrophe!"

The four goblins gathered in a circle, and a golden cannon suddenly dropped out the sky and landed in the center of it. Three of them climbed in after a quick salute to the fourth. The last one pulled out a match and struck it on the bottom of his shoe. He then grinned as he lit the cannon's fuse and jumped in after his friends.

Harpie Lady 1 gasped as the cannon fired, sending the four warriors right toward her!

"Stop right there, I activate my deckmaster's power!" Mai shouted.

The dragon roared, leaning forward and brining one wing in front of the Harpie. The four goblins struck against the wing, bouncing of before they ever came into contact with the dragon's master. However, as they ricocheted, they produced several shockwaves that knocked Mai off her feet.

The dragon leaned back as the goblins landed in front of Pegasus, their eyes spinning from their trip. Mai got up, ignoring the audience's laughter at the antics of the toons, and smiled.

"Okay…What happened?" Pegasus asked.

"Harpie's Pet Dragon has a deckmaster power known as Harpie Guardian." Mai explained, "If I'm willing to double the damage from a battle involving one of my Harpies, I can save her from being destroyed."

**Mai: 7000**

**Pegasus: 4900**

"Very clever Ms. Valentine." Pegasus applauded, "Well, my monster must go to defense mode now, so I'll end my turn here."

Mai drew, and smiled once again.

"Well, seeing as you have nothing to defend them…" She grinned, "Harpie Girl, attack the goblins!"

The girl nodded and jumped forward, slamming into her dizzied opponents and sending them flying into the air.

"We're blasting off again!" The goblins screamed as they soared upward.

------------------------------------------------

"First Curran and Pikeru, now this?" Brian muttered, turning to Kaiba, "Did you get an advertising deal with Pokemon or something?"

"It seemed like a good idea at the time." Kaiba sighed, "Now I'm seriously going to consider terminating that contract."

-------------------------------------------------

Down on the field, Mai's two remaining monsters were both grinning eagerly toward Pegasus.

"Okay girls, you know what to do!" Mai declared.

The two Harpies jumped forward. Harpie Lady 1 slammed Pegasus with a graceful flipping attack before soaring into the air. Harpie Lady 2 was less refined: She slashed at Pegasus with her hand-talons, causing him to cry out in pain!

**Mai: 7000**

**Pegasus: 1300**

"Now then, I'll end my turn by summoning another monster: Harpie's Brother (1800/600)." Mai announced.

A fourth monster alighted to Mai's side of the field. This one was a young man wearing a brown vest and gray pants, with large red-and-black wings sprouting from his back. His right hand sported a trio of long, red claws attached to a glove, which he waved toward Pegasus as his attack jumped to (2300/800).

"I thought you didn't like using male monsters in your deck." Pegasus groaned as he sat down and caught his breath.

"Normally I don't, but this one _is _Harpie-related." Mai nodded, "And he's such a useful beat-stick monster that I had to try it. He works pretty well too: Even if you have another set of goblins, he can just take them out for me and leave you defenseless."

"On that note, I'll draw." Pegasus said, standing up once more and tidying off his suit before claiming a card, "And I'll activate my Pot of Greed."

The chuckling jar appeared next to him, and Pegasus casually drew to cards. He smiled as he saw them both.

"And I believe I've had my fun for now." He declared.

"What are you talking about?" Mai asked, looking confused, "Don't tell me you're having fun getting beat up by my Harpies."

"Oh Mai, I just wanted you to feel like you were doing well. And I must admit, you've performed admirably." Pegasus smiled, "But now it's time to stop playing around and take this duel to my home-turf!"

"How? I already destroyed Toon World!" Mai protested.

"That was just a ruse, to lure you into a false sense of security." Pegasus explained, "The real fun starts now, but first I activate a spell known as Soul Absorption."

Pegasus placed a card into his disk, one that showed the image of a skeletal demon absorbing several small flames.

"This handy little card will give me 500 life points every time a card is removed from the game." Pegasus explained, "And I'm about to remove a few cards as I unveil my latest masterpiece!"

Pegasus carefully slid another card into play, and a fanfare began to sound. The audience looked as confused as Mai as a large book with a picture of a cartoon king on the cover floated down.

"Congratulations, Ms. Valentine! You're about to be one of the first ever to face down my latest Toon card…" Pegasus said, spreading his arms, "Welcome to TOON KINGDOM!"

The book burst open, and a humongous cartoon castle popped out! The fanfare increased in volume as fireworks and streamers flew over the castle and the spires around the arena. As the fireworks went off, the area around the castle began to change: The colors became brighter, the momongas scurrying about in the next started to speak in squeaky voices and turned a multitude of colors, and the egg Roland sat on was suddenly covered in polka-dots.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I can honestly say that this is the strangest effect I've ever seen in my days as a commentator." Roland announced.

Mai stared up at the castle, and then to Pegasus.

"So what exactly does this do?" She asked.

"Why Mai, this card is a very powerful version of Toon World." Pegasus explained, "And it's so new that, while it has been registered in the data base for Kaiba-boy's little Duel Disks, I'm the only one that has a copy of it."

The castle began to shimmer as Pegasus held up his disk.

"Of course, such a powerful card requires a heavy cost." He sighed.

"Let me guess, you need to pay more life points." Mai grinned, "Well, if you want to go and almost take yourself out…"

"Actually, to play this card I need to remove the top five cards of my deck from the game." Pegasus explained as he took off the first five cards of his deck and looked them over, "Ooh, lucky me! There's nothing here that I can't do without."

"Wait, if you just removed five cards from the game…" Mai gasped.

"Then Soul Absorption restores 2500 of my life points!" Pegasus grinned, "Isn't that just fabulous?"

Five glowing orbs of light appeared around the artist, and flew into his body. They melted into his chest, and he grinned as a burst of energy flew through his entire being.

**Mai: 7000**

**Pegasus: 3800**

Pegasus took a deep breath as his life points finished going up. He looked to his hand and placed another card onto his disk.

"Now then, before I go any further, I activate my Magic Reflector card." He declared.

A strange machine standing on six, spidery legs dropped into the nest. It projected a glowing aura of light from a small radar dish on its back, which detached and floated above the castle.

"What does that do?" Mai asked, pointing at the radar as the rest of the machine vanished.

"Nothing yet." Pegasus explained, "For now, I'll summon my Toon Mermaid (1400/1500)."

Around the castle appeared a moat, out of which emerged a giant clam. It opened up to reveal the mermaid archer nestled inside, giggling a bit at Mai. Mai just gave her a glare.

"And now you see the first power of Toon Kingdom: I can treat it as though it were named Toon World while it's on the field." Pegasus declared, "And when I summon Toon Mermaid, she counts as a special summon if Toon World is present. Therefore, I tribute her…"

The clam sank under water once more, and the moat vanished with it. Out of the castle flew a tiny spark, which hovered in front of Mai for a second. It tapped her on the nose, then flew back to Pegasus and began to grow…

Until the light faded leaving behind an animated girl dressed in a spellcaster costume.

"And I summon my Toon Dark Magician Girl (2000/1700)." Pegasus continued, "Isn't she precious?"

"_Oh spare me…"_ Mai thought.

"Oh, and unlike the rest of my toons, Toon Dark Magician Girl doesn't need to wait a turn before she attacks." Pegasus mused, "So attack directly, my sweet, with animated antics!"

The colorful sorceress thought for a minute, before reaching behind her back and pulling out a small bicycle horn.

"And what's that supposed to…" Mai started to ask.

Before she completed her question, Toon Dark Magician Girl squeezed the horn and a deafening _AOOOGA _shot out from the tiny device. Mai screamed as a blast of sound waves knocked her off her feet and shook loose her life points.

**Mai: 5000**

**Pegasus: 3800**

Pegasus held up his empty hands, and shrugged.

"Seeing as I have no cards left, I end my turn." He declared.

Mai got to her feet and drew her card, thinking over her move.

"_Does that Toon Kingdom have a special power?" _She wondered, _"My Harpie's Brother is stronger than his monster. But what if that card destroys monsters that attack his toons?"_

Mai looked at the card she had drawn, and smiled again.

"_On the other hand, this just made that a moot point._" She realized.

"Okay Pegasus, tell me if this guy looks familiar." Mai challenged, "I summon Harpie's Pet _Baby_ Dragon (1200/600)!"

A screeched sounded out, and next to Harpie Girl appeared a much smaller version of Mai's deckmaster. It had the same scales and feathers, and even sported a chain and collar of its own, but was definitely younger (And possibly cuter) seeing as it was slightly shorter than Mai.

"You actually managed to find one? Well, can't say I'm surprised." Pegasus said, "I'm guessing you know how he works."

"Do I?" Mai laughed, "For those who don't know, this little fella gets a new special power for each monster on my field with the word 'Harpie' in its name. When I have one, my opponent can't attack any monsters that have 'Harpie' in their name…"

The little dragon steeped forward, standing in front of the four bird-people on Mai's field. It let out a brave growl at Toon Dark Magician Girl, who just yawned in response.

"When I have two, its original attack and defense double. And let's not forget the bonus that Harpie Lady 1 gives to Wind monsters…" Mai continued.

Harpie Girl and Hapie Lady 1 began to pet the little dragon. It squeak with glee, and its stats skyrocketed to (2700/1200)!

"And when there's three, my dragon can destroy one card on my opponent's field per turn." Mai declared, "And I choose to destroy Toon Kingdom right now!"

The little dragon roared, and shot out a blast of flame at the castle. Before the conflagration ever reached its target, the forgotten satellite dish projected a glowing barrier over the entire structure. The flames struck the barrier and fizzled out, while the dish exploded, but the castle was unharmed.

"And that's what Magic Reflector does." Pegasus declared, spreading his arms and smiling at Mai's shocked face, "It produces one spell counter, that I can attach to any spell on the field. If that spell would be destroyed, then the counter is demolished in its place."

Mai frowned. She was going to have to take a risk now…

"Harpie's Brother, destroy his Toon Dark Magician Girl!" Mai commanded, "Mach-five filet!"

Thus commanded, the only male monster on the field pulled back his arm. He vanished in a blur of red feathers, and reappeared in front of his target…

Pegasus coolly slid a card from his deck, gave it a look, and let it vanish from his fingertips…

Harpie's Brother slashed, only for his victim to suddenly vanish in a puff of pink smoke! The confused Winged-beast peered into the cloud as it faded, revealing he had succeeded in destroying a doll that now stood in the toon's place. Toon Dark Magician girl suddenly jumped from behind the doll (Which transformed into her staff), and delivered a powerful kick to her opponent's head!

Harpie's Brother flew backward, crashing to the ground at Mai's feet before pulling himself up with a dazed look.

"Now what happened?" Mai asked, "Wait, is that the effect of Toon Kingdom?"

"Now do you see why I wanted to protect it?" Pegasus grinned, "So long as it's on the field, I can save any Toon-monster I want from being destroyed in battle just by removing the top card of my deck from the game. And since another card was removed, I gain 500 more life points from Soul Absorption, minus 300 from the battle."

"Pegasus has made his toons completely indestructible!" Roland gasped, "I'd be worried if I were Mai!"

"_But I'm not."_ Mai thought, _"Next turn, I'll just need to use Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon to destroy that card. With nothing left in his hand, there's almost no chance he'll draw another Magic Reflector."_

**Mai: 5000**

**Pegasus: 4000**

"It's your turn Pegasus." Mai stated.

"Good, then I'll draw…" Pegasus said as he did so, "And now one of the cards that was removed from my deck earlier will come back."

"What?" Mai shouted, "What sort of card can do that?"

"A little something known as Card from a Different Dimension." Pegasus explained as a card appeared in his hand.

He turned it around, showing Mai that it had an image of a card crackling with electricity. He smiled as he tucked it back into place.

"When this card is removed from the game in anyway, it returns to my hand on my next turn." Pegasus explained, "And then we each draw two cards."

Pegasus and Mai's disks each beeped, and both duelists drew two new cards.

"Hey, aren't you worried about running out of cards?" Mai asked, "If this keeps up…"

"Don't worry about me Mai, I actually have a slightly larger deck than usual." Pegasus declared, "By my count, I have thirty-four cards of my original fifty left."

--------------------------------------------------------

"Can someone get me an exact count to verify that?" Mokuba requested form his seat.

Rei tapped a command into her computer, and some number scrolled by.

"Yep, he had fifty cards in his deck to start." She verified, "He's removed five of them, drawn ten, and had one return to his hand."

"Okay then." Sota grinned, "Still think Mai will win this duel Jackson?"

"Hey, I made the mistake of betting against her last time." Jackson admitted, "I will not doubt her skills again. Besides, Pegasus lost to high-school student earlier. Whose to say Mai can't beat him?"

"Good argument." Rei nodded.

"_Stupid argument, but not without its good points."_ Rei thought.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Pegasus was looking his four cards, and humming a bit as he thought.

"It's still your move, you know." Mai pointed out.

"Oh I'm well aware of that. I was just considering my options." Pegasus explained, putting down a card, "I think I'll start this turn with Graceful Charity."

An orb of light appeared overhead, and it burst into a cloud of streamers and balloons that rained down on Pegasus. He smiled as he drew three cards, and quickly discarded two of them.

"Good, now I got of my Gorgon's Eye and Card from a Different Dimension. I won't be needing them at the moment." Pegasus stated as he put down another card, "And next comes another new card: Comic Hand!"

The gate of the castle lowered, and gloved hand on a spring shot out. It stopped, and began to wave to Mai, who waved back somewhat hesitantly.

"Now then, this little dandy let's me steal control of one of your monsters." Pegasus explained, "And seeing as the last thing I need is your little fire-bug tearing down my castle, I believe I'll take your Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon."

The hand grabbed the small creature, which let out a defiant cry before being yanked into the castle!

"What good will he do you?" Mai challenged, "His power only counts Harpies that on the same side of the field as him."

"True, but Comic Hand gives him another use." Pegasus stated, "It not only gives me control of your monster, it also…"

The castle gate bust open, and out of it sprang the dragon. But now it was brightly colored, its scales shining like rubies, and a thick outline was traced around it…

Mai's eyes almost popped out of their sockets at the sight.

"Turns it into a cartoon! Say hello to Harpie's Pet _Toon_ Baby Dragon!" Pegasus cheered as the now toonified dragon nuzzled against his leg.

"Your spell turned it into a toon!" Mai shouted.

"Yes, and isn't it simply adorable?" Pegasus grinned as he gave the dragon a pat.

Mai was silent, but the look on her face spoke volumes. She obviously did not agree with Pegasus on this matter.

"Oh boy, Pegasus is asking for it now!" Roland called out, "Good thing he didn't take one of the Harpies, or we'd have a real mess to clean up!"

-------------------------------------------------

"_This is disturbingly familiar._" Yugi thought, looking at the field.

"_Seems that Pegasus found a way to resurrect Toon World as it was in Duelist Kingdom, before the rules for it changed."_ Yami pointed out, _"And Mai has never faced anything like this."_

"Hang in there Mai!" Joey called out.

"She can't hear us from up here." Mako reminded him, pulling Joey back into his proper seat, "Now just calm down."

"Okay, these Toon Monsters are just weird." Brian said, looking to Tim.

Tim opened his mouth, and then stopped.

"You know what, I'm not even gonna try to make a joke out of this duel." He sighed, "It really doesn't need my help."

Kaiba just let out a 'hmph' of acknowledgement, but seemed somehow pleased that Tim wasn't going to make any jokes.

-------------------------------------------------------------

"Well then, I could attack your life points directly with both of these monsters but previous experience shows that would be a bad idea to let those Harpies stay _en masse _on the field." Pegasus sighed, "So therefore…Toon Dark Magician Girl, destroy Harpie Lady 1!"

The gleeful toon girl held up her staff, and it immediately changed into an oversized turkey-baster. Harpie Lady 1 took one look at her foes new weapon, and let out a shriek of fear, trying to fly to safety. The giggling sorceress began to chase her around, until the Harpie blindly flew behind an oversized feather…

Which toppled over to reveal a large oven set on high. It let out a loud buzzer, and then shattered taking its cook-to-golden-perfection victim with it.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh great, now I'm hungry." Tim grumbled, watching as the bird vanished.

"What happened to not making jokes?" Kaiba grumbled under his breath.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Pegasus was doubled over in laughter after his latest attack, and Mai's expression was a mixture of shock, disgust, and anger. On the field, Harpie's Brother (2000/800), Harpie Lady 2 (1500/1600), and Harpie Girl (700/700) were all mourning the loss of their comrade. The pilfered Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon (1200/600) seemed to miss the breeze that Harpie Lady 1 had provided.

"Are you done yet!" Mai shouted, a bit louder than she meant to.

"Sorry." Pegasus gasped, "Actually, as long as I'm at it, I'll have my Toon Baby Dragon (1200/600) attack your Harpie Girl."

The cartoon critter nodded, and fired a blast of flame from its mouth. Harpie Girl shrieked in pain as the fire washed over her, and was reduced to a small pile of ash with a pair of eyes blinking on top of it. A light gust of wind blew the ashes away.

**Mai: 4600**

**Pegasus: 4000**

"And that is that." Pegasus declared, "Go ahead Mai."

Mai drew, and thought over her plan…

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Now what is she gonna do?" Espa asked, "If Pegasus keeps getting rid of her Harpies…"

"Trust me, it's better she lose the Harpies than get hit directly." Celeste reminded him.

"Yes, but…" Ronaldo stated, sounding confused, "What about her deckmaster? Could she not have doubled the damage to save her creatures?"

Kevin, Espa, and Celeste all blinked in surprise.

"Hey, you're right!" Kevin gasped, "Why didn't she save them?"

"The only thing I can think of is she wants them in the graveyard." Celeste frowned, "But that can't be right…"

"Unless she has a plan." Espa stated, "One that we aren't seeing. Think…Why would she want the Harpies off her field?"

------------------------------------------------------

"Mr. Pegasus is certainly employing an interesting strategy. It seems unlikely that Mai can fight back!" Roland announced.

"_Who asked you?"_ Mai thought as she looked over her cards.

"Harpie's Brother, attack the Toon dragon!" Mai called out.

Forward leapt the winged man, brandishing his talons. He swung them right at the little toon, but Pegasus casually slipped a card from his deck.

The toon's eye glinted for a second, and it breathed out a cloud of smoke. The cloud surrounded both itself and Harpie's Brother. From the inside could be heard several cries of pain and strange sound effect, before the cloud vanished revealing both monsters panting and very much alive.

The audience chuckled again as Harpie's Brother returned to his field, dejected. Pegasus just grinned as his life points adjusted for the battle and the removed card.

**Mai: 4600**

**Pegasus: 3700**

"_At this rate one of us will deck out."_ Mai thought, waving a hand to end her turn.

Pegasus drew a card and quickly removed one from his disk.

"Well, I borrowed your baby dragon for long enough." He sighed, "So long little fellow, you can go home now."

The dragon looked up with teary eyes before it vanished into sparkle. Mai frowned as her pilfered card flew from Pegasus's disk into her graveyard.

"You just tributed my dragon, didn't you?" She guessed.

"Yes, in order to summon my Toon Summoned Skull (2500/1200)!" Pegasus grinned.

The sky over one of the castle towers darkened, and lightning lanced down and struck it! A hole was blasted into the roof of the tower, and out of it emerged a skeletal monster with rubbery looking limbs and huge, goofy eyes. Its legs disappeared into the tower beneath it, and it just laughed as it gazed down at Mai.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Celeste shuddered at the sight of this new creature.

"Glad he never used _that _against me." She said.

"Yeah, that takes nasty to a whole other level." Kevin agreed with a disgusted look, "And I use Archfiends, so that's saying something."

----------------------------------------------------------------------

The laughing skull let out a yawn as he lay down on the roof of the tower, and began to snore.

"Of course, he can't attack in the same turn I summoned him." Pegasus shrugged, "But Toon Dark Magician Girl still can! Attack her Harpy Lady 2 with animated antics!"

The girl toon laughed, and flew into the air over Harpie Lady 2. Her staff turned into a paintbrush and artist palette, while her clothes turned into a white smock and red beret.

She picked up a bit of black paint on her brush, and in a blur of motions had painted a large anvil over the head of the Harpie. She whistled, drawing her opponent's gaze up to the picture, just as the anvil turned real and plummeted onto the hapless bird!

The audience winced at the ensuing crunch, and a few more laughs were heard as the Toon magician floated back to Pegasus, switching to her normal outfit on the way.

**Mai: 4100**

**Pegasus: 3700**

"_Not yet…"_ Mai thought, _"He knows my deckmaster's power, but I have a plan…"_

Pegasus was snickering a bit after the latest attack, and finally sighed.

"Ahh…Go ahead Mai, it's your turn." He offered.

Mai drew, and smiled.

"Okay Pegasus, get ready to meet one of the latest additions to my deck." Mai declared, "I tribute Harpie's Brother to summon a monster that reminds me of someone special…"

Mai removed the card on her disk, causing Harpie's Brother to jump into the air and out of sight. She put down another card, and a powerful wind began to blow over the field.

"I summon Swift Birdman Joe (2300/1400)!" Mai called out.

From above dropped an entirely new creature. It looked like a man, but he had bird talons on his hands and feet like the harpies. From his arms extended green, yellow, and red feathers, and a similar plumage sprouted from his head in place of hair. He gave Pegasus a smug grin, and snapped his talons.

The wind that had preceded his arrival suddenly increased in intensity. The story book slammed shut, causing the castle to vanish and a surprised Toon Skull to fall to the ground with a thud! All of the momongas and the egg returned to normal, but the tiny rodents were scooped by the breeze and tossed into the air, along with the book and the Soul Absorption card.

"Very clever, Ms. Valentine." Pegasus said, rubbing his chin, "You know that by tributing a wind-monster, Joe will blow all spells and traps back to their owner's hand. But I must confess, I'm lost as to why you have this particular _male _monster in your deck."

"Take a close look Pegasus." Mai invited, "Remember what I said?"

Pegasus looked at the monster, and sighed. There was no denying that his face and eyes resembled a certain duelist back up in the VIP seats, and they even shared a name.

-------------------------------------------------------

Up in the VIP seats, Joey frowned as he looked at the new monster.

"What do you think she meant by all that?" He asked, looking to Yugi, "Hey Yug, who do you think that reminds her of?"

"_Should we tell him?" _Yugi asked his partner.

"_No, it would be better if he figured this out on his own."_ Yami said.

"_How thick can Wheeler honestly be?"_ Kaiba wondered as he looked at Mai's monster.

The other finalists were just snickering at Joey, as he tried to understand the meaning behind this monster.

-------------------------------------------------

"Well, you may have gotten rid of my Toon Kingdom, but Joe there can't attack thanks to my deckmaster." Pegasus pointed out as Relinquished fixed its gaze on the birdman.

"Oh no? I beg to differ." Mai challenged, putting down another card, "Remember how you changed a few card rules after Battle City? Well I found a use for one of them in a combo with Gravity Bind since then. And it's about to help me get past your deckmaster!"

The card appeared behind Joe, showing a fiend of some kind attacking an opponent with an axe…In an impossibly fast blur of motion. Pegasus instantly recognized it.

"That's a Quick Attack card." He realized.

"Yep, and thanks to the changes you made to it since Battle City, it let's one monster on the field ignore any conditions that stops them from attacking for one turn." Mai smiled, "But one turn is all Joe needs! And seeing as Toon Kingdom isn't here anymore, there's nothing to save your monsters! Joe, attack Toon Dark Magician Girl with scrapper's skydive!"

The birdman soared forward, and grabbed Toon Dark Magician Girl by the shoulders. She shrieked in fright as he lifted into the air with him and then, after climbing about fifty feet (well above the level the rock spires had been at), He stopped flapping and went into a freefall, plunging headfirst toward the ground. His captive screamed all the way down, before he released her. At the same time he spread his arms again, catching a breeze and arching back into the air.

Toon Dark Magician Girl slammed into the ground, leaving a hole in the bottom of the nest. Her screaming continued as she plummeted, before a few meager sparks signified her passing. Pegasus frowned at this.

**Mai: 4100**

**Pegasus: 3400**

"Was that really necessary?" He asked, "She was only trying to keep people entertained."

"It worked." Mai laughed, "I found that hilarious."

Mai was laughing as Joe landed next to her once again. The audience was also joining the laughter, and Pegasus didn't seem to be enjoying the fact that is was directed _at _him rather than with him.

Mai stopped laughing long enough to say, "I set two cards facedown and end my turn (hahaha!)."

Pegasus drew as the card appeared, and smiled as he held up two of his own.

"Remember these Mai? I activate Soul Absorption and Toon Kingdom, in that order!" He declared.

The image of Soul Absorption appeared first, followed by the pop-up book again. Toon Skull grinned, and jumped onto the cover of the book, pulling open. Out of the book sprang the castle, and the animated fiend returned to his hole in the roof of the tower. Roland's egg turned polka dot again, and he sighed.

"I feel tacky just sitting on this thing." He muttered, eliciting further laughter from the audience.

"Oh, get a sense of fashion Roland!" Pegasus teased, "But first, I pay 500 life points so my Toon Skull can attack. And while I could send him after your life points, Mai, it seems more prudent that I get rid of that monster of yours first. Attack with cartoon catastrophe!"

The toon skull reached into the hole, and pulled out an angry, yowling, stripy cat. He held it up as if to throw it, but Pegasus cleared his throat and caught the monster's attention.

"I said catastrophe, not cat-tastrophe." He explained.

The Toon Summoned Skull blushed, and returned the cat to the tower. It raised its arms overhead, gathering electricity in its claws…

"Nice try Pegasus, but I have a little surprise for you." Mai grinned, "Go, Hysteric Party!"

"Wait, I remember that card." Pegasus said, his eyes widening, "That lets you summon your Harpies back!"

"That's right, they come out of the graveyard and I only need to discard one card." Mai grinned, "So goodbye my second Birdface, hello Harpie Ladies 1 and 2 (1300/1400 X2)!"

Mai's trap lifted as she discarded her card. Flashing lights and high tempo music began to flash across the arena, and out of a swarm of lights emerged the two Harpies, posing like a pair of supermodels! A few members of the audience cat called again, but most were cheering after the light show.

The two Harpies landed next to Joe, and smiled as the swooned up against him. He grinned, obviously enjoying the attention as Harpie Lady 1 waved her hand producing another breeze. All three winged-beasts were boosted by the wind, and Mai smiled (1600/1400 X2) (2600/1400).

"Sorry girls, you'll have to stand clear. Joe was about to teach that cartoon bonehead a lesson." Mai instructed.

The Harpie Ladies stepped back, and Toon Summoned Skull lunged forward, its fist crackling with electricity.

"Actually Mai, it's your Harpie Lady 1 that needs a lesson." Pegasus frowned, "And Toon Summoned Skull is just one to teach it! Since you summoned new monsters, I can change my target: Skull, attack Harpie Lady 1!"

The animated archfiend grinned at the frightened bird-woman as it reached back to launch its attack…

"I activate Harpie Lady Sparrow Formation!" Mai called out, her other facedown card lifting.

This card showed a gold circle, with a large bird made of red fire in the center. Mai pointed to her Harpies as they began to glow with similar flames.

"As long as I have at least two Harpie Ladies on the field, I can negate your attack and end your battle phase." Mai declared.

The two Harpies leapt into the air and hovered side-by-side. A flash of fire surrounded them, shaped like a giant bird, and forced Toon Summoned Skull away! The cartoon creature was grumbling as it glared at the electricity in its fist and pitched it over its shoulder toward the audience. It exploded in a colorful flash, raining confetti and streamers down on Serenity, John, and the audience members around them.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Serenity had cringed as the lightning arched toward her, but was letting out a nervous laugh upon realizing that it had turned into confetti.

"Well, it would seem Mr. Pegasus has a unique sense of humor…" John commented as he swept a streamer out his hair.

"Yeah, and Mai is doing great." Serenity smiled, "Come on Mai! You can do it!"

------------------------------------------------------------

Mai smiled, able to hear Serenity and several other audience members cheer her name. She smiled as she took in the cheers, something that she had missed over the last couple years.

Pegasus slid one card into his disk, and bowed as it appeared in his spell and trap zone.

"That facedown ends my turn." He stated

**Mai: 4100**

**Pegasus: 5400**

Mai drew her card and grinned as she turned it around.

"You know, I used to be afraid of this card." She admitted, "After the events of two years ago, it reminded me of all the evil I'd done, and what I didn't want to become again."

"You've moved past that I see." Pegasus said, looking solemn, "Go ahead and play it Mai, I assure that I hold no ill will toward you for that card."

Mai nodded, and slid the card into her disk.

"_I've conquered my fear of this card."_ She thought, _"All the evil that made me use before is gone, now I can use it for just regular duels like this one…"_

"I activate Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation!" Mai called out, raising one hand overhead.

A golden circle appeared overhead, and the two Harpies swooped into it. A blue fire gathered around them, and took the form of a massive bird, similar in shape to Tim's Sacred Phoenix (In the VIP seats, Tim took that card out of his deck and looked from it to the fire in fascination.).

"Now I can destroy one of your monsters for every Harpie Lady I have!" Mai called out, "And then their attack is taken from your life points, so here goes: Pheonix Strike!"

The blue flames soared down, and in a split second the Toon Summoned Skull had been completely immolated. Pegasus screamed as a column of blue fire shot up around him, knocking him to the floor.

"Amazing, Mai manages to put a serious dent in her opponent's life points!" Roland shouted.

As Pegasus picked himself up, Mai smiled.

"And now I'll replay my Harpies' Hunting Ground card." She declared, putting the card back into play, "Boosting the attack of all my Winged-beast by 200 points."

The animated momongas scampered back onto the field, and took cover under the branches and fur again. Mai's Harpies and Joe all stretched their wings, grateful to be back on their home turf (1800/1600 X2) (2800/1600).

"My Harpie Ladies can't attack this turn, thanks to my Phoenix Formation." Mai explained, "But Joe is a different story, go get him with scrapper's skydive!"

Joe soared forward once more as Pegasus finished getting to his feet.

"Well at least he can't throw me like he did…OH MY GOD!" Pegasus screamed as Joe clamped his talon's on the rich-man's shoulders and carried him into the air!

The audience stared in awe at this phenomena, while Pegasus continued to demand to be put down. Joe finally decided to comply, and began his sharp descent to the ground…

"This looks like it might hurt…" Roland declared.

"Might?" Mai commented as Joe relinquished his quarry.

Pegasus screamed as he shot right through the bottom of the nest and into the empty space below. His screams faded away as Joe returned to the Harpies.

---------------------------------------------------

Kaiba gave an evil grin at the sight of this turn of events.

"Seems Pegasus forgot what I said at the start of this tournament: We're as real as the monsters are in here." He said, "Anything they can do to each other, they can do to us."

"Thanks for the heads up." Brian said, staring at the arena floor, "Oh man, am I glad that Celeste never hit me directly with Joan!"

"Now I kind of feel bad for what I did to Ruby earlier…" Gold muttered.

"So what happened to Pegasus?" Yugi asked.

"He still has some life points, he'll pop up soon." Kaiba explained.

"Let's hope your right about that…" Victor sighed.

--------------------------------------------------------

Mai and Roland were both looking around, confused as to the fate of Pegasus. Roland tapped his ear, causing a small headset to appear on him.

"Rei, a little help." He whispered into the microphone.

"Don't worry, just give it a second." Rei's voice responded.

Suddenly, Pegasus plummeted from above and landed right next to the hole he had been dropped through. He slowly picked himself up, shuddering a bit as the life point loss set in.

"That was far from an enjoyable experience…" He moaned, stepping away from the hole, "Are you quite done yet?"

"Just one more face down card." Mai said, holding up the card before putting it in a slot, "Now go ahead."

**Mai: 4100**

**Pegasus: 100**

Pegasus drew, and didn't even bother to look at the card.

"Okay Ms. Valentine, you've forced my hand now." Pegasus declared, "I really didn't want to have to do this, but it's obvious that I have no other choice."

He pressed down on his disk and his facedown card flipped over.

"With all the cards I removed from play, I have more than enough to justify using this trap: Return from the Different Dimension!" Pegasus called out, a swirling vortex opening overhead.

Mai stared up at the portal and frowned.

"Wait a minute, that trap cuts your life points in half. Then it summons monsters that have been removed from play." Mai realized, "But none of your toons can attack in the same turn you summon them, so what's the point? They'll just disappear at the end of the turn."

"You'll see soon enough." Pegasus grinned as a grid of cards appeared, "Now then, come back to me: Toon Masked Sorceror (900/1400)!"

From the portal dropped a squat figure in a purple robe. He wore a metal mask over his face, and stood on the tower adjacent to the one Toon Summoned Skull had occupied.

"Toon Mermaid (1400/1500)!"

The castle moat reappeared, and out of it burst the clam with the mermaid archer nestled inside. Both of them laughed as they saw Mai.

"Manga Ryu-Ran (2200/2600)!"

One of the windows of the castle suddenly stretched to a larger size, and spat an egg onto the field. It split open, and out of it emerged an animated, orange dragon with a smile on its face. The top of the egg covered its head, and its legs poked out of the bottom of the shell.

"Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon (3000/2500)!"

From the hole Toon Summoned Skull made earlier burst the chibi-version of Seto Kaiba's signature monster. It roared, prior to bursting into laughter at the sight of Mai's monsters. It quite clearly didn't think much of them.

"I still don't…" Mai started.

"I have one more, and this is the kicker." Pegasus grinned, "Come forth: Toon Cannon Soldier (1400/1300)!"

On top of the castle gates emerged a blocky, purple figure. It had the signature giant eyes of a toon monster, but a green cannon extended from right between them, much like nose. It clapped its hands together, getting the attention of the other four toons gathered around the castle.

"Oh…Can that do the same thing as a regular Cannon Soldier?" Mai asked, already guessing the answer.

"Why of course it can Mai, and it doesn't need wait a turn before doing so." Pegasus grinned, "So now, I tribute all four of my monsters, plus the Toon Cannon Soldier itself, to deal you 500 damage for each one!"

The four other toons began to glow, and faded away into clouds of energy. Toon Cannon Soldier gathered this energy, and launched four glowing orbs toward Mai, knocking her to the floor as they burst! The machine itself then began to fade, but not before firing one last shot at the prone blond.

**Mai: 1600**

**Pegasus: 50**

Mai got back to her feet, shaking off the soreness from the latest attack. Looking at her clothes, she let out a shout of surprise: Her jacket, skirt, and shirt were covered with patches of colorful paint, like she had been peppered with a paintball gun.

"Oh dear, I do apologize." Pegasus said, trying to hold back his laughter, "I promise I'll pay for the dry cleaning once this is over."

"Ugh…I hope so…" Mai grumbled.

"Well, I'll just lay a card facedown and end my turn." Pegasus said, sliding one more card into his spell and trap area.

Mai drew, and let out a sigh.

"You could have ended this quietly, but you just had to make a scene, didn't you?" She sighed, shrugging her shoulders, "Ah well…Harpie Lady 1, attack!"

The first of the Harpies leapt skyward again, but Pegasus tapped a button on his duel disk.

"Oh Mai? You might be interested to know that the monsters I tributed for my Toon Cannon Soldier are still in my graveyard." Pegasus grinned, "That means this Call of the Haunted can bring my Toon Blue-Eyes (3000/2500) right back!"

A purple smog poured from the trap, and coalesced into the cartoon dragon, dressed up in a trench coat and derby hat. He smiled up at the Harpie, and began to charge up a blast of energy in his mouth.

"Changed my mind! Don't attack!" Mai shouted.

The Harpie quickly dove for cover, and Toon Blue-Eyes chuckled as its 'Casablanca' get up faded away.

"_Shoot, I didn't expect that. And if I switch my Harpies to defense mode then I can't use my deckmaster to protect them anymore…I can't let that happen."_ Mai thought, _"I can still win this, but only if he doesn't play another monster on his next turn...And I need to get lucky."_

"I set one card facedown, and end my turn." Mai announced, sliding another card into play.

Pegasus drew, and smiled.

"Well Mai, it seems our game is over." He grinned, "I activate Emergency Provisions, getting rid of Soul Absorption in order to gain 1000 life points."

The hungry mouth burst onto the field, and gobbled down the spell. Pegasus glowed for one last time, boosting his life points by 1000.

"And since I did that, I can pay the 500 life points my monster needs to attack." Pegasus declared, "So Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon…"

"I activate a trap!" Mai called out, "A powerful one called Hapie Lady Eagle Formation!"

"Eagle Formation?" Pegasus gasped, "But I didn't even release that to the public yet! Where did you get it?"

"At a special event for Harpie Duelists six months ago." Mai smiled, "I needed something to get back in the swing of dueling, and I swept the competition. The prize included this trap card."

Mai's new card, now face up, depicted the same gold circle as the Sparrow and Phoenix Formations. This one, however, showed the silhouette of an eagle made of yellow fire. Mai's Harpies swooped into the air, and Mai looked at Swift Birdman Joe with a sigh.

"I'm sorry Joey…" She whispered, before raising her voice again, "To activate this card, I need at least two Harpies on my field. Then I need to tribute one Wind-attribute monster."

Birdman Joe faded away and the two Harpies were now surrounded by a large eagle formed of yellow fire. The flames rained down upon Toon Blue-Eyes, forcing it to duck and cover.

"Now, all monsters that aren't named Harpie Lady lose their special abilities for this turn." Mai announced, "Your toon can't attack directly."

"No, but he can still attack." Pegasus said, pointing at Mai's monsters, "He'll just need a different target. Blue-Eyes Toon, attack Harpie Lady 1 with toon lightning!"

The cartoon dragon charged up an energy blast, but Mai pointed to her facedown card.

"Not this time, I activate Aqua Chorus!" She called out, "Now all monsters that share a name gain 500 attack points, and my Harpies do just that thanks to their special ability!"

The two Harpies began to sing a haunting melody, their scores leaping to (2300/2100).

"That's not enough to save her." Pegasus taunted in his sing-song voice again.

"No, but it's enough to save me." Mai stated, "I use my deckmaster power: Harpie Guardian!"

"I'd almost forgotten about this folks! It seems that Mai is ready and willing to take a massive blow to protect her monsters!" Roland called out.

The toon dragon fired off its electricity to Mai's monster, But Harpie's Pet Dragon suddenly jumped into the air! It swatted the electricity with a massive talon, sending the blast right to Mai's feet. She screamed as the lightning bolt drained her life points, but she survived.

**Mai: 200**

**Pegasus: 550**

"Ah well…" Pegasus sighed as he tapped the end turn button on his disk, "Next turn you won't be able to stop me."

Mai drew her card, and smiled.

"You don't get a next turn, I'm ending the duel right now." Mai declared, holding up her new card, "Recognize this?"

The card she held had a kaleidoscopic image of the Harpie Lady's face, and a swirling mass of color began to flow from it.

"That's your Elegant Egotist card, isn't it?" Pegasus realized.

"Yeah, and look at where we are Pegasus…" Mai invited.

Pegasus looked around, and gasped.

"Your Harpies' Hunting Ground!" He shouted, "But…If you summon more Hapies…Then…Then…"

"Then I'll get to destroy one of your cards…Like your Toon Kingdom!" Mai called out, "Come out Harpie Lady Sisters (1950/2100)!"

From the orbs of color emerged three more Harpies. These ones sported golden armor and whips covered in sharp thorns, but each of them had a different hairstyle (One was a red head, one had orange hair, and the last had blue).

"Still think it was a good idea to play around with me?" Mai asked as the Harpie Sister descended on the castle, "If I'm right, then once that castle is gone, your toon dragon will follow!"

The castle burst into a pile of shredded paper, which was blown away by a stiff breeze. The toon dragon screamed, and collapsed into a puddle of paint. Along with it, the momongas returned to normal, and the egg turned plain white again.

"No! My magical fairy-tale kingdom!" Pegasus screamed.

----------------------------------------------------

In the VIP seats, Tim let out a low whistle.

"Wow, there wasn't a manly word in that sentence…" He said, shaking his head.

The others all nodded in agreement, except Kaiba who just huffed a little.

---------------------------------------------------------

"Now then, let's not forget the bonuses that come with being a Harpie in these conditions." Mai grinned.

The combined winds of Harpie Lady 1 and the Harpies' Hunting Grounds boosted the Harpie Lady Sisters to (2350/2300).

"Unfortunately, they can't attack thanks to your deckmaster. But my other Harpies are more than enough!" Mai ordered, "Attack, Harpies 1 and 2, ecstasy tornado!"

"Oh no…!" Pegasus screamed as the two Harpies began to fly circles around him, generating a massive tornado that quickly engulfed him!

**Mai: 200**

**Pegasus: 0**

Rather than lightening up with Pegasus's confirmed defeat, the tornado seemed to increase in velocity. Pegasus was fired screaming out of the top of it, and vanished from sight. Mai breathed a sigh of relief as the monster vanished, and fell to her knees.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the winner is Mai Valentine!" Roland called, "Congratulations!"

Mai smiled at the audience as they began cheering again, just before she vanished from sight.

In the audience, Ruby Markowitz looked up just in time to move over a seat as Pegasus landed right where her lap would have been.

"That wasn't anything like a pleasant experience…" He moaned, clutching his head before noticing Ruby and Mary, "Oh…Hello there ladies. A pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is all ours Mr. Pegasus." Ruby grinned, shaking his hand, "My daughter and I are big fans of your game."

"I'm so happy to hear that." Pegasus grinned, "I'm starting to consider early retirement due to on-the-job hazards."

"Can I have your autograph first?" Mary asked, leaning closer to the artist with a smile on her face.

_**The hits just keep on coming folks, and our next match is really going to get the temperature rising!!**_

_**It's another battle of opposites, but this one with a bit more anger behind it. Tim Hokage and Mako Tsunami don't seem to get along the best, and next time their going to have to duel each other.**_

_**So who'll win, water or fire? Find out in our next exciting duel**_

_**Boiling Point**_

_**You might want to take a bathroom break now, there's not much time…**_

---

Original Cards

---

Toon Kingdom

Spell/Continuous

Image of a pop-up book with an animated king on the cover. A large castle is sprouting from its pages.

To activate this card, you must remove the top five cards of your deck from the game. Treat this card as though it were named 'Toon World.' Whenever a Toon monster on your side of the field is attacked, you may remove the top card of your deck from the game. If you do so, that Toon monster will can not be destroyed by the battle.

---

Comic Hand

Spell/Equip

Image of a large, cartoon glove on a spring.

Take control of an enemy monster equipped with this card. So long as this card remains on the field, treat the monster equipped with it as a Toon monster. A monster equipped with this card may attack your opponents life points directly if your opponent has no Toon monsters on the field. If your opponent has a Toon monster on the field, the monster equipped with this card must attack them first. If you do not have a face up Toon World on your side of the field, destroy this card.

_The preceding two cards will be used by Pegasus in a future episode of Yu-Gi-Oh GX. All credit for them goes to their respective creators._

---

Harpie Lady Sparrow Formation

Trap

Image of a bird made of red fire, surrounded by a golden circle.

You may only activate this card if you have at least two monsters named 'Harpie Lady' on your side of the field. Negate one attack from an opponent's monster and end the battle phase.

---

Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation

Spell

Image of a bird made of blue flame, surrounded by a golden circle.

You may only activate this card if you have at least two monsters named 'Harpie Lady' on your side of the field. You may destroy one enemy monster for every Harpie Lady you control. Your opponent then takes damage equal to the total attack of the destroyed monsters.

_The above two cards were used on the show by Mai Valentine, originally in the episode "My Funny Valentine." All credit for them goes to their original creators._

---

Quick Attack

Spell

Image of a demonic creature slashing at a man he has just run past.

One attack-position monster on your side of the field, that is incapable of attacking this turn, may ignore any card effects that prevent its attacks until the end of this turn.

_This card was originally intended for use on the show during Battle City, when fusion monsters needed to wait a turn before attacking. We've taken some creative liberties, but the original idea belongs to the creators of the show._

---

Card from a Different Dimension

Spell

Image of a card in a glass case, surrounded by crackling energy.

When this card is removed from the game, return it to your hand during your next standby phase. After that, you and your opponent each draw two cards.

_This card made its first appearance in Zane Truesdale's deck in YuGi-Oh GX. All credit for it goes to its creators._

_---_

Harpie Lady Eagle Formation

Trap

Image of a bird formed of yellow fire, surrounded by a golden circle.

You may only activate this card if you have at least two monsters named 'Harpie Lady' on your side of the field. Tribute one WIND monster on your side of the field. Until the end of the turn, negate the effects of all monsters on the field except 'Harpie Lady.'

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Harpie's Pet Dragon

WIND

Dragon

Seven Star

2000 attack

1000 defense

Harpie Guardian: If a monster you control with the word Harpie in its name would be destroyed in battle, you may double the damage. If you do so, the selected monster will not be destroyed by the battle.


	27. Boiling Point

_**Ladies and Gentlemen, much as I'd love to give you more time to reach your seats, we can't wait any longer!**_

_**I, Roland, am incapable of holding back these two duelists any longer. They're carrying on the ancient grudge their elements embody all the way to the dueling field…**_

_**So let's introduce them!**_

**_To my right, Tim Hokage! Also recognized as the Duelist of Fire or, as he is apparently dubbed, Mr. Molotov!_**

_**To my left, Mako Tsunami! The Lord of the Briny Deep, and Master of the Ocean!**_

**_It's the grudge match to end all grudge matches! Fire vs. Water, the ancient elements clash for the final time in our arena today._**

_**We haven't reached the end yet, this match just hit **_

Boiling Point

In the real world, Jackson and Sota were glaring at each other after the results of the last duel had been announced. Jackson had a smug grin on his face, while Sota looked sulky over the matter. Rei sighed, and held up a clip board with the betting sheet that the men had written up pinned to it.

"Okay, after Aviation vs. Animation…Who _is_ coming up with these titles anyway?" Rei asked.

"Roland just makes 'em up on the spot. Now what does the sheet say about the winnings?" Sota snapped.

"Touchy…" Rei sighed, looking back to the paper, "Okay, according to this Sota, you owe Jackson ten-thousand yen at the moment."

"Oh yeah, I'm finally on the board." Jackson said.

"Yeah, but I get to place my bet first for the next match-up." Sota pointed out, "Now then, let's take a look here…"

Sota punched in a series of commands to his computer, and on it appeared a tree-graph showing the pairings set up for the tournament. While everyone in the Virtual World was assuming the pairings were being randomly generated on the spot, the programmers of Kaiba Corp. had actually been the ones to set up the tournament line up. As it was, the next duel that was on the schedule was Tim Hokage vs. Mako Tsunami, as the audience and finalists would learn soon enough.

"Why did we pair those two up again?" Rei asked.

"I was into the whole idea of having opposites duel each other." Sota grinned, "You know, light vs. dark, fire vs. water, cartoons vs..."

"Adult entertainment?" Rei growled, looking at Sota.

"Sheesh Sota, they're freaking _cards!_" Jackson sighed.

"I wasn't watching the cards, I was watching Mai!" Sota responded.

He then covered his mouth, realizing that Rei had heard that last statement. The look on her face gave the clear impression that she was simply going to throw him out a window next chance she got. Sota grinned sheepishly, then sighed and looked back to the screen.

"I propose double-or-nothing on the next match." He said, "I bet on Tim Hokage, after all he took down Bandit Keith."

"Who was cheating, if you'll recall." Jackson grinned, "There's no way that he can beat Mako Tsunami, who has been a professional duelist for more than five years, in a straight match."

"Five years and he hasn't won any tournaments?" Rei asked.

"Who said that? Mako wins tournaments, he just gets a little overshadowed by other duelists like Yugi and Joey." Jackson explained, leaning back in his chair, "Check his record outside of Kaiba Corp. or Industrial Illusions tournaments. He cleans house."

Skeptical, Rei turned to her own computer and punched in a series of commands. Mako's dueling records appeared on screen (generated from data registered from his duel disk to the Kaiba Corp. main frame), and she let out a low whistle.

"Okay, forget I said anything." She muttered.

------------------------------------------------------------

Back in the VIP seating area, Mai appeared in a burst of light. The remaining finalists were applauding, Joey motioning for her to sit down. She took her chair next to the blond teen, and he smiled.

"Nice work there Mai, you totally creamed Pegasus!" Joey cheered.

"Thanks." Mai smiled at him, "Right now though, I could use a break…"

"Can you answer one question for me first?" Joey asked.

"Shoot." Mai said, shrugging her shoulders.

"That Swift Birdman Joe…" Joey frowned.

Everyone was paying attention now, Mai tensing up a bit.

"Who does he remind you of exactly?" Joey asked.

Everyone who had leaned forward in their seats (Tim, Rex, Weevil, Gold, Victor, Mako, and Yami who was projected next to them in spirit form) suddenly fell forward to the floor. Mai relaxed a bit, and smiled at Joey.

"Did I say he reminded me of someone?" Mai asked, feigning confusion quite well, "Hmm…I was so caught up in the match that I don't really recall."

"But I'm sure…" Joey began.

"Don't worry about it Joey." Yugi said, smiling to his friend while looking to Yami as he got up, "I'm sure Mai will tell us if she remembers."

"_Sometimes I worry about those two…"_ Yami commented to his partner.

"_It could be worse. At least they don't fight all the time."_ Yugi pointed out with a mental shrug, _"I'm sure Joey will get it…Eventually…"_

Both the pharaoh and his host now seemed a bit skeptical on the matter of Joey catching on. Kaiba was snickering a bit to himself.

"Geeze, did Wheeler actually get dumber since I last saw him?" Rex growled as climbed back into his seat.

"Woah Rex, you've been so quiet I was afraid you'd lost your voice or something." Weevil frowned, "Why didn't you speak up until now?"

Rex shrugged, and leaned back in his seat.

"Dunno, couldn't think of anything to say that wasn't already said about these duels." He whispered to Weevil as the screen dimmed, "So, I can guess who you're hoping to face off with."

"Is it that obvious?" Weevil snickered, "First Yugi, then that fiend-kid that humiliated me, then maybe Kaiba himself!"

"I would think Yugi would be your last target…" Rex muttered, "And what about Joey for that time he beat you in Battle City?"

"I thought I'd let you get first dibs." Weevil grinned, "And I've been waiting long enough for a rematch with Yugi…"

"You know, I'm sitting right here and can hear everything you two are saying." Brian interrupted in a whisper.

Weevil and Rex both shot him an ice-cold glare, causing the dark duelist to pull back.

"_Mental note, keep my nose out of the business of revenge-seeking duelists."_ Brian thought.

This whole time, the screen had been flashing with the images of the remaining finalists. It slowed down, and let out a musical chime as it came to a stop.

Tim and Mako both grinned as they saw the screen…

------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the arena, the crowd began to cheer as Roland lifted his hand and pointed to the screens overhead.

"Our next match is decided folks!" Roland shouted, "Get set for another clash of polar opposites! It's Tim Hokage vs. Mako Tsunami!"

The audience was applauding this choice enthusiastically. Celeste sighed, and lowered her head into her hands.

"Oh no…" She moaned, "Now I can't cheer for anyone. They're both my friends…"

"Espa and myself on the other hand, can decide who we want to cheer." Kevin grinned, turning to the green-haired boy, "Rock-Paper-Scissors. Winner gets to choose who they cheer for."

"Agreed. Of course I'm already sure I'll win the toss." Espa said, holding up a fist, "One, two, three, go!"

Both teens extended flat hands, indicating paper.

"Tie, try again." Kevin frowned, "Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!"

This time both of them extended curled fists for rock. They frowned, and began a series of count downs followed by frustrated sighs as they continued to tie.

Ronaldo was enjoying this show, ignoring the timer overhead, While Celeste looked to him.

"So who would you cheer for?" She asked.

"Me? It is too hard to call." Ronaldo sighed, "They both must be great in skill to get this far, in truth it could be anybody's game. I just aim to enjoy the show, as well as your company."

He smiled to Celeste, who sighed a bit, but returned the smile.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Back up in the VIP seats, Tim and Mako were hard at work modifying their decks.

Tim's first move was to do just as he had promised earlier. Namely, he removed Flame Cerberus and replaced it with Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch. Looking over the remainder of his cards, he thought for a minute.

"_Hmm…You know what? I don't need to change anything else."_ Tim thought, _"The rest of my deck works great, Flame Cerberus was the only thing that felt out of place."_

Mako, in the meantime, was removing his Orca Mega Fortress of Darkness for his own prize: Ocean Dragon Lord, Neo Daedelus. He then took out a Cannonball Spear Shellfish and a Torpedo fish, along side his Lightning Vortex. He then smiled as he added a new spell to his deck.

"_That feels better…"_ He thought, _"Now then, to replace those monsters…High Tide Gyojin hasn't seen a lot of play and…What's this?"_

He noticed a monster sitting next to the Orca he just moved to his side deck. He smiled as he realized what it was.

"_I almost forgot about this one. It was pretty good when Em used it against me, so it should work fine in my deck."_ Mako thought as he added the monster, _"Okay, time to show that little hot-head the power of the ocean!"_

"Time's up boys, it's time to duel!" Roland called out.

Tim and Mako vanished, and the remaining VIP seaters excitedly watched out the window.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

The shadows in the arena had once again hidden any view of the floor. A single spot light shone down on Roland, who lifted his microphone to begin his intro.

"The mountains of China hold many astounding secrets. Stories of ancient spirits and magic exist, even to this day, as well as tales of horrible curses." Roland declared, "But also, these mountains are known for holding something everyone can enjoy: Hot springs."

The lights flashed on, and once again the arena seemed to be outside. This time, it was set up in a rocky area, with several pools of water ringing the outer edge of the battle field. Steam poured from the springs, casting a haze over the ground, while a large statue of a Chinese dragon stood behind Roland, lording over the field.

"So now, we've decided to take our duelists to a place that unites not only their elements, but also the myths of these ranges." Roland called out, "Welcome to the Jusenkyo Hot Springs, famous for their relaxing waters…"

Roland grinned mischievously as he gestured to the springs.

"Or they would be, if not for the curse that exists in each one. Those who fall into these springs are cursed to take the form of the last creature to drown in them." Roland explained, "And whoever loses this match will be taking a dip in the Jusenkyou of the Eternal Loser!"

The audience laughed and cheered as Tim and Mako appeared across from each other. Each of them was positioned in front of a hot spring, and both of them looked back at their spring nervously.

"So then, let's welcome our contestants: Tim Hokage, aka Mr. Molotov…"

The audience cheered, and Tim smiled and waved to the fans.

"And Mako Tsunami, the Master of the Ocean!" Roland called out.

"Aka, Fish Boy!" Tim interrupted.

The audience chuckled a bit, most of the laughter drowned out by cheering. Mako cast a glare at Tim, turning on his disk with an unnecessarily, forceful flick of his wrist.

"That does it…" Mako grumbled, "I'll teach you to respect the power of the sea!"

"Let's set some ground rules first." Roland butted in as he floated onto the head of the statue, "Tim, your fire monsters are hot stuff, but don't start a blaze you can't control."

"Don't be ridiculous, I can't control any of the blazes I start." Tim smiled.

Roland looked to Mako, and pointed at him.

"And Mako, if this duel becomes a swimming match, I don't want to catch you holding Hokage under." Roland warned.

"I won't." Mako promised.

Under his breath he added, "For longer than necessary."

"Alright, I'm hoping this will be a friendly match, but in lieu of that I'll settle for a no-holds-bar blood bath the likes of which our audience has never seen!" Roland called out, "Either way, I still get my paycheck. Select your deckmasters!"

Mako was quick to select his, the grid barely had time to materialize before he jabbed at a card.

"I select the Fortress Whale as my deckmaster!" Mako called out.

The ground behind Mako began to crack, and several of the pools of heated water started draining into one another as their borders were breached. Roughly six of the pools ran together, forming a larger pool that was at least fifty-feet in diameter behind Mako, and from the pool emerged the head of Mako's Fortress Whale.

"_It's a little cramped in here…"_ Fortress Whale moaned.

"Sorry about that." Mako said, turning to his deckmaster, "Will you be okay?"

"_Don't worry about me Mako, I'm willing to put up with a little discomfort in order to help."_ Fortress Whale assured him.

As this was happening, Tim was looking over his own choices.

"_Flame Cerberus would be good, but I took him out for this new monster."_ Tim frowned, reaching for his Blazing Inpachi, _"Guess it's Blazing Inpachi then…"_

Before Tim could choose, the ground began to shake as Mako's deckmaster was breaking through. Tim struggled to remain steady, but as he did his finger wavered and tapped the monster just below his Blazing Inpaci!

"Oops!" Tim exclaimed, looking over his shoulder.

The spring behind him was starting to boil and bubble uncontrollably, and out of it sprang a giant, red boar. It bared its tusks, glaring at Mako as he looked away from his own deckmaster.

"Who's that?" Mako asked, pointing at Tim's monster.

"This…" Tim sighed, realizing it was too late to change his decision, "This is my deckmaster, Great Angus."

"Hey, don't sound so excited." Great Angus grumbled, "You're gonna love my deckmaster power!"

"Is it better than Blazing Inpachi's?" Tim asked, looking skeptical.

"You bet your deck it is!" Great Angus laughed, before leaning in to whisper the next part, "I call it Barbeque Feast. Just remove one creature of Fire from your graveyard and I'll let you draw one card for every star level it has."

Tim's eyes went wide, and he looked to his monster with a smile.

"Seriously?" He asked, "You've got to be the best mistake I've ever made!"

"Thanks I…Wait a minute…" Great Angus grumbled, not sure whether or not that was an insult, "Eh…Well, keep in mind you can only do that once per turn and you should be fine."

Roland stood up on top of the dragon statue, and waved one arm.

"Okay, let's choose who goes first!" He shouted.

Two hands appeared in mid-air, one made of fire and the other of water. The began to tremble, curling into fists, and then shook up and down three times before both of them stopped, remaining curled up.

"Both select rock, try again!" Roland ordered, ignoring several groans from the audience members that realized this was a game of rock-paper-scissors.

This time, the fire hand obviously wanted to win. It slammed down on the water hand with its third shake, causing it to flatten out in pain. At the same time, it extended two fingers to indicate scissors, and Roland nodded.

"Scissors cut paper, so Tim may make the first move." Roland announced, "Begin!"

Tim drew, and looked to his deckmaster.

"Did you do that?" He asked.

"What can I say? I don't like to lose." Angus responded.

"Then it's a good thing you're on my team." Tim said.

**Tim: 8000**

**Mako: 8000**

Mako had drawn his five cards, while Tim held six. Looking them over, the fire duelist thought for a minute.

"Okay…" He said, sliding a card into place, "Let's light this candle. I open with Blazing Inpachi (1850/0), attack mode!"

Great Angus slammed his fists into the ground, and a fountain of lava burst from the floor in front of Tim! The magma fell away, leaving behind the fiery golem which beat its wooden fists together in anticipation.

"I'll also plant one card facedown." Tim said, putting down another card, "And that's all."

The facedown card appeared as Mako drew, and the ocean dueler gave it a cautious glance. He took one of his cards and tapped the field slot on his disk.

"Okay Tim, I'm going to start the duel with a change of scenery." Mako smiled, placing the card into the slot, "I play A Legendary Ocean!"

The effect of the card was dramatic, and immediate. The water in the springs began to overflow, and the dragon statue Roland was perched on started to gush out water as well! Tim gasped as the water swamped up to his waist, discovering that it was freezing cold rather than warm like the springs. Behind Mako rose the tops of the white marble pillars and palace, indicating the rest sat below the surface. Mako just grinned, taking a moment to splash some of the icy liquid into his own face, before selecting his next card.

"Now that we're in my world, I think we can guess who'll win this duel." Mako stated, slapping down a monster.

"_Yeah, hypothermia…"_ Tim thought, shivering uncontrollably.

"I call forth one of the residents of this deep-sea kingdom: High Tide Gyojin (1650/1300)!" Mako called out.

Mako's deckmaster, which had come up to the surface of the water as it finish rising, opened up its mouth. Out of the creature's gullet leapt a monster covered in green scales, its face like a fish's, with a red sail on its back. It let out a high-pitched screech as the field boosted its stats to (1850/1500), and it glared at Blazing Inpachi.

Tim's wooden monster seemed uncomfortable in the water. A cloud of steam was constantly rising around it and its fire seemed to have gone out a bit. Tim just grinned a bit.

"Well, at least now you can clean off that fish smell." He joked.

"Laugh while you can, the ocean will decide who is worthy of winning this duel." Mako warned, "Now then, seeing as you have a facedown card and a monster that ties with mine for attack points, I choose to end my turn."

Tim drew, and nodded as he placed another monster onto the field. The water next to Blazing Inpachi began to bubble, and out of it burst a serpent with a mane made of fire covering its head.

"I summon my Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000) in attack mode." Tim declared, the dragon glancing nervously at the water around it, "Then I end my turn, letting its effect activate, dealing you 500 damage."

The dragon spat a burst of fire at Mako, who deftly shielded his face with the back of his tray. His life points still fell, but he didn't need to worry about singed hair.

**Tim: 8000**

**Mako: 7500**

"I draw!" Mako declared, pulling loose another card, "Now, if memory serves, I'm not allowed to attack that Solar Flare Dragon unless it's the only Pyro-type monster you control."

"Right. And my Blazing Inpachi is all Pyro." Tim smiled.

"Then I'll just go through it first. I summon my favorite monster, who has been waiting patiently for his chance to show up…" Mako declared, putting down another monster, "And thanks to the effect of my Legendary Ocean, he finally can! I summon Legendary Fisherman (1850/1600)!"

A shadowy figure appeared under the water, and began to grow. Tim and his monsters looked nervous as a blast of water indicated the monster surfacing…

And the monster bore a striking resemblance to his duelist. He was a young man, bare-chested and tan, with wild black and blue hair. He carried a sharp spear, and rode on the back of a large shark, which seemed fully capable of devouring Tim or either of his monsters.

"Oh my God, it's the attack of the clones!" Tim gasped, pointing at the new monster.

The audience started laughing at this, and Tim smiled. Mako just chuckled a bit also and jerked a thumb toward his monster.

"Yeah, I get that a lot actually." He admitted, "Everybody says that this monster is practically my twin. I personally think he looks more like my dad than me…"

Mako trailed off a bit, but recovered his composure. He held up another card, and smiled.

"Okay, thanks to A Legendary Ocean, I was able to summon my monster without a sacrifice." Mako explained, "Now that he's actually on the field, he can't be attacked by any monsters, and he's immune to all spell cards including the ocean itself. In short, he doesn't get a field bonus from it."

Tim seemed confused as Mako held up his other card.

"But High Tide Gyojin doesn't have a drawback like that, so I can use all the spells I want on him. And I'll start by equipping it with my Steel Shell card." Mako declared, smiling as he placed the card into his disk.

A metal shell appeared on the back of the fish-man, covered with spikes. Gyojin let out another cry as its stats leapt to (2250/1300).

"This spell card grants one Water creature an extra 400 attack at the cost of 200 defense." Mako explained, "Of course now it's stronger than your Inpachi, so guess what he's going after? Attack now with kappa claw!"

The fishy beast lunged forward, moving with unstoppable speed in the water. It rammed its hands, which were tipped with claws, through the chest of the Inpachi. The wooden monster groaned as it split down the middle, the flames extinguishing as it died.

"Timber…" Tim moaned as his monster vanished.

"Now for your dragon, hunter's spear!" Mako ordered, pointing to Tim's lone monster, "Reel him in!"

The Fisherman pulled back his arm, and tossed his spear out with a practiced motion. The spear plunged into the center of the dragon's coils, hooking it through the middle. It roared in pain as the hunter flicked his wrist, causing his weapon to fly back to him with the Pyro-type still attached. The dragon screeched, and the audience grimaced, as the shark that Mako's monster rode on turned the captured dragon into a quick snack.

**Tim: 7250**

**Mako: 7500**

"Why did the water around me get warmer, and why can't I get the 'Theme from Jaws' out of my head?" Tim asked.

"Well, the water's kinda my fault…" His deckmaster said with a sheepish grin.

Tim looked disgusted as he looked down to the waist-deep liquid around him.

"This was so unlikely to happen I have no prepared sarcasm…" He muttered.

"Well that was nice and graphic, wasn't it folks?" Roland called out.

"Can I get some chlorine over here?" Tim shouted.

"Don't even think of contaminating these waters!" Mako warned.

"Too late." Tim's deckmaster shouted.

"Can I move at least?" Tim asked.

"No, the duel has already begun." Roland stated, "Mako, are you done with your turn?"

"Yep." Mako smiled, "Make your move Tim."

Tim drew, and gave a sigh of relief upon seeing his card. He tapped a button on his disk, causing his facedown card to turn over.

"Since this made a lousy bluff, I'll activate my facedown Pot of Greed." Tim announced.

The laughing jar rose from the ocean, and Tim drew two cards as it shattered apart. Giving one of them a quick look, he placed it onto his disk along with a spell.

"Okay Mako, I'm starting this turn by summoning my Hand of Nephthys…" Tim stated.

In a rush of wind, the golden bird priestess descended. She hovered just over the ocean surface as a patch of water next to her turned bright red.

"…And I'll use my Premature Burial to bring back Blazing Inpachi…" Tim continued.

From the red circle of water burst the fire monster, its flames now dying as it glowed like a piece of charcoal in a recently extinguished fire pit.

"And I tribute both of them to use the effect of Hand of Nephthys, and summon my Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys (2400/1600) from my deck!" Tim cried out, pointing to the sky.

A blast of golden fire fell from the heavens, consuming both of Tim's monsters. A glorious song rang out from the fire as it fell away, leaving behind Tim's most prized monster. The golden bird extended her wings and began to sing her haunting melody, causing members of the audience to swoon at the sound.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ronaldo's eyes went wide at the sight of the glorious bird.

"That is quite a monster." He said with a low whistle.

"I don't quite get how Tim manages to summon it almost every duel." Celeste said, "It's almost like it wants to be on the field with him."

Kevin and Espa, in the meantime, had tossed fifty-two games of Rock-Paper-Scissors, resulting in fifty-two ties. Expa threw his arms up in disgust, leaning back in his chair.

"That's it! Let's both just cheer for who ever is winning." He suggested.

"Fine by me." Kevin said, turning forward in his seat, "What did I miss?"

"Plenty." Ronaldo answered.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

On the field, Tim looked between his two potential targets and shrugged. He pointed to Mako's monsters with a smile on his face.

"Okay Phoenix, turn Gyojin into fish sticks with phoenix wing wind blast!" Tim ordered.

The Phoenix got the message. She flapped her wings, sending a golden wave of fire right at Mako's monster. Gyojin screeched in fear as the fire slammed into it with crushing force!

**Tim: 6450**

**Mako: 7350**

"Nice shot, too bad you wasted your time." Mako grinned, "Like I said, the sea will decide the winner of this duel."

"What do you mean?" Tim laughed, "My Phoenix just filleted…"

He didn't get any further before the Gyojin suddenly resurfaced. It splashed some water on its scales, washing away some blackened ones, and then shook a webbed fist in Tim's direction.

"What the Hell?" Tim asked.

"That would be the cause of my deckmaster." Mako grinned, "Fortress Whale's power is called Guardian of the Sea. It prevents all Water monsters from being destroyed in battle, unless they lose by at least 700 points. I still take the damage, but it's a small price to pay."

"Well that's irritating." Tim said, "But it won't protect you forever. I end my turn."

Mako drew, and thought for a minute. He set one card into his disk, and smiled as it appeared facedown behind his two monsters.

"I can't get past your Phoenix just yet, but this should help." Mako stated, "I'll just set that facedown card and end my turn."

Tim drew and thought for a minute. He smiled as a look of realization crossed his face.

"Well, I can't destroy your monsters." He admitted, "But you still said you take damage when they're attacked….Phoenix, blast his High Tide Gyojin again!"

The fire bird sang her melody as she unleashed another blast of flames. Mako just grinned however, as he tapped a button on his own disk.

"Too bad for you the waters of the world protect their own!" Mako declared, "I use my Tornado Wall trap card!"

The facedown card flipped over, and seven columns of wind rose up around Mako, sucking in the water of the ocean. Thus transformed into water spouts, the seven pillars surrounded Mako, who watched on as his monster was blasted with another gout of fire. The flames cleared, and Gyojin once more washed away his burnt scales with an angry glare toward Tim.

"Hey, why aren't your life points dropping this time?" Tim asked.

"Because my Tornado Wall card stops me from taking any battle damage as…" Mako began.

"Don't tell me: As long as the field is called Umi." Tim groaned, "So let me get this straight: I can't destroy your monsters or damage your life points, and you can't do anything to my monster either?"

"Looks that way. We're in a standoff now." Mako nodded.

"Looks like we've got some time to kill folks." Roland announced, "Neither duelist is able to get to their opponent's life points."

"You might want to take a bathroom break folks." Tim shouted.

"Finally." His deckmaster sighed.

"You had yours already!" Tim warned his monster.

---------------------------------------------------------------

In the audience, John Peter frowned as he leaned forward in his seat. Serenity looked at him, worried.

"Are you okay John?" She asked, "You don't look well…"

"I'm fine Serenity, just thinking." John stated, "Mako performed a similar trick on me when I dueled him. I was able to get rid of it by using my own field spell card, but from those clips that played before the finals…"

Serenity thought back to the clips, frowning as she did so.

"Oh yeah…It didn't look like Tim used any field cards." She realized, "But that's okay right? You said you were going to cheer for Mako."

"That I did." John nodded, "None the less, that combination just doesn't sit well with me. I do pray for Mako's victory…"

Sighing, he leaned back to his original position.

"But that card and his deckmaster power make him almost untouchable. He just steps a bit too far into divine territory for my taste with that card." John admitted.

Serenity just shrugged, not really following the 'Born Again' Duelist's logic. Even so, she did have to admit the combo was an impressive lock.

----------------------------------------------------------

"Looks like Mako trapped Tim the same way he tried to trap me in Battle City." Joey noted, "And with that deckmaster he picked, he's really unstoppable."

"True." Yugi nodded, "But that combo can only last as long as Mako maintains his field spell. And from what I know about Fire decks, they usually sport a copy of a spell called Molten Destruction."

Joey looked to Yugi with a frown, and Brian leaned in closer.

"Molten Destruction?" Joey asked, "I don't think I know that one…"

"It's a field spell card. One that gives fire monsters 500 attack, but steals 400 defense." Brian explained, frowning as he did so, "But…um…Tim doesn't use that card…"

"He doesn't?" Yugi asked, looking confused.

Brian shrugged, stating, "He didn't want to be caught using a generic fire strategy. So he decided to build his deck without that card."

"Bet he's kicking himself over that now." Joey said.

----------------------------------------------------------------

While he wasn't truly kicking himself, the Younger Hokage was beginning to wonder where his deck was keeping its spell-destroying cards.

"_Don't worry Tim. You have three great ways to destroy this field spell."_ Tim coached himself, _"One: If my Phoenix is destroyed by a card effect, she'll come to the field and wipe out all the spells and traps. Two: Infernal Flame Emperor. The minute he comes to the field, I can use his effect and wipe out Mako's cards. And three: Mystical Space Typhoon or Dust Tornado. Short, sweet, and to the point. A dueling monkey could figure that out."_

Looking over his hand, Tim cursed as he saw none of those three options available to him. His features lit up though as he remembered something.

"Next turn, I can just use my deckmaster and expand my options." Tim reminded himself, "What am I worried for? And it's not like he can destroy my Phoenix."

"I end my turn." Tim said, loud enough for Mako to hear him.

Mako drew, and shrugged as he looked at his card.

"This card won't do me any good at the moment, so I'll pass the rest of my turn." He stated.

Tim drew, thinking for a minute before sliding the card into his disk.

"_This might help if he destroys my monster."_ Tim reasoned.

"I'll set this card facedown and end my turn." Tim stated, "You know, we can't keep this up forever. If we do then the audience will fall asleep!"

Mako drew, and smiled upon seeing his card.

"You know Tim, I couldn't agree with you more." Mako stated.

"Wait…You what now? Why?" Tim asked.

Mako didn't respond, he just placed his new card on his disk, removing Gyojin as he did so. The ocean creature dove beneath the surface, taking the shell with it, and the water began to churn and froth wildly.

"Time to extinguish your Phoenix's flame for good." Mako grinned, "I tribute High Tide Gyojin to summon his older brother: Amphibian Beast (2400/2000)!"

From the water burst a new figure, covered in green scales like its predecessor. This one sported sharp claws on its webbed hands, and a pair of fins fanning out near its mouth, which was full of vicious teeth! It growled as its stats leapt to (2600/2200) due to the ocean field, and Mako smiled as he held up another card.

"And now I'll deal with that facedown card using my Mystical Space Typhoon." He declared.

Tim's facedown card was immediately blasted by a barrage of powerful winds, shattering the hidden Dimension Wall before it ever had a chance to serve its purpose. Tim drew back, realizing what was about to happen.

"Attack and destroy his phoenix with slashing sea claws!" Mako shouted.

The scaly creature dove under water again, moving as a shadow under the surface. The Phoenix sang a nervous sounding note, right before the beast burst from below and sank its sharp teeth into her throat! She fell into the water with one last, strangled cry, and Tim looked shocked over the entire ordeal.

"Oh fu…" He started.

Up in the VIP seats, Gold covered the ears of protesting Zeffie as Tim uttered an obscenity that could have killed his own phoenix twice over.

"Wow, and you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Roland gasped from his seat.

Mako didn't seem highly impressed by Tim's word choice either.

"How about we teach Tim that sailor talk isn't tolerated in these waters?" Mako suggested to his Legendary Fisherman, "Attack him directly with hunter's spear!"

The fisherman pulled his arm back, and Tim gasped as he realized what was coming…

-----------------------------------------------------------

In the VIP seats, Gold clapped his hands over Zeffie's eyes so she wouldn't see what was about to happen.

"Hey!" Zeffie protested, "Zeffie wants to see this!"

Tim's cry of pain as the spear plunged through his chest could be heard up in the VIP seats, and the others all cringed at the sight.

"Um…Nevermind." Zeffie said, as Brian let out a cry of horror.

-------------------------------------------------------------

On the arena floor, Tim had been knocked to his back from the force of Mako's monster, the spear sticking out of his chest. Several members of the audience were staring in silent horror, while Mako nodded to his monster.

"Reel him in." He stated.

His deckmaster pulled the spear, but rather than yanking Tim closer it came loose and landed in his hands. Tim flipped in the water, turning facedown. He suddenly began to cough and sputter, pulling himself back into an upright position with a look of disgust as the spear wound faded.

"The water…got warm…again…" He shuddered, turning to his deckmaster.

"Sorry…" Great Angus apologized, "I was worried about you!"

**Tim: 4400**

**Mako: 7350**

"Maybe I should have let you have that bathroom break…" Tim muttered.

Mako smiled as he saw Tim get up. He looked over the rest of his hand, thinking carefully as he did so.

"Well, guess you're tougher than I thought." Mako admitted, "But it won't matter. You're down to almost half your life points and I've barely been scratched. So go ahead."

"Hey, lay off. I just got turned into shish-kebob!" Tim exclaimed.

Tim drew, his hand now at seven cards. Breathing a sigh of relief, he held up one of the cards.

"I activate my Graceful Charity." Tim declared, the angel swooping down from above, "Here's hoping…"

Tim drew his three cards, thought for a minute, then placed two into his graveyard. He held up one of his new cards, and Mako gasped upon seeing it.

"You know, I'm sick of this place." Tim declared, a blast of wind issuing from his own Mystical Space Typhoon, "I'm using my MST to take us back to the hot springs."

The winds picked up and Mako covered his face as a spray of sea water splashed both duelists, just before the ocean vanished. The palace had crumbled away behind Mako, and his Tornado Wall card had shattered as well. Amphibian Beast growled as it was forced to stand upright on solid ground now, and its stats fell back to (2400/2000), but Mako didn't seem worried as he uncovered his face. Legendary Fisherman now stood on land as well, his shark swimming circles in one of the nearby pools of water.

"Did that move have a point?" He asked, "Just so you don't have to find out the same way Em did, I have two copies of A Legendary Ocean in my deck."

"Em?" Tim asked.

"The eliminator I dueled." Mako explained, grinning, "Maybe if you're lucky, you'll get to see the card she gave me…"

That was left hanging in the air as Tim placed two more cards into his disk.

"If it smells anything like you, I'd rather not." Tim joked, "I'll just set these two cards facedown, and end my turn."

Mako drew, and smiled as he placed another monster onto his disk.

"Okay, my field is gone but I can still call in its denizens to help me." Mako declared, "I summon in Sea Serpent Warrior of Darkness (1800/1500)."

From one of the springs on the sidelines burst the scaled warrior, hefting his spear over head. The monster cast a glare at Tim, and prepared its weapon.

"Now then…" Mako smiled, "Amphibian Beast, sink your teeth into his life points!"

The vicious fish charged forward, much clumsier on land than in the water, but Tim just smiled as he pointed to his facedown cards.

"Hey Mako, catch." Tim smiled, "I send your attack back at you with Magic Cylinders!"

The card flipped over, and a pink tube appeared in front of Tim. Amphibian Beast slashed at the obstruction with his claws, causing the tube to spin around and slam into it. The beast screeched in surprise as it soared back to Mako, who screamed as his own monster clobbered him.

**Tim: 4400**

**Mako: 4950**

"Ouch…" Mako muttered as he got up, "Okay, that was annoying."

Amphibian Beast seemed to be deeply embarrassed by this turn of events, but Mako just shook his head.

"Don't worry beast, it's not your fault." Mako said, "Let's have my other two monsters avenge your pride. Spear cross!"

Mako's remaining monsters crossed their weapons and began to charge forward. Tim just tapped another button on his disk, and purple smoke began to pour from the card he flipped over.

"I use Call of the Haunted, brining back my Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys (2400/1600)!" Tim interrupted.

A glorious cry echoed across the field, and both of Mako's monsters stopped in their tracks. Tim's phoenix suddenly appeared in the smoke, burning it away with a burst of golden fire. Mako scowled, and motioned for his monsters to return.

"Though they wouldn't be destroyed, neither of my monsters can beat your phoenix." Mako admitted, "I call off their attack, and end my turn here."

Tim drew, smiling once again as he did so.

"Okay Mako, I'll summon one of my other Solar Flare Dragons (1500/1000)." Tim began, another of the fiery snakes bursting from the ground next to his phoenix, "And then I'll equip my Phoenix with Salamandra!"

In a flash of flames, Tim's monster began to glow with an aura of red. She sang out her beautiful melody once more, and Mako looked nervous.

"Now, since your deckmaster power can't save him, I'll have my Phoenix fry that…" Tim trailed off, before pointing to Amphibian Beast, "That thing _is _a fish, right? The card name says amphibian."

"It's a misnomer. My monster is considered a Fish-type." Mako confirmed.

Tim smiled, and nodded to his Phoenix.

"Thanks for clarifying that. Now Phoenix, fry that Fish!" Tim called out.

The Phoenix (3100/1600) unleashed a blast of gold and red flames that adopted the shape of a dragon as they closed in on their target. The scaly beast was consumed in a matter of seconds, vanishing into a pile of ashes.

"Now, I'll end my turn." Tim smiled, pointing at Mako, "But what will you do? You can try to attack my dragon, but then my Phoenix will just wipe out your attack-mode monster and your life points will drop like Nixon's approval rating. Or, you can defend and my dragon will chip away at your life points like this!"

As Tim said this, the dragon lunged forward and sank its fangs into Mako's arm. The ocean duelist cried out, batting the monster away with his free hand, burning it in the process.

**Tim: 4400**

**Mako: 3750**

"_Fish boy roasting, on an open fire…Water's cold so I can't feel my toes…"_ Tim sang, laughing a bit at his own parody of 'Chestnuts on an open fire.'

"Must you?" Mako grumbled, silencing Tim's singing.

"Looks like Tim is taking control of this match.' Roland declared, "And with that phoenix on the field, it looks bad for Mako!"

Mako drew, giving his new card a betrayed look. He sighed, shifting the two cards on his disk.

"I choose to move my remaining monsters to defense mode." He declared, "I'm sorry Fisherman."

The warrior and sea serpent both fell to their knees, crossing their weapons over their chests. Mako seemed quite upset that he was on the defense, but he sighed and waved one hand. Tim drew for his turn, and nodded as he took his new card.

"Okay Mako, I'm going to summon a second Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)." Tim declared, holding up the card

The card on Tim's disk started to glow, resulting in another fire serpent rising onto the field. The two dragons both began to spiral around one another. Mako winced as he realized what had happened.

"Oh no, a Solar Flare Lock." He realized, "Now I can't attack either one of those dragons…"

"And you lose 1000 points whenever I end my turn." Tim nodded, "But before that, I'm attacking your Legendary Fisherman with my Phoenix!"

Mako could only look on in horror as the glorious bird released another wave of fire. Mako gasped as his monster was atomized in a matter of moments, the shark in the pool vanishing along with it.

"And now, I'll end my turn." Tim declared, "Meaning that my dragons can go to work. Roast him boys!"

The twin monsters flew forward, spraying fire over Mako with uncanny precision. Mako screamed as his life points dropped from the fire, the dragons' effect working just as predicted.

**Tim: 4400**

**Mako: 2750**

Mako drew, looking at his card with interest. Frowning, he picked his way through his hand.

"_I can't do anything with this hand…"_ He realized, _"Except this…"_

"I set a monster facedown, and end my turn. Go ahead Tim." Mako sighed, another card appearing next to his monster.

Mako's monster gave him a worried look, while Tim drew his card. He smiled as he pointed to Mako's two monsters.

"Okay, I'll have my Phoenix destroy your Sea Serpent Warrior of Darkness." Tim stated.

The Phoenix of Nephthys flapped her wings again, and Mako cringed as his monster was blown to bits by the heat of the flames. Tim pointed to the facedown monster and smiled.

"And now, I'll have my first Solar Flare Dragon attack your facedown card!" Tim declared, "Solar flare scorching!"

The dragon breathed forth its great flames, which washed over the facedown monster. The card flipped…

Revealing a horrid creature. It looked like a lobster with a skull sitting on its head. It clacked its claws angrily, its shell turning bright red from the heat. Mako just breathed a sigh of relief.

"Nice try, that's Mad Lobster (1700/1000)." Mako explained, "His defense, plus my deckmaster, means that I'm safe from your attacks for another turn."

Tim frowned, but then smiled again.

"Remember what I said about defending?" He asked, "I end my turn and…"

The two dragon blazed forward, spraying fire at Mako once again! Mako winced, bracing himself as his counter ticked down again.

**Tim: 4400**

**Mako: 1750**

Mako drew, and quickly held up his new card.

"Graceful Charity. It doesn't have much to do with the ocean, but for a drawing tool this good, I can forgive that." Mako said, drawing three cards.

His eyes lit up, and he discarded two of them so fast that they almost tore as they entered his grave slot. Mako opened the field zone on his disk, and slid another card into it.

"Here we go, I activate my second Legendary Ocean!" Mako called out.

The icy water rose up once again, the dragon statue spraying forth like a fountain. Mad Lobster (1900/1200) began to chitter excitedly in its watery home, while all three of Tim's monsters began to boil the water around them.

"Looks the duelists are taking a dive again folks!" Roland announced, "Mako must have a plan…"

"Yes I do. Since my Ocean lowers the star level of Water monsters in my hand by one, I can summon a seven-star monster for one sacrifice." Mako grinned, "I tribute my Mad Lobster to summon in Levia Dragon-Daedalus (2600/1500)!"

The water underneath Mad Lobster began to churn, and the creature looked around. It let out a squeal as it was suddenly pulled under by an unseen force. In its place an entirely new monster began to emerge.

A hideous, draconic face rose from the water, followed by a massive head. This was followed by at least ten feet of serpent-like body, covered with blue scales. Its beady, red eyes focused on Tim's monsters, its attack and defense soaring to (2800/1700).

"Sushi anyone?" Tim asked, the audience chuckling a bit (some were paralyzed with fear from the monster's arrival).

"Make snappy remarks while you can Tim!" Mako warned.

"I plan to." Tim grinned, the audience laughing a bit more.

"Well your time for them just ran out." Mako declared, "I'm going to summon a creature so powerful that I need to give up Daedalus himself for him to appear. Daedalus, begone!"

The ocean dragon roared, and dove under the waves. Mako placed a new card onto his disk, and the water began to swirl into a mighty whirlpool in the center of the arena. Tim's monsters quickly raised their altitude so that they now hovered over the surface of the water, while Tim's deckmaster took a firm grip on his shoulder to keep him from being sucked in.

"I call you from the deep…" Mako intoned, "Rise up, and pass the trial of the ocean upon my opponent! I summon: Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo Daedalus (2900/1600)."

From the vortex emerged a gigantic creature. Its body was like a serpent's, if serpents were as big around as semi-trucks. Its scales were bright-blue, with a sharp, red fin running down its back. This fin split into two as it moved up the body, mainly because this monster sported two heads, each one with a nightmare-inducing face on it! The creature let out an Earth-shattering roar as the water on the field increased its strength. (3100/1800)

"Oh my god…It's Fishzilla!" Tim called out.

Several members of the audience were crying out in terror at the sight of this monster, and Mako grinned.

"You haven't seen anything yet. But before this goes any further, I'm activating the last card in my hand." Mako said, holding up the card.

It was spell, showing the palace from the Legendary Ocean. Only this time, the view was much closer. One could see inside the window of the palace, and resting inside was an unbelievable pile of treasure consisting of gold, jewels, and other such valuables.

"It's called Treasures of the Deep." Mako explained, "A normal spell card. If, during the turn I activate it, a card named 'Umi' goes from my field to the graveyard, I get to draw three cards at the end of the turn I activate this."

"But…Wait a minute…How are you gonna get Legendary Ocean into your grave this turn?" Tim asked.

"By using Neo Daedalus's effect." Mako grinned, "By tributing an entire ocean, he'll destroy every card on the field and in our hands. And A Legendary Ocean fits the bill perfectly."

"So…I'm screwed, huh?" Tim asked, looking truly nervous now.

"Pretty much." Mako nodded, "Do it now Daedalus! Poseidon's rage!"

The Legendary Ocean card in Mako's disk suddenly flew out, and placed itself into his graveyard. Neo Daedalus roared, and the water began to churn and froth. Mighty waves rose up, soaking Tim and causing him to drop all his cards. As he struggled to keep his face covered, he could see his dragons and his phoenix being pulled under the raging waters, shattering as they did so. The Phoenix gave one last cry before vanishing, and Tim was soon left, soaking wet and standing back in the Jusenkyo Hot Springs, with Mako and his monster staring down at him.

"If that's how it clears the field, I don't want to know how it attacks." Tim said.

"Let's found out. Attack him directly!" Mako ordered.

The dragon reared back its right head, and snapped downward swallowing Tim in a single gulp.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the VIP seats Brian seemed faint as his brother became fish food.

"Did that thing just eat my brother!?" He shouted.

"Looks like it." Mai nodded.

"I'm pretty sure that ain't good for him." Gold said, scratching his chin.

"Of course it isn't, he was just eaten!" Brian shouted, turning to Gold.

"I was talking about the monster." Gold said.

Brian slumped down in his seat, looking extremely stressed.

"What am I going to tell Mom when I get home?" He moaned.

"Um…Tell her she doesn't have to buy any birthday presents for him?" Gold offered.

Brian just moaned again, and Kaiba grumbled.

"Oh quit whining. It's all virtual, so he'll be back in a moment." Kaiba declared.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Down on the arena floor, Daedalus's left head looked ill. It groaned, lowering down to the level of Tim's deckmaster, and spat out the twitching form of Tim Hokage, who was now covered in a green sludge.

**Tim: 1500**

**Mako: 1750**

-------------------------------------------------------------

In the audience, Kevin looked fairly ill as he leaned back in his seat.

"Ugh…That looks disgusting!" He exclaimed.

"I can not picture how that could be any worse." Ronaldo agreed.

Across the arena, Ruby had one hand over her mouth, and Mary nodded.

"Wow, Mako kicks butt." She commented.

"Mr. Pegasus…" Ruby began.

"No, I won't hold it against you if you get sick over that." Pegasus assured her, "I'm feeling rather queasy myself now."

In the VIP seats, Gold just smiled as the others all looked sick as well.

"Told you it wasn't good for him." He said.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Tim got up, looking disgusted beyond all rational thought.

"That…Was…The second most…Disgusting thing I've ever experienced." Tim stated, trying to wipe the slime off.

"You probably didn't count for the fact that the right head swallowed you, but the left head spat you out." Mako pointed out.

A retching sound came from the audience, as Kevin Fisher leaned over the seat behind him to be violently ill (much to Espa Roba's disgust).

"No, the most disgusting experience I've ever had is ordering Chicago deep-dish pizza, outside of Chicago." Tim stated.

Mako just shrugged as a large pile of gold and jewels rose up from the pool of water behind him, piling up on his deckmaster's head. Mako drew three cards from his disk.

"Well, I end my turn here, letting my Treasure of the Deep go to work and getting three new cards." Mako explained as the money vanished, "Your move."

Tim drew, a column of gold fire bursting to life on his field. Tim caught a card as it was ejected from his disk, and placed it horizontally onto the tray.

"Well, I'll special summon my Sacred Phoenix (2400/1600) in defense mode." Tim declared, his Winged-beast appearing on the field, covering herself with her wings.

Tim looked at the card he had drawn and sighed. His deckmaster placed a hand on his shoulder, giving Tim a sympathetic look.

Tim's eyes suddenly widened. He smiled as he moved one hand next to his graveyard.

"I'm not done yet Mako! I activate my deckmaster's power: Barbeque Feast!" Tim declared, "Now, by removing my Fire-attribute Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch from my graveyard…"

Great Angus lit up as well, a red orb appearing in his hand. He gulped it down in one bite, and Tim's deck began to burn with a red aura. Tim smiled as six cards flew into his hands.

"I can draw one card for each star it had. Six in this case." Tim explained, looking over the cards.

He took two of them, and placed them into his disk. They appeared facedown behind the Phoenix, and Tim motioned that his turn was over. Mako drew, giving the cards a worried look.

"_No, don't start second guessing yourself now."_ Mako scolded himself, _"Chances are good he drew something powerful, but even if Daedalus gets blasted you have a way back…"_

"I activate Premature Burial." Mako declared, holding up another card, "And I'll use it to summon back Legendary Fisherman (1850/1500)!"

One of the pools of water shimmered with red light, and out of it leapt the Legendary Fisherman. His body sported some fresh scars and his spear was chipped and cracked at the head, but he still exuded an aura of strength. Notably, his shark wasn't swimming around in the pool that he'd leapt from this time.

"I'm betting those facedown cards are a couple of bluffs!" Mako shouted.

"Try it fish boy!" Tim challenged.

"We're at the climax now folks! Who'll come out on top?" Roland shouted.

The audience was waiting with bated breath as Mako pointed to Tim's monster.

"Attack with hunter's spear!" He ordered.

Once more, the spear flew. Tim watched it arc over the field…

And plant itself right between the eyes of his favorite monster. The phoenix screeched once again, and toppled over into a heap of gold feathers. It shattered, and Mako was grinning like a maniac.

"I knew you were bluffing." He stated, "Finish him Daedalus!"

The dragon lord loomed over Tim, beginning its plunge downward in order to swallow the younger Hokage. Mako was cheering, until Tim calmly tapped a button on his disk.

"Okay, I think the audience got their show." Tim stated, "I activate Mirror Force!"

Mako stopped in mid cheer. His arms fell to his sides as the glowing barrier projected around Tim, and blasted both of his monsters to kingdom come.

"You…you could used that to save the phoenix." He stammered.

"Yeah, but then you wouldn't learn anything." Tim smiled, "Is it my turn?"

Mako grimaced and slid a card into his disk. It appeared facedown in his spell and trap zone, and he waved one hand.

**Tim: 1500**

**Mako: 950**

"Alright then, before I start my turn I activate Dust Tornado and destroy that card you set." Tim stated.

A blast of wind tore the facedown card apart, flinging tiny shreds of Mako's Torrential Tribute into the pools behind him.

"Now here's your lesson for the day." Tim smiled, "After Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo Daedalus had cleared the field, you could have finished me by moving your deckmaster to the field and attacking with both of them!"

Mako's eyes went wide as saucers as he realized that his opponent was right!

"No! I was so focused on Daedalus, I completely forgot about that option…" He trailed off.

"Well now, I'll finish you how you should have finished me." Tim smiled, "Great Angus, come to the field!"

The boar stomped forward, cracking the rocks under his hooves. He smiled at Mako, who braced himself for impact.

"Attack Mako directly, ferocious charge!" Tim shouted.

The Great Angus barreled forward and shoulder rammed Mako right in the stomach! Mako's breath whooshed out of him due to the impact, and he was sent flying into the enlarged pool of water behind him. He splashed down, his deckmaster giving him a sympathetic glance with one eye before it vanished.

**Tim: 1500**

**Mako: 0**

"Stick a fork in Mako, he's done!" Roland called out, "The winner is Tim Hokage!"

"Move fish, get out the way." Tim grinned.

Mako sighed, trading water in the hot spring. Roland just grinned as he stepped on a small button hidden on top of the dragon statue. The noise of rushing water was heard, and the water started draining from the pool Mako now occupied.

"Oh no!" Mako shouted, the water turning into a massive whirlpool that sucked him under.

The audience was cheering as Tim took a bow, right before a ring of light indicated his return to the box seats.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the audience, seated some distance behind Celeste and her little posse, Mr. Richington was scowling in lament.

"Hmph…That would have been more enjoyable if I had a decent view of the duel." He grumbled.

A scream sounded from overhead. Mako, accompanied by about fifty gallons of warm water, suddenly splashed down into an empty seat, thoroughly soaking Mr. Richington in the process. Mako spat out a mouthful of spring water, and sighed as he rested his head in his hands.

"I just can't seem to get any respect…" He grumbled.

"Quite. Welcome to my dueling career." Richington stated, looking highly perturbed that his expensive suit was now completely waterlogged, "I should have listened to my wife when she recommended the wash-and-wear suit."

_**There you have it folks, fire can beat water!**_

_**And next time, we're leaving this duel to the creepiest creeps ever to come out to the dueling ring.**_

_**Let's pit the power of nature against the super-natural! It's Victor Greenstone vs. Ryou Bakura, in a match titled**_

_**Pet Cemetery**_

_**Get ready for a fright-astic ladies and gents, it's coming next time!**_

---

Original Card

---

Treasures of the Deep

Spell

Image of a pile of treasure lying at the bottom of the sunken palace from 'A Legendary Ocean.'

You may only activate this card if you control an 'Umi' card. If 'Umi' is sent from your field to the graveyard during this turn, you may draw three cards during the end phase.

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Great Angus

FIRE

Beast

Four star

1800 attack

600 defense

Barbeque Feast: Remove one FIRE-attribute monster in your graveyard from play. Draw one card for each star level it has. You may only use this effect once per turn.

---

A/N: The Jusenkyu Hot Springs are copyright to Ranma ½. Hope they don't mind us borrowing them.


	28. Pet Cemetery

_**Welcome back folks! Hope all of you are ready for our next duel…**_

**_Because it's going to be one nightmarish match!_**

_**Presenting, to the north, Victor Greenstone! He's the Washington State Champion whose beast-deck rarely lets him down.**_

_**And to the south, we have Ryou Bakura! Though the last official tournament he was in was Battle City, this boy has proven to be quite the come-from-behind winner in this tournament…**_

**_And now, Bakura is going to pit his ghastly ghouls and ghosts against Victor's ferocious fauna!_**

_**Strap yourselves down folks, it's gonna be a wild ride!**_

Pet Cemetery

"Ooooh…." Was the general sound heard up in the box seats as Tim's deckmaster knocked Mako into the water with a crushing blow.

"Well, that was kind of fun…" Kaiba admitted, as Mako was flushed away "Too bad about Tsunami there…"

"Well, score one for Tim." Brian smiled as his bother reappeared, wiping his brow.

A smattering of applause from his fellows was ignored by Tim, who merely took his seat next to his brother.

"That looked like a rough match." Brian said, "You okay bro?"

Tim turned to his brother, with a glare.

"I'm covered in salt water, vomit, and boar urine." He said slowly, "Do you think I'm okay!?"

"Good point." Kaiba frowned, "Rei, remove all those programs relating to those odors before we notice them."

"Too late…" Zeffie moaned, holding her nose.

The others all quickly plugged there nasal passages as a rush of clean air blew through the box seats. Tim was dried off in a second, and the smell faded.

"Much better, thank you." Kaiba said.

"No problem sir." Rei's voice responded, "Are you all ready for us to choose the next match?"

"Make it so." Kaiba nodded.

The black screen covered the window and ten different faces began to flash across it.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Espa Roba was resolutely watching the screen above as the faces of the remaining finalists flashed along it. Kevin sighed, and looked back to him.

"For the last time, I didn't really lose my lunch, I don't even have a lunch to lose in here!" He shouted, "I just…kinda gagged is all…"

"No one blames you." Celeste assured him.

"I'm still not looking down." Espa said, "Better safe than sorry."

"I'm just hoping the next match is more…aesthetic-friendly." Ronaldo sighed, looking toward the screen himself.

Mako, in the meanwhile, was watching the screen as well. Mr. Richington didn't seem half as interested in what match was next.

"Just so you're aware, we can't see much from here." Mr. Richington explained.

"I don't mind." Mako commented, "I'll be able to get the idea of what going on. Now let's see whose dueling…"

The screen stopped, Mako rubbing his chin.

"Hm…Haven't seen him duel in a while." Mako nodded, "This should be fun."

On the floor, Roland pointed to the screen.

"Prepare to scream folks, our next match is decided!" Roland called out, "It's Ryou Bakura vs. Victor Greenstone! Let's get it on!"

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In their seats, Victor and Bakura looked to each other before opening up their deck options. Victor was puzzling over his choices, which included a powerful looking seven-star monster.

"_Hmm…I'd rather save this one…"_ He thought, _"But these might help a bit…"_

Victor removed his Gyaku-Gire Panda and his Des Koala, replacing them with a pair of monsters from his side deck. Giving his cards a nod and a smile, he closed the window.

Bakura seemed more nervous. He carefully picked his way through his cards, thinking over each of his fifteen side-decked choices.

"_Why did I agree to this anyway?"_ He wondered, _"The spirit of the ring is the real duelist. I barely qualify as passing."_

He stopped. The last time he had heard from the wicked spirit had been last year, when he found himself lying in the school auditorium with no memory of how he got there. A note had been placed on the ground next to him, written in his own handwriting, signed from the spirit. It stated that he needed to save his energy for some reason (He wasn't going to mention it of course) but that Bakura could rest assured that the spirit would still be watching, but being more-or-less an observer from behind his eyes for now.

Bakura shuddered. He had no clue when the spirit would rise again, but he hoped it wouldn't be anytime soon. As he was thinking this, he noticed one card in his side deck, which he quickly swapped into the main deck while removing a monster known as Tainted Wisdom. Noticing a copy of Multiple Destruction in his deck, he thought for a second before replacing it with another trap.

"_The spirit may have had a reason to use this trap, but I can't chance discarding cards so freely."_ Bakura thought, _"I'm the one dueling today. Not the spirit. I'll use this deck my own way…And hope that he doesn't interrupt."_

"And time!" Roland called out, "Ryou, Victor, come on down!"

Two pulses of light later, the remaining eleven finalists were looking out the window.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tea looked at the television, sipping at a glass of water as Bakura and Victor were announced as the next duelists.

"So…How was Bakura doing?" She asked.

"Not bad, from what the clips showed." Tristan stated, "You remember that Destiny Board card he was using in Battle City?"

"How can I forget?" Tea shuddered, "That's the card that almost beat Yugi."

"Yeah, just be glad you never saw what it does when it actually works." Duke said, munching on some popcorn again, "It brings in this big demon thing that…well I'll spare you a nightmare and just say it's unpleasant at best."

Tea looked pale, and turned to Tristan who just nodded in response.

"It's a pretty accurate description." He confirmed, "You want to see it? I'm taping these…"

"That's fine, thanks anyway." Tea said, putting down her water.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Roland stood alone in a column of light surrounded by darkness. A chilly mist was floating about his feet, and he gazed up to the audience.

"There are old stories of a Native American burial ground, somewhere in one of the forests that dot the landscapes of North America." He intoned, "Legend says that if you bury a recently deceased creature in these grounds, it will return to life…"

The darkness pulled back, but it may have been preferable to what appeared now.

The ground was made of flat, gray stone with patches of dried grass fighting up through cracks in it. A ring of dying trees surround the arena, and in the center of the area existed a circle of white stones that had been pounded into the gray stone beneath them. They were arranged in a circle, crisscrossed by several lines made of the same stones, and large enough to hold two duelists. At seemingly random points around the circle existed small piles of stones that were at about the level of Roland's knees.

"But sometimes, dead is better." Roland declared, "For those that returned through the magic of this ground were cursed with an insatiable evil, causing them to kill those around them. But today, you can trust that whoever is laid to rest in our Lost Graveyard will stay down, so don't panic folks!"

The audience chuckled a little as Roland stepped to the outside of the circle. Inside, two rings of light descended, indicating the appearance of the finalists.

"Let's meet the contestants now! Up first is the one that no one expected to see in a professional tournament again: Ryou Bakura!" Roland called out.

The audience cheered as Bakura materialized, giving a nervous glance to his surroundings. He waved up to the audience with a nervous grin as Roland moved on.

"And next, the King of Jungle: Victor Greenstone!" Roland finished.

Victor appeared, brushing a stand of hair from his eyes as he turned on his disk. He smiled to Bakura, and nodded.

"I have to say Bakura, it's both an honor and a privilege to face someone who has dueled Yugi before." Victor said.

"Thanks…" Bakura said, "Hope that I live to your expectations."

"You'd both better live up to ours!" Roland warned, a flash of light flying through the air around the two of them.

The area enclosed by the white stones was now surrounded by white sparkles. The tiny lights did nothing to block the view, but made it clear that something stood between Roland and the finalists.

"Okay you two, here's the rules." Roland called out.

He paused for a minute, then shrugged.

"You know what, there are none!" He called out, "Welcome to the Pet Cemetery match, now choose your deckmasters!"

Victor and Bakura both nodded, and Bakura waved a hand behind himself.

"I select Jowgen the Spiritualist." He announced.

Behind Bakura materialized a man dressed in red and gold robes. He carried a staff tipped with a golden ring, which itself had four rings attached to it, causing the entire thing to jingle when it was shaken.

"I'll choose…" Victor thought, then shrugged, "How about someone that I haven't used yet? I choose Manticore of Darkness!"

Behind Victor rose the roaring creature of flame, spreading its raven-like wings in a terrifying display. It growled as it lowered onto all fours, allowing Victor to lean close.

"Glad you picked me. My power may catch him off guard." Manticore explained.

"Do continue." Victor grinned.

The deckmaster whispered its power to the beast-duelist, and his face fell.

"_Shoot, that power is too conditional."_ He frowned, _"I suppose it removes certain…annoying effects, but in the end I don't get a real benefit. I'll have to make due."_

"Let's see who goes first…" Roland called out, covering his ears.

Manticore leaned back, unleashing an obscenely loud roar! The audience members all covered their own ears in an attempt to avoid being deafened by the noise. Jowgen stood calmly, waiting for the Beast-warrior to finish. He then picked up his staff, and tapped it on the ground…

Several members of the audience were knocked flat by a cacophony of bells that suddenly rang out. Even the enemy deckmaster was blown from his feet by the sound waves, and Roland motioned for the noise to cease.

"And so, based on the unquestionable authority of a shouting contest, Bakura may take the first turn." Roland announced, "Begin!"

**Bakura: 8000**

**Victor: 8000**

Bakura took six cards, looking them over carefully. He nodded, and placed one onto his disk.

"I open with The Gross Ghost of Fled Dreams (1300/1800) in attack mode." He declared.

Jowgen reached into his robe and removed a small card with a strange symbol on it. He tossed this paper onto the ground, and it began to glow.

From the card emerged a bed with a man sleeping in it. The man's face suddenly contorted in fear, as if he were having a nightmare. From his chest emerged a skeletal ghost, glowing a sick, yellow color, carrying a shield and sword with purple hair tangled behind it. The man in the bed went limp, and ceased moving all together.

"Gross is putting it mildly." Victor commented.

"Yes, it's not a very pleasant monster." Bakura agreed as he played another card, "But we have to start somewhere. I'll set one card facedown and end my turn."

The facedown card appeared underneath the bed, and the ghost settled in front of it. Victor drew his card with a smile, and placed a monster onto his disk.

"I summon Pitch Black Warwolf (1600/800) in attack mode." He announced.

Victor's deckmaster unleashed a howl of rage, which was answered by a creature in the distance. The howl was repeated, and this time a new monster dashed out from behind one of the barren trees that dotted the borders of the arena.

This monster followed the much-fantasized imagery of a typical werewolf: a wolf-human hybrid standing on his hind legs, carrying a sword in one hand. He wore a simple loin cloth and a brown cape that was in tatters, and he sniffed the air with a look of uncertainty. He focused his red eyes on Bakura's facedown card, and growled in anger.

"If that card you set is a trap, Warwolf will keep you from activating it during the battle phase." Victor explained, "And that means either of ours. Warwolf, attack and destroy his ghost with hunter's blade!"

The wolf lunged forward, causing the ghost to gasp in terror. It struggled to fly away, only to discover that the person it came from kept it tethered in place. It screamed in pain (a noise that sent shivers up everyone's spine) as it was severed from its host by the wolfman's blade. The sleeping man suddenly woke up with a gasp, trembling with fear as he faded away along with the apparition.

"Oh my…" Bakura muttered as his monster vanished.

**Bakura: 7700**

**Victor: 8000**

"I'll end my turn with a facedown card of my own." Victor declared, the card appearing behind his wolf, "Your move."

Bakura drew, tapping a button on his disk upon doing so.

"You know, this trap wasn't meant for battle." Bakura explained as the card lifted, "It's called Ultimate Offering, and as long it's on the field we can each pay 500 life points to get an extra normal summon or set. And before you ask, we can do it as many times as we can afford."

Around the trap appeared a circle of purple light, with a strange rune in the center. Bakura took two cards from his hand and placed them onto his disk.

"So I'll set one monster, and pay 500 life points to set a second one." Bakura declared as the purple circle flashed.

The two hidden monsters appeared side-by-side, and warwolf looked from one to the other.

"End turn." Bakura decided.

**Bakura: 7200**

**Victor: 8000**

Victor drew his own card, smiling once more as he placed it onto his disk.

"Bad news Bakura, defending just became less effective." He declared, "I've lucked out and drawn my Enraged Battle Ox (1700/1000)!"

From the ground before Victor burst the snorting, stamping form of the minotaur. Steam bellowed from its nostrils as it hefted its ax in rage. The warwolf howled, its eyes narrowing toward Bakura's monsters as it began to foam at the mouth.

"My Battle Ox here drives all Beasts, Beast-Warriors, and Winged-Beasts on my field into frenzy, granting monsters of those types the power to damage you through defense." Victor explained, "Battle Ox, enraged ax slam! Strike down the monster on the left!"

The ox charged forward, burying his ax in the first facedown monster. From the card came a ball of dust and lint that looked like a Kuriboh with blue claws and green eyes. It moaned as it fell and burst into a cloud of dust, which settled over Bakura who began to cough as his life points were drained away.

"What was that?" Victor asked.

"Um…It was Wretched Ghost of the Attic (550/400)." Bakura explained, "A Fiend monster with 400 defense points."

"Then you just lost 1300 life points." Victor nodded.

"Looks like Bakura is already in this deep folks!" Roland announced, "If his facedown monster is as weak as the one that just bit the dust we could be looking at a short match."

"Warwolf, his second monster is all yours!" Victor called out.

The wolf jumped forward, and the facedown monster flipped over. From the ground below emerged the face and hands of a human, made out of mud and stones. He caught the wolf's sword as it came down, and shoved him away with a rough punch.

"That would be my Earth Bound Spirit (500/2000)." Bakura pointed out, "With such high defense, your monsters can't break through."

Victor frowned and nodded.

"Very clever Bakura, I end my turn." He stated.

**Bakura: 5900**

**Victor: 7600**

Bakura drew his card with a frown. He sighed as he set it facedown on his disk, causing another facedown monster to appear.

"Just one facedown monster and I'll end my turn." Bakura declared, "Go ahead."

-----------------------------------------------------------

As the hidden monster appeared, Gold shook his head.

"Unless that card is just as good on defense as Earthbound Spirit all Bakura did was leave another path to his life points." Gold pointed out.

"That's true, but Bakura has other things on his mind." Yugi stated.

Gold looked confused, and Yugi just smiled to him.

"I guess you never saw our match in the Battle City finals." He said.

"Not really…" Gold admitted, "You know what he's doing?"

"I have a good idea." Yugi nodded, "We'll see soon if I'm right."

--------------------------------------------------------------

Victor drew his next card and sighed. He placed it onto his disk, then pointed toward Bakura's monster.

"If that thing is another Earth-Bound Spirit then I won't need to worry about it now." He declared, "I summon Berserk Gorilla (2000/1000)!"

Hooting and hollering, the massive gorilla with blazing-orange fur charged onto the battle field. He slammed his fists against the ground in rage, cracking the stone by his feet. Upon seeing Enraged Battle Ox, the monster became even angrier (If such a thing were possible) and began screeching and howling like it had just contracted rabies.

"And I'm not done yet." Victor declared over the noise, "I activate my Poison Fangs spell card."

On Victor's field, the Berserk Gorilla opened its mouth wide. A pair of sharp teeth sprouted in its mouth, each with a glistening drop of green liquid on the end.

"And just what does that do?" Bakura asked, trembling at the sight of the gorilla.

"Now, anytime I damage your life points using a Beast monster, you lose an extra 500 points." Victor explained, "Let's get started. Berserk Gorilla, attack his facedown monster with berserk bite!"

The facedown monster was revealed to be a painting with a ghastly specter emerging from it. The gorilla gave it no chance to emerge, and merely picked it up and tore the painting apart with its new teeth. Bakura screamed in pain as several drops of the green toxin sprayed from the monster's mouth and landed on his arms, leaving a sizzling acid burn which quickly faded away.

"The Portrait's Secret (1200/1500), eh?" Victor noted as his monster returned to his field, "Guess that means you lost 1000 points."

**Bakura: 4900**

**Victor: 7600**

"And here I thought gorillas were herbivores." Roland commented, "Once again folks, this match is starting to look fairly one-sided. Can Bakura pull out a victory?"

"I'm ending my turn here." Victor stated, "Let's see what you can do."

Bakura drew, rubbing at his arms to make sure the acid was gone. He held up the card he had drawn with a grim smile.

"I really should thank you, Victor, you've given me the chance to call in one of my best monsters." Bakura declared, "But before that happens, I activate a spell known as Bait Doll!"

The card in Bakura's hand turned into a small doll, roughly shaped like a human. It seemed to be made of wood, and was covered with bright colors and patterns. Victor gave the doll a confused look as Bakura explained.

"It's a simple little spell. I throw this voodoo doll at one of your facedown cards." Bakura explained, "If it's a trap card, you have to activate it. If you can't activate it for some reason, then the trap is destroyed. A spell card will just turn facedown again, though most folks don't set spells these days."

Bakura shrugged before he tossed the doll toward Victor. Victor watched, helplessly, as his facedown card lifted and generated a silver shield that blocked the doll. The shield burst apart as the doll hit it, and the resulting burst of energy caused the tiny toy to fly back into Bakura's hands, where it turned into a card again.

"Draining Shield." Victor sighed, "I couldn't activate it because that wasn't an attack."

"Ah well, the timing was improper so nothing can be done." Bakura smiled, "And now, my Bait Doll will be shuffled back into my deck so I can play with it later."

The card vanished, and Bakura's deck glowed for a minute. As it did, he placed another card onto his disk, and three cards flew from his discard slot.

"Now that you have nothing on the field that could be a threat…" Bakura intoned, "I summon a monster that can only come forth once three of my Fiends have reached the graveyard…"

Behind Bakura, images of Portrait's Secret, Gross Ghost of Fled Dreams, and Wretched Ghost of the Attic appeared. They all screamed just seconds before shattering into bits! From behind Bakura rose a shadow with a female shape, which slowly became clearer.

"I now remove my monsters from the game to summon…Dark Necrofear (2200/2800)!" Bakura called out.

Several audience members screamed, and with good reason.

The monster that had appeared was female, that much could be concluded by the shape of her armor, but she radiated evil. Her skin was pale blue, and a broken doll was cradled in her arms. She had pointed ears, and her eyes were pits of darkness that were only slightly open at the moment. Victor shuddered a bit as the monster turned her gaze on him.

"Don't worry Victor, my Dark Necrofear still has your monsters to get through before she reaches you." Bakura pointed out, "I'll start with that Enraged Battle Ox: Doomed-to-death gaze!"

Necrofear's eyes opened wide, and a beam of pure darkness shot from the black orbs. Enraged Battle Ox bellowed in pain as the twin beams carved through him, causing him to collapse and shatter. Warwolf and Gorilla both calmed down, and also began to tremble at the sight of Dark Necrofear.

**Bakura: 4900**

**Victor: 7100**

"That will be all from me." Bakura said, nodding to Victor, "Let's see what you make of this."

"Interesting…" Victor admitted as he drew, "I have to say, I've only faced Dark Necrofear once before…I don't mind admitting that I lost that duel."

Bakura blinked at this, and Victor chuckled a bit.

"Yes Bakura, I know exactly what your monster can do once she's destroyed." Victor declared, "She'll take control of one of my monsters. But believe me when I say that won't help in this match! I start this turn by summoning my Trojan Horse (1600/1200)."

A horse…More accurately a wooden statue of a horse rose onto the field. It stomped its hooves and snorted, glaring down at Bakura's field.

"And then, I'll use the effect of _your _Ultimate Offering card!" Victor called out, playing another card, "So I'll give up 500 life points, and tribute my Trojan Horse…"

The horse vanished, and Bakura's circle of purple light began to pulse.

"To summon in Big Koala (2700/2000)!" Victor shouted.

In place of the horse appeared a monster which, despite it's massive size, elicited several cries of "aww…" from the audience. The monster was a koala, covered with blue fur, and about the size of a house. It was clutching a eucalyptus tree in one massive paw, occasionally nibbling some leaves from the top of it as it gazed around at the audience.

--------------------------------------------------

Up in the VIP seats, everyone except Zeffie had simultaneously fallen to the floor clutching their ears as Zeffie shrieked in glee at the sight of the giant marsupial.

"Yay! Big and cuddly!" Zeffie cheered at the top of her lungs.

"Dang she's loud…" Brian grumbled as Gold placed a massive hand over Zeffie's mouth in order to silence her.

"What?" Tim shouted.

"I said Zeffie is too loud!" Brian shouted to his brother.

"I can't hear you! Zeffie was too loud!" Tim shouted.

Brian sighed, unsure whether his brother was joking or not.

Joke or no, a swift smack to the back of Tim's head seemed to restore his hearing.

-----------------------------------------------------

"Aww…." Ruby cooed along with her daughter at the sight of the koala.

Pegasus was just smiling with pride at the sight of the creature.

"Ah…I always knew there was place for the cute and cuddly creatures in this game." He smiled

---------------------------------------------------------

With the audience done admiring his monster, Victor pointed to Bakura's field.

"Time to clean up." He said, "Attack Dark Necrofear with the thunder from Down Under!"

The koala hefted his tree, and Dark Necrofear stared up at the monster. She gasped as the tree came down toward her…

And pummeled her into the ground. Victor and Bakura both winced as a loud crunching noise issued from underneath the tree. As the offending foliage was removed, only a large hole in the center of a shallow crater was left.

"And that seems to be Bakura's last hope being crushed." Roland declared, "I'll just verify…"

He looked down the hole from the outside of the circle, and winced.

"Ew." He said simply.

"And don't forget my Poison Fangs card." Victor warned as a green mist settled over Bakura.

Bakura coughed and choked as the toxic gas seeped away another bite of his life points.

**Bakura: 3900**

**Victor: 6600**

A moment passed, Victor looking around as if he expected something to happen. When nothing did, he turned his gaze to Bakura.

"Umm…Care to explain why Dark Necrofear isn't using her effect?" He asked.

"Two reasons. One, her power doesn't activate until the end of the turn I lose her in." Bakura explained, wiping away the last of the toxic mist, "And two, I'm electing to not use her effect."

"What? Wait, Dark Necrofear's is not optional." Victor pointed out.

"And you said that you knew all about her…" Bakura grinned, "Dark Necrofear hides a forbidden power inside her, and since she was destroyed I can choose to forgo her regular effect and unleash that power, tearing open a hole in the fabric of reality itself!"

Shadows began to bubble up from the hole Dark Necrofear had been plowed into. Misty-white spirits soared up from the darkness as it gathered into a pool in the crater. A single card flew from Bakura's deck, landing in his disk's field slot.

"I now take us…to the Dark Sanctuary!" Bakura shouted.

And with that, a wave of black shadows and white ghosts covered the entire arena. The ghosts began soaring about the audience, causing several members to cry out in fear.

----------------------------------------------------------------

One of the people who was screaming was Kevin Fischer who, as one of the ghosts got uncomfortably close, decided he'd rather not stay. He bolted from his seat, the ghost giggling madly as it and two others began to chase him. Celeste trembled as more ghosts moved in, but suddenly felt an arm around her shoulders.

"Do not fear Celeste. We are not involved in the match, so these things can not harm us." Ronaldo said, having moved to Kevin's seat.

"I know. But they're pretty realistic." Celeste pointed out, "I think one of the programmers saw a few too many horror movies."

"I suddenly have an urge to watch 'Poltergeist.'" Espa Roba realized, "Come to think of it, doesn't the arena look like it came from the movie 'Pet Cemetery?'"

"That's a good point." Celeste nodded, "I guess they wanted to go for a horror theme with this duel. Oh, Ronaldo?"

"Yes?" Ronaldo smiled.

"Move the arm." Celeste requested.

Ronaldo grinned sheepishly, moving the limb back to his lap. Kevin, worn out from his unexpected jog, slumped into Ronaldo's former seat, too tired to complain about his being stolen.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

In the arena, Victor braced himself as the ghosts and shadows flew by him. One of the specters flew through his body, a rather unsettling experience, before the darkness lifted and he could see again.

What he could see wasn't much of an improvement. The boiling pit of dark had given way to a shadowy castle that loomed over Bakura's field. Around them, the ground had turned black and the dead trees now seemed to have faces in the knots on their bark, while the branches swayed like hands searching for victims. The sky was now blood-red, with eyes, fang-filled mouths, and (worst of all) eyes _in _fanged-filled mouths hovered like clouds around them.

"Wow…This isn't even a nice place to visit." Roland commented.

"Okay Bakura, what happened? Where did you take us?" Victor asked.

Bakura ignored him for a moment, checking over his own body. He grasped at his Millennium Ring, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"_No sign of the ring spirit. I guess he must really need to save up if he doesn't to see his favorite card played…"_ Bakura reasoned.

"Bakura?" Victor asked.

"Sorry." Bakura apologized, "To answer your question, this is the Dark Sanctuary. It's a powerful field card with many effects. At the moment, I can't use them however, and the cost of using this card is that Dark Necrofear is now unable to activate her effect. But so long as she rests in my graveyard, the Sanctuary will remain. Until then, it's still your turn."

"Yes, and seeing as Berserk Gorilla needs to attack if given the chance, I'll let him." Victor sighed, "For all the good it does, attack his Earth Bound Spirit."

The beast lunged forward, throwing a punch at the almost-forgotten dirt man. The figure dove underground and let its adversary strike nothing but earth. Gorilla looked confused, when suddenly a fist made of dirt shot from the ground and punched him hard enough to send him flying back to his proper spot.

"And that's the end of my turn." Victor admitted.

Bakura drew, and cleared his throat.

"Then let's begin. First, I need to offer one monster during each main-phase 1 that I have in order to pay for Dark Sanctuary." Bakura declared, "In order to pay this, I offer my Earth Bound Spirit."

The dirt man groaned, and one of the mouths in the air swooped down upon it. It gobbled down the creature, licked its lips, and then returned to the sky. Victor, Roland, and about the half of the audience shuddered at this display.

"Next, I play Sangan (1000/600) in attack mode." Bakura announced.

From one of the mouths leapt a ball of orange fur, this one sporting three eyes. It had spindly, green limbs, and a mouth full of jagged teeth which grinned at Victor.

"And then, I activate a spell known as Dark Door." Bakura continued, "This limits us to attacking with only one monster per turn."

The air between the duelists was now filled with green sparks. A hole appeared in the wall of sparkles, large enough for a man to pass through.

"And that's it, it's your move." Bakura declared.

Victor drew his own card, looking around the area.

"_Now I wish I had paid closer attention to this match during the Battle City finals…"_ He thought, _"I remember Bakura played this card, but for the life of me I can't remember what it does…"_

Victor shook his head.

"I'll admit Bakura, I don't recall exactly what this card does. But I do know that you left a weak monster in attack mode, so I'll just have to take my chances." Victor declared, "Big Koala, sic!"

The giant marsupial raised its tree, but suddenly stopped. It moaned, and clutched its chest as though it were in pain!

"Huh?" Victor asked, "What's going…"

Victor was cut short as a white ghost suddenly shot out of his monster's back. It flew through his chest, causing him to cry out in pain as an icy chill invaded his body. The ghost then turned around and flew around Bakura, who smiled as a cool breeze flowed around him.

"Right, the spirit of the sanctuary…I remember that now." Victor groaned as he stood up.

"I get to choose one of your monsters in secret at the start of your turn." Bakura nodded, "And, if you attack with that monster, then its attack is stopped, half its attack points come out of your life points, and get transferred to mine. All-in-all, that's 1350 this time."

**Bakura: 5250**

**Victor: 5250**

"It seems we now have a tie game folks! If I were Victor, I wouldn't be in a big hurry to do that again." Roland called out.

"And due to the ruling on the Dark Door, since you attacked with a different monster you forfeit the chance your Berserk Gorilla had to attack." Bakura pointed out as the green sparks gathered together and closed up the hole.

"Too true, too true." Victor nodded, "Guess I'll just end my turn here."

As Bakura drew his card, a gaggle of ghosts appeared behind him. One of them giggled as it looked over his cards, while a second one tapped his shoulder. Bakura looked up and nodded.

"To start this turn, I'll tribute Sangan in order to maintain the Sanctuary." He declared.

Sangan screamed as the ghosts descended upon it, and it faded away into a white mist.

"And since Sangan went to the graveyard, I may now search my deck for a monster with 1500 attack or less and add it to my hand." Bakura reminded everyone.

As he reached for his deck, one of the eyes flew down from mid-air and began to scan over it. It looked at Bakura, projecting a grid of cards in front of him. The boy thought for a minute, before tapping one of them. A card slid out of his deck as the eye returned to the sky, and Bakura tucked the card into his hand.

"Next, I'll activate my Pot of Greed." Bakura continued, the selfish jar rising up next to him.

Bakura pulled two cards from his deck as the jar shattered apart, and he placed two more onto his disk.

"Now, I'll place one monster facedown." He stated, a facedown monster appearing, "And then I'll use my Ultimate Offering again, paying 500 life points in order to set another monster facedown."

The circle of light pulsed again, and another monster appeared next to the first. Bakura then took a third card from his hand, and placed it into play.

"To end my turn, I'll use Emergency Provisions. This will get rid of my Ultimate Offering, and give me 1000 extra points." Bakura sighed, stopping to take a breath after such a lengthy move.

One of the Dark Sanctuary mouths swooped down from the sky again, and bit right through the ground that the summoning circle was emblazoned upon. It swallowed down the dirt, choking on a piece of rotten vegetation, before it returned to the sky again.

**Bakura: 5750**

**Victor: 5250**

"_Okay, I'm not doing too badly."_ Bakura thought with a smile, _"Guess the ring spirit isn't the only good duelist in this body…And I haven't even started the real part of this strategy yet."_

Victor drew his card. He frowned, and turned a card on his disk.

"Chances are, you possessed my Berserk Gorilla, seeing as I need to attack with him if I have the chance." Victor decided, "Much as I hate to do this, I can't afford to lose 1000 points over a monster I can't control. I switch him to defense mode, thereby destroying him."

The gorilla howled in anger as it fell to one knee, and burst into flame as its rage peaked. It vanished in a puff of smoke, and Victor took a deep breath.

He looked over the rest of his cards, and waved one hand.

"I pass the rest of my turn. There's no way I plan to risk the spirit striking me again." He sighed.

Bakura drew, and pointed to one of his facedown monsters.

"Then I'll start this turn by tributing my facedown Aswan Apparition (500/500) to my Dark Sanctuary." Bakura declared.

The card turned over to reveal a red ghost, which laughed as it floated into the castle beside Bakura. Bakura turned over the other card on his disk, and a black cat wearing a golden collar strode onto the field.

"And now I flip summon my Cat of Ill Omen (500/300)." Bakura stated, "When I do that, the cat will take one trap card from my deck and put it on top."

The cat meowed and settled by Bakura's feet. Bakura pulled his deck loose, and selected one card that he showed to the cat. The creature purred, taking the card in its mouth as Bakura reshuffled the rest of his cards. The cat the relinquished the card, allowing Bakura to place it on top.

"Now, I summon my Headless Knight (1450/1700)." Bakura announced.

From the shadows walked a suit of silver and gold armor, covered in tarnish and scratches. Eerily, the armor lacked a helmet and carried a sword and shield. A hollow laugh sounded from the armor as Bakura waved to end his turn.

Victor drew again, and frowned even deeper than before.

"Still nothing I'm willing to try…" He sighed again, waving one arm, "Go ahead Bakura."

Bakura drew, and pointed to the cat that still laid by his feet.

"I feel so bad for doing this…" He muttered, "But I can't let this monster stay on the field. I tribute Cat of Ill Omen in order to maintain the cost of my field."

The cat meowed again, and faded into shadows. Bakura looked over the two cards in his hand before setting both into his disk. A facedown trap appeared, followed by a facedown monster.

"It's almost time to end this duel Victor." Bakura announced, "It's your move."

Victor drew, and as he did Bakura slammed down on one of the buttons on his disk.

"I activate Destiny Board!" He called out.

Victor almost dropped his cards at this, realizing what it meant.

"That's another card I know…" He admitted, "And I'll admit…It's another card I've lost to."

Above Bakura's head appeared an Ouija board, with a pointer all set to begin finding letters. Bakura breathed a sigh of relief at seeing this card, as though he had expected the card to have been destroyed by now.

"I don't mind admitting that this is only the second time I've been able to activate it." He stated, "I had three duels before I reached the finals, and in my first and third ones I wound up discarding this card before I could use it."

Bakura pointed to the board over his head, a smile on his face.

"But now, this card will place me in contact with a powerful spirit. And he has a message for you…" Bakura stated.

The pointer slid across the board, and settled on the letter 'F.' Above the board appeared an 'F' made of white flames, and a white circle appeared on the ground in front of Victor, holding a ghost that was pointing at him from a position five feet over his head.

"At the end of each of your turns, I get another letter added to my message." Bakura declared, "And once all five letters are in place, I'll win the game."

"True, but each letter is a spell card." Victor smiled, "If you want to keep using that Dark Door card, you won't be able to complete the message."

The audience gasped when this was announced. Roland's sunglasses almost slid off his face, but he caught them.

"It would seem that Victor raises a good point! Could Bakura have been hoisted on is own petard?" Roland called out.

"Not really. Dark Sanctuary lets me play spells and traps in my monster card zone." Bakura smiled, shrugging, "Thanks to that, I can keep my door and still complete my message."

Victor frowned, now remembering that aspect of the sanctuary as well.

"Guess I can't afford to wait then." He stated, "I don't know which monster is possessed at the moment, but I have a fair idea… Warwolf, attack his Headless Knight!"

The wolf reared back, prepared to charge…

Suddenly, it gasped! The ghost shot from its back, and slammed into Victor's chest causing him to scream and fall over again. Bakura inhaled deeply as the cool breeze flowed over him again.

"I thought you might try attacking with your weaker monster. That's why I left the Big Koala alone this time." Bakura said, "That's 800 life points from you to me now. Thank you."

"Don't mention it…" Victor said as he got back up.

**Bakura: 6550**

**Victor: 4450**

Looking over the rest of his hand, Victor set one card onto his disk.

"I'll set one monster facedown, and end my turn." He declared, "Go ahead Bakura."

From Bakura's deck floated a card, which settled into the disk. Above the Ouija board appeared the letter 'I' and a new ghost appeared to the right of Victor. Both spirits pointed at Victor, as if marking his position for something much worse.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Up in the VIP seats, Gold nodded as he turned back to Yugi.

"So this is what you were talking about, huh?" He asked.

"Yep." Yugi nodded, "It's the same combo he used on me."

"Didn't you need an Egyptian God Monster to get out of that?" Mai queried.

Yugi nodded again, and Weevil snickered.

"Looks like that guy is doomed." Rex smirked as he leaned back.

"For once we agree." Weevil laughed, "Oh this will be fun!"

"Would two can it?" Joey asked.

Rex and Weevil did as they were told, much to the pleasure of the other finalists. Rex did, however, clench a fist in anger…

----------------------------------------------------------

Bakura drew, and pointed to Headless Knight.

"Hope this makes up for tricking you like that. I'll tribute Headless Knight to keep my Sanctuary, so he's in my graveyard now."

The armor fell to pieces on the ground, and the pieces slowly sank under the earth. Bakura then pointed to his facedown monster, which turned over to reveal a gray jar with a black ghost emerging from it.

"A Morphing Jar (700/600)? No!" Victor gasped as his two cards vanished, followed by Bakura's one.

"That's right. Now we each draw five cards after discarding our hands." Bakura declared.

Both players took five cards, and Bakura slid one onto his disk. Another facedown monster appeared.

"One facedown monster will end my turn." Bakura announced.

Victor drew, and Bakura smiled as he watched a white ghost swoop around the field.

"_Who shall I possess this time?"_ A voice sounded in his head.

"_He's wise to the weaker-monster trick now. Possess Big Koala again. If he attacks with that, good, if not, I don't lose as much."_ Bakura thought.

The spirit laughed as, unseen by everyone else, it floated into the Big Koala. Victor looked over his new hand with a smile.

"I'm guessing you just picked a monster to possess, but I think I found a way around that." Victor smiled.

The audience leaned in, eager to see how Victor could circumnavigate this situation.

"If I just summon a new monster, there's no way the spirit of the sanctuary could possess it." Victor pointed out, "So I offer Pitch-Black Warwolf and my facedown Soul Tiger…"

A tiger formed of blue fire appeared on the facedown card, and vanished along with the wolfman. Behind Victor rose a familiar shape.

"In order to summon Behemoth the King of All Animals (2700/1500)!" Victor called out.

From behind Victor burst his purple-furred monster. It opened its great maw, unleashing a frightening roar toward Bakura. Bakura stumbled back in terror, realizing that his spirit could not stop this monster. As the creature roared, Victor reached next to his graveyard.

"Now for his effect. I tributed two monsters to summon him, so I can bring two beast-types from my graveyard to my hand Victor stated, "I choose Soul Tiger and Berserk Gorilla."

The two cards emerged, and Victor tucked them into place. He then pointed to Bakura's field.

"Attack the Morphing Jar with wild monarch crash!" Victor called out.

The monster roared and trampled forward. The green sparks of the Dark Door scattered in every direction to avoid being smashed. Morphing Jar's eye bugged out, just as it was smashed into fragments by the massive beast's paw. Bakura screamed as the force of the blow was amplified by a dousing of green liquid from the forgotten Poison Fang card.

**Bakura: 4050**

**Victor: 4450**

"I'll end my turn by setting one card facedown." Victor announced, the hidden card appearing, "Your move."

The third card flew from Bakura's deck, settling into play as the letter 'N' appeared over the Destiny Board. A third ghost materialized to Victor's left, pointing at him like the other two.

Bakura drew, and watched the spirit float about. It flew into one of Victor's monsters, and he nodded.

"I tribute my facedown Trial of Nightmare (1300/900) to the sanctuary…" Bakura said as his facedown monster (revealed to be a sword plunging through a black coffin) faded into nothing, "And then I set one monster facedown followed by a facedown card."

The two hidden cards appeared, and Bakura looked nervous.

"I only need two more turns." He reminded Victor, "Go ahead."

Victor drew, and smiled as he looked over his monsters.

"That's true, but if I can pick the right monster, you'll be short a monster to tribute on your next turn." Victor pointed out, "Big Koala, get his facedown card!"

The koala lifted its tree weapon, and stomped forward. The lights flew aside again, allowing the monster to pass, but Bakura tapped his disk once more.

"Nice choice, the spirit isn't in the koala this time." Bakura stated, "But I had a back-up plan: activate Dark Spirit of the Silent!"

A ghost swooped out of nowhere as the trap lifted, and flew through Big Koala! The cuddly beast stumbled back through the net of sparks as the ghost flew into Behemoth.

"What's this?" Victor asked, "Bakura, what does that trap do?"

"This trap stops one attack from one monster, and forces a different monster to attack instead." Bakura explained, "And since I know the spirit is in Behemoth, that's the monster that's going to attack now!"

"Uh oh…" Victor gasped, "Not again!"

The spirit shot out of Behemoth's back as the monster roared in pain, and lanced through Victor's chest. He cried out again as the cold shot through him, while Bakura breathed a sigh of relief once more. The curtain of sparks separated the two fields now, indicating no more attacks could be declared.

**Bakura: 5400**

**Victor: 3100**

"I'll set one monster facedown, and end my turn again." Victor sighed, watching as the next card flew from Bakura's disk.

Bakura grinned as the letter 'A' appeared overhead. The fourth spirit appeared behind Victor, pointing directly at him. Bakura drew, and pointed to his facedown monster.

"I offer Souls of the Forgotten (900/200) in order to keep Dark Sanctuary." He declared, the facedown monster disappearing (It was a purple cloud with eerie faces inside it), "And that's my turn. It's your move…Your last move that is."

Victor drew his card, steeling himself as he did so. He looked at the card in his hand, and a thought occurred to him.

"Bakura, this Dark Sanctuary is a field card, right?" He asked.

"Yes it is." Bakura nodded.

"That would mean that, if another field-spell were played, this card would be destroyed." Victor pointed out.

"What are you…Oh no…" Bakura moaned beginning to trembled, "Don't tell me that you use a field card!"

"It doesn't play a huge role in my deck, but I like it all the same." Victor smiled as his field slot opened up, "I activate Forest!"

Victor put the card in his disk, and Bakura's disk ejected the Dark Sanctuary.

"No!" Bakura shouted as the castle crumbled into dust next to him.

The eyes and mouths shriveled away, replaced by puffy-white clouds. The sky turned blue, and the ground was covered by soft, green grass and patches of flowers. The trees nearby twisted back to their original shapes, and sprouted new leaves and fruits. Victor's two monsters looked around at the new surroundings and seemed to enjoy them.

Behemoth (2900/1700) growled in pleasure as it walked over to one of the trees and rubbed its side against it. Big Koala (2900/2200) put down its original tree and pulled up a new one, which it began to munch on with renewed vigor. As Behemoth continued to rub its itchy hide against the tree, the ghost from the sanctuary flew out of its back and screamed, before vanishing like morning mist.

"Of course, no sanctuary means no spirit." Victor grinned, "And it also means you can't complete the Destiny Board anymore since your spell and trap zones are full! Now then Behemoth, how about taking a break and attacking Bakura directly?"

The purple monster growled in response, and charged right Bakura who screamed bloody murder as the massive paw sent him flying again the wall of white sparks behind him! He fell to the ground, clutching at his side as Behemoth let a few drops of acid drool (courtesy of Poison Fangs) drip onto the boy's head. Bakura screamed and wiped the gunk away before his hair sizzled.

**Bakura: 2000**

**Victor: 3100**

"A massive turn around folks! Bakura's entire strategy has been ruined!" Roland called out.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi smiled as Bakura got up, wavering on his feet after that attack.

"Looks like you don't need an Egyptian God to break Bakura's strategy." Yugi noted.

"_That was very clever."_ Yami admitted, _"And now that Bakura can no longer use his spell and trap zones, he won't last much longer."_

"Ouch…I would not want to be Bakura right now." Brian winced.

"Owie…" Zeffie agreed.

The others offered similar expressions of sympathy toward Bakura's plight, but they silently agreed on one thing: They were glad the Dark Sanctuary was gone now.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Ronaldo, Celeste, Espa, and Kevin all breathed deep as the scent of flowers filled the air.

"Ahh, this is much more pleasant." Ronaldo smiled, "Do you not agree Celeste?"

"Yeah, no more of those ghosts." Celeste smiled back, "Bet you're thankful for that Kevin."

"Well, yeah…" Kevin laughed, "Look's like Bakura has had it."

"Hey, he was a Battle City finalist. He might have more tricks." Espa pointed out.

"But that was an amateur move, not setting up a defense." Celeste pointed out.

"Like what you did with the Mystic Shine Balls?" Kevin asked, remembering Celeste's duel.

Celeste cast a glare at Kevin, but remained silent. Kevin snorted with laughter until he got a similar glare from Ronaldo. He stopped, then noticed something.

"Hey, aren't you sitting in my seat?" He asked.

--------------------------------------------------------------

"Well good riddance to bad rubbish." Mr. Richington smiled, "I was getting sick of that dreadful sanctuary."

Mako nodded in agreement as the scent of flowers reached his nose.

"At least this place smells nicer. Now if only it were near an ocean." He sighed, "Oh well, let's watch how this ends…"

----------------------------------------------------------------

Victor was smiling like a fool as he held up another card.

"I'm not done with my turn yet, either. I activate Monster Reincarnation." He declared, the spell glowing, "I'll just discard my Berserk Gorilla, and bring Enraged Battle Ox back to my hand."

The two cards descended into his graveyard, and the one Beast-Warrior was ejected. Victor neatly set it on his disk with a smile.

"And now, I summon Enraged Battle Ox (1700/1000)!" He announced.

The minotaur burst forth again, and stopped as it saw all of the flowers and grass around it. It bent over and plucked a daisy, which it sniffed with a smile right before popping it into its mouth. (1900/1200),

Not even the presence of their rage-inducing comrade seemed to be able to break Big Koala and Behemoth from their good moods, though their eyes did begin to glow red.

"And that's all for my turn." Victor declared, "Your in my jurisdiction now Bakura. And the long arm of the law is catching up to you."

Bakura drew, realizing that he couldn't use the Destiny Board any longer. He groaned, knowing that any spells and traps of his were now worthless.

"I don't have a choice. I use my deckmaster power!" Bakura called out, "Spiritual purification!"

Jowgen, who had been silent this entire match, stepped forward. He began to chant in a low voice, tapping his staff on the ground and causing the rings to jingle. The staff started to glow with a golden light, which spread across the field. As it did, the Ouija board cracked in half, causing all of the letters to scatter in every direction. The flowers and grass retreated into the ground, while the leaves fell from the trees. The Poison Fang card and Victor's facedown Thunder of Ruler both broke apart under the force of light, and the green sparks of the Dark Door were overpowered.

The light faded, and the arena now looked as lifeless and barren as when the duel had started. The three beasts on the field noticed this, and glared at Bakura in anger.

"By paying 1000 life points, Jowgen can destroy all spells and traps on the field." Bakura explained to the angered monsters and their master, "It was worth to get my spell and trap zones back."

**Bakura: 1000**

**Victor: 3100**

Bakura slid another card into play, and it appeared facedown before him. He then placed another card onto his disk, and a hidden monster appeared.

"I'll set another monster facedown, and another card facedown." He announced, "That's my turn."

Victor drew, and gave the facedown card a wary look.

"If Victor takes a chance, he could win this match…" Roland announced, "But what could that facedown card be?"

Victor thought for a minute, then pointed to the monster.

"Behemoth, attack now!" He ordered.

The purple beast prepared to charge, but didn't get a chance to as Bakura's facedown card sprung up.

"I activate Waboku!" Bakura interrupted, "Now your attacks can't hurt me!"

Indeed, three priestesses leapt into the path of the beast, causing it to bow its head in shame. Bakura breathed a small sigh of relief as Victor nodded, but stopped as the facedown monster flipped over.

"Ah, yes, since I used Waboku no damage was dealt. But the attack still happened." Bakura stated, "That means you set off the effect of my facedown monster: Kiseitai (300/800)."

Victor's face scrunched up in disgust as a pale, worm-like monster with a red eyes leapt out of the card. It landed on Behemoth's back, and jabbed its other end into the beast's head, causing it to roar in anguish!

"Now what?" Victor sighed.

"Now, during each of your standby phases, I get life points equal to one-half of Behemoth's attack score, since he's the one that attacked Kiseitai." Bakura explained, "Is that your turn?"

"Yes." Victor nodded.

Bakura drew, and held up another card.

"I now use Premature Burial, paying 800 life points in order to revive my Dark Necrofear (2200/2800)!" Bakura called out.

A circle of red light shone on the ground, and from it rose the dark form of Dark Necrofear. She was covered in dirt, and her doll seemed to be missing its lower jaw and one eye now, but she radiated evil all the same.

"Get rid of Enraged Battle Ox again! Doomed-to-death gaze!" Bakura ordered.

Enraged Battle Ox's eyes went wide as a repeat of its last performance on the field ensued. Twin beams of black energy carved through its body, sending it to the graveyard as prime ribs and roast beef.

**Bakura: 200**

**Victor: 2600**

"And I'll set another card facedown to end my turn." Bakura decided, sliding another card onto his disk.

It flashed into being behind Dark Necrofear, while Victor drew his own card.

"Hmm…Not much in my hand that helps." He admitted, "But I have more than enough on the field."

"But first, Kiseitai will grant me a boost." Bakura pointed out.

The worm of Behemoth's back fired a beam of red light to its master. Bakura spread his arms, allowing the light to be absorbed into his chest and restore his points.

**Bakura: 1550**

**Victor: 2600**

"Fine, but you're going to lose them just as fast." Victor warned, "Big Koala, attack!"

The massive beast stomped forward, swinging its tree in anger. Bakura swiftly activated his facedown card, jamming a card into his graveyard as he did.

"I activate Rising Energy." He announced, "If I discard one card, like Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer, then one monster on my field gets an extra 1500 attack for this turn!"

A flash of orange energy surrounded Dark Necrofear (3700/2800), who aimed her eyes toward the chest of the Big Koala. Twin beams of dark fired out again, and the cuddly creature fell over in pain and shattered to bits.

Several members of the audience booed at the sight of the gentle creature being killed. Bakura just looked to the ground in shame.

"_What was I supposed to do? Let it hit me?"_ He wondered.

"Hey, watch it folks. That was a legal move." Victor declared, "He had every right to defend himself, even from me."

He looked to Bakura, who mouthed the words 'thank you' as the audience stopped jeering.

"Your turn Bakura, and nice counter." Victor smiled, as Dark Necrofear fell back to (2200/2800).

**Bakura: 1550**

**Victor: 1600**

Bakura drew his card, and looked them over before sighing.

"I don't believe I can do much, other than move Dark Necrofear to defense mode." He declared, the female fiend falling to her knees.

A bubble of dark energy surrounded Dark Necrofear, and Bakura waved one hand.

"Go ahead, it's your move." He stated.

Victor drew once again, and held up the card he had received. Kiseitai fired another red light to Bakura, boosting his points by another 1350.

"And I thought I wouldn't get to use these." Victor grinned, "I activate the Big March of Animals!"

Behemoth roared, its body shimmering with purple energy as it glared down at Dark Necrofear. Its stats suddenly jumped to (2900/1500) as Victor explained.

"This little spell grants every Beast-monster on the field an extra 200 attack points for every Beast-type on the field for one turn." He said with a smile, "So now, Behemoth can and will destroy your Dark Necrofear! Wild monarch crash!"

Behemoth lunged forward again, slamming its front paw on top of the force field. Dark Necrofear gave Bakura a glance that said simply 'Oh not this again' right before the shield broke and she was once again reduced to a crater in the ground. Bakura shielded himself from the flying rocks that resulted from the attack. But smiled as he lowered his arm.

"Did you forget one thing? At this turn's end, Dark Necrofear will let me control your monster." Bakura smiled, "Then, you'll be finished."

"Let's see her try then." Victor said, "I end my turn now."

**Bakura: 2900**

**Victor: 1600**

A giggling was heard as out of the hole rose Dark Necrofear. She was transparent now, and she still clutched her doll. She floated over to Behemoth, hovering over his head as she gently lowered the doll into his back, allowing it to be absorbed into his fur. She embraced the monster's back, and smiled as she waited.

And waited.

And waited.

It soon became clear that Behemoth was not going to leave Victor's field. Dark Necrofear gasped, and flew in front of the monster, grabbing one horn and attempting to wrench him over to Bakura's field. This was met with an angry growl from the monster, which forced Necrofear to float back in fear.

"What's going on?" Bakura gasped, "Dark Necrofear should give me control of your monster!"

"Should, being the operative word in that sentence." Victor smiled, "But you seemed to forget that I have a deckmaster as well."

Victor pointed to his Manticore of Darkness, which seemed to be happy that he was finally useful. He was glowing with a red aura, and Behemoth turned to the monster and bowed slightly in thanks.

"It's called pack loyalty, and here's how it works." Victor declared, "So long as Manticore of Darkness serves as my deckmaster, none of my Beast, Beast-Warrior, or Winged-Beast monsters can be removed from my control. Change of Heart, Snatch Steal, Dark Necrofear, they don't matter. My monsters know who they're loyal to."

Bakura trembled in fear as he drew a card.

"_I have the last Spirit Message, Earl of Demise, and Bait Doll. I'm helpless." _ Bakura realized.

He sighed, and lowered his head.

"I'm finished, make your move." He admitted.

Victor drew, another beam of light from Kiseitai boosting Bakura's score even further along. Victor nodded as he placed another card onto his disk.

"I'll make this fast Bakura, but thanks for a great match." Victor smiled, "I summon Mad Dog of Darkness (1900/1400)!"

From behind Behemoth emerged the snarling, orange canine. It focused its red eyes on Bakura with a growl.

"Now my monsters, go wild on his life points!" Victor called out, "All out animal attack!"

The two monsters charged forward, slamming into Bakura at top speed and knocking him back through the barrier of white sparks. Bakura lay on the ground, moaning in pain as the earth around him began to crack.

**Bakura: 0**

**Victor: 1600**

"That wasn't pretty, and this won't be either." Roland announced.

Bakura tried to get to his feet, only for a rotting hand to shoot out from the ground next to him and grab his shoulder. Bakura screamed in horror as more hands grabbed at him and began to pull him into the ground below.

"No…Stop…Let go…Aw cripes!" He shouted as he vanished into the ground, "Good luck Victor!"

And with that, the silver-haired student was gone. The white sparks vanished, along with the monsters, and the audience cheered as Roland stepped forward.

"Victor Greenstone is our winner! Let's give him a hand!" Roland announced.

Victor smiled, and took a bow just before he vanished.

----------------------------------------------------------

John Peter looked surprised as Bakura suddenly appeared in the seat next to him. Bakura looked around, breathing a sigh of relief at the fact that he wasn't trapped underground.

"_Well, that could have gone worse."_ He thought.

"_It could have gone much better…_" A sinister voice echoed in his mind.

Bakura sat straight up. He knew that voice all too well.

"_Not you…"_ He prayed inside his head.

"_You needn't worry, my host. I've no intention of spoiling your fun this time."_ The evil ring spirit told him, _"But that was a sad display of dueling. I just felt I had to say something. You'd better shape up, I'm going to rule the world one day, so I need a body that people will fear and respect."_

Bakura lowered his head, and closed his eyes, attempting to ignore the voice of the spirit.

"Bakura? Are you alright?" Serenity asked, tapping his shoulder.

Bakura looked up, trying not to seem worried.

"I'm fine, thank you for asking." He said to Serenity, "So, who's next?"

**_If you thought it was fun seeing Brian duel Celeste, or watching Tim and Mako face-off, then I guarantee that the next match won't disappoint!_**

_**We have one more pair of Elemental Duelists that have yet to go at it, Zeffie Gale and Julius Gold!**_

_**This is gonna be a riot…**_

_**Catch it next time in**_

_**David and Goliath**_

_**Until then, duel fans!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Dark Sanctuary

Spell/Field

Image of a dark castle, with eyes and mouth floating in the sky behind it.

You may play this card from your hand or deck after a 'Dark Necrofear' on your side of the field is destroyed. If you choose to do so, you may not use the effect of the Dark Necrofear that was destroyed. During each of you first Main-Phases, you must tribute one monster on your field. If you do not, this card is destroyed. If Dark Necrofear is ever removed from your graveyard, negate the effect of this card. So long as this card is on the field, you may play spell and trap cards in your monster card zone. At the start of each of your opponent's turns, select one of their monsters in secret. If they declare an attack with the selected monster, the damage from the attack to you and your monsters is reduced to zero. You then gain life points equal to one-half of the monster's attack, and your opponent loses the same amount.

_This card was first used by Bakura in the anime saga "The Dark Spirit Revealed-Yugi vs. Bakura." All credit for it goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Jowgen the Spiritualist

LIGHT

Spellcaster

Three star

200 attack

1300 defense

Spiritual Purification: Pay 1000 life points. All spells and traps on the field are destroyed, and may not be chained.

---

Manticore of Darkness

FIRE

Beast-Warrior

Six Star

2300 attack

1000 defense

Pack Loyalty: No Beast, Beast-Warrior, or Winged-Beast monsters you control may change controllers.


	29. David and Goliath

_**And we're back, with another exciting match folks!**_

_**Roland here, still announcing the Virtual Tournament, and our next duel is sure to knock a few of you out of your seats…**_

_**Our first contender is Julius Gold, aka the Fighting Mountain! His Rock deck has proven to pack a real punch once it gets rolling.**_

**_And his opponent today is little Zeffie Gale, the Winged Wonder-kid! This girl's feathered friends can make mincemeat out of her enemies in nothing flat._**

_**So our match today will pit the small against the great! Can Zeffie win? Will Gold triumph?**_

_**Could we have called this match anything else but…**_

David and Goliath

In the real world, Jackson was repeatedly banging his face into his keyboard over the results of the latest match. He had bet on Bakura, and what had seemed to be a sure thing had resulted in him and Sota now breaking even once more.

"So…Any other lame horses you'd like to bet on Jackson?" Sota taunted as Bakura was dropped into his seat.

"Not…another…word." Jackson growled.

"You do get to choose who you back first." Rei pointed out.

Jackson looked to the tournament tree, sighed, and pointed to a familiar face. Rei nodded, and wrote it down.

"Okay, let's give Roland the go ahead." She smiled, reaching for her headset.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Victor Greenstone landed back in the VIP box to a smattering of applause. He smiled as returned to his own chair, chuckling a bit at Rex and Weevil's dumb-struck faces.

As he stopped applauding, Brian turned to his younger brother with a worried expression.

"Hey Tim, you alright? You didn't say a word during the last match." Brian said.

Tim looked to his older brother with a tired look on his face.

"I thought we established this: I'm covered in stuff no one deserves to be covered in, and I'm trying not to get any in my mouth." He said through, clenched teeth and tight lips.

"But it's all dried up now isn't it?" Zeffie asked.

"I wish…" Tim moaned.

"Are you just going to moan until you're cleaned off?" Kaiba grumbled.

"Yep." Tim nodded.

Kaiba sighed, and snapped his fingers.

"Rei?" He asked.

"On it boss!" Rei's voice declared.

A burst of light later, and Tim was cleaned of any befouling liquids. He leaned back in his chair with a smile.

"Thanks Kaiba. Now to make up for lost time." Tim grinned, "Double the jokes!"

"It's really not necessary." Kaiba sighed.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bakura looked up at the jumbo screens as the roulette of faces began to spin again.

"Who do you think will duel next?" He asked, turning to John and Serenity.

"If it weren't a mortal sin, I'd bet on…Yugi vs. Kaiba." John said, a hand on his chin as he thought.

"No, I think that'll have to wait until the finals." Serenity pointed out, "I hope Joey's in the next match though, I can't wait to see him duel!"

Bakura nodded in agreement, looking back up to the screen.

"_Who ever it is will probably put on a better show than you did…"_ Said the spirit of the ring in Bakura's mind.

Bakura just sighed, and paid no attention to the voice in his head.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mary Gold was keeping her eyes glued to the screen, attempting to pick the faces as they blazed past. Ruby had struck up a conversation with Pegasus over the other finalists, which was entertaining between the matches.

"So your ex-husband is one of the finalists? Fascinating." Pegasus stated, "Which one…"

"Is he? It's Julius Gold." Ruby smiled, "My daughter here is really looking forward to his first match today."

"Gold…Gold…" Pegasus muttered, scratching his head, "Ah yes, the one they called 'The Fighting Mountain' during our introductions. He seems like a nice enough fellow."

"That's only if he doesn't flatten you with his monsters." Mary chuckled, pointing to the screen, "Look, I think it's gonna stop!"

Stop it did, with a mechanical chime. Mary gasped, and clapped her hands in glee. Ruby smirked a bit, hiding it behind her own hand.

On the arena floor, Roland smiled.

"_Nice choice guys."_ He thought, preparing his microphone.

"Zeffie Gale and Julius Gold! Prepare yourselves for a major match!" Roland announced.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Zeffie's ear-piercing cry of joy sent all other duelists, aside from Gold who covered his ears, collapsing to the floor with immediate migraines.

"Hey Zeffie, an octave higher and maybe only dogs could hear that…" Tim said as he got back up.

Zeffie ignored the comic as she hurriedly jumped on to Gold's shoulder with a smile, and wrapped her arms around him.

"Yay! We get to duel!" She cried out, "This will be even better than the duels we have back home!"

"You bet Zefs…" Gold smiled as the others got up, "Now, don't you think you ought to work on your deck before we start?"

Zeffie nodded and jumped back into her chair. A grid of cards appeared, and she looked them over.

"_Ooh…This card is good…But this one is good too…"_ Zeffie thought, glancing between her side deck and main deck as she attempted to decided what (if anything) to change.

Finally, she took the Kurama card from her deck and swapped it out for a different monster. She giggled as she also moved in another spell while removing one of her Gust Fan cards. Stopping for a moment, she also took two traps from her deck and added two other ones. Nodding, she leaned back and let the window close.

Gold, in the meantime, was being much calmer as he looked over his options. He removed his two Elephant Statue cards, nodding to himself as he replaced them with two copies of a monster from his side deck.

"_Those two were too conditional anyway."_ He said to himself, _"And since I have three copies of Shield and Sword, I think I can afford to take one out for this…_"

He removed one of the named cards, replacing it with another from his side deck. He chuckled a bit in spite of himself, not even Zeffie knew about this card.

Yet.

Noticing something else, he thought for a minute before removing his Labyrinth Wall. He placed another monster into its place and gave a satisfied nod.

"And that's all the time you have!" Roland called out, "Let's start the show!"

Zeffie and Gold vanished in a pulse of light, while the other finalists looked toward the window.

"I personally hope that Gold fellow wins." Weevil grumbled, "He's annoyingly quiet…But at least he doesn't bust my ear drums."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Down on the arena, Roland stood amidst swirling shadows once again. He looked to the audience as he began to speak.

"Our world is filled with majesty and wonder. No matter where you look, you can see the results that the passage of time has on all things, even the landscape of the planet." Roland declared.

A blinding light filled the arena as if the sun had suddenly blazed to life behind Roland. Everyone covered their eyes as the light faded, leaving Roland standing on a pillar of solid stone in the middle of a huge canyon!

Roland stood about twenty feet above where the arena floor once was (It was now much farther below him), and the area on all sides of him was nothing but empty air. There was one exception: The center of the arena now had a new addition in the form of a pair of rocky ledges extending from the wall that separated the audience from the duelists, with about twenty feet between the ledges. A pair of lights fell, one onto each ledge, as Roland continued.

"Given enough time, the wind was able to carve this once flat land into a beautiful landmark that we've dubbed 'Windy Canyon.'" Roland called out, "And it's in this meeting place of wind and earth that we've decided to house our next match! Allow me to present, the Winged Wonderkid, Zeffie Gale!"

The first light faded, and Zeffie performed a jump and spin as she took in her surroundings and the cheering crowd. She hopped up and down, waving to the audience with a huge grin on her face.

"I'm the cute one!" She shouted with a grin.

Roland just nodded, gesturing toward the other light.

"And now, her opponent, the Fighting Mountain: Julius Gold!" Roland shouted.

Gold appeared, waving to the audience as they cheered. He looked out over the crowd and, spotting Ruby and Mary, gave them a wave and wink before turning to Zeffie.

"Okay then, just a nice little match, right Zef?" He smiled.

"You bet Goldie!" Zeffie giggled, "And Zeffie will kick your butt like all the other times!"

"We'll see." Gold chuckled.

"This is a truly biblical match folks: One small child against a giant of a man! As such, we're calling this match David and Goliath!" Roland called out, "Now our duelists will select their deckmasters…"

Zeffie waved a hand in front of herself with a smile that seemed to have been permanently affixed to her face.

"Zeffie picks Garuda the Wind Spirit!" She called out.

The crow-man in his orange sash swooped up from the canyon below, alighting on the ground behind Zeffie. Duelist and deckmaster turned to each other and high-fived, before turning back to Gold.

Gold tapped his deck gently, and a single card floated out.

"I think I'll stick with the guy that's been working so far: Stone Statue of the Aztecs." Gold declared.

The ground behind him rumbled and turned green, and from it raised the roughly-human shaped statue. It trembled for a second, and Roland pointed at the air between them.

"Let's see who goes first!" He called out.

The two deckmasters began to glow, but Zeffie held up one hand.

"That's okay, Goldie can go first!" She said.

The deckmasters stopped glowing, and Roland turned to Zeffie who smiled and curtseyed.

"Thanks Zef." Gold said, drawing six cards.

**Gold: 8000**

**Zeffie: 8000**

"Alright then…" Roland said, stunned by this show of generosity, "Um…You're free to start…"

Gold and Zeffie both smiled as their disks flicked on.

"Time to duel!" They both called out.

Gold looked across the cards in his hand, selected one, and placed it onto his disk.

"I'll open with a monster facedown." He said as the hidden monster materialized in the empty air before him, "And…I'll lay a facedown card to."

The second card appeared, behind and perpendicular to the first, and Gold nodded.

"Okay, go ahead Zeffie." Gold offered.

Zeffie giggled as she drew her card, and twirled around happily before placing it onto her disk.

"Zeffie always gets so excited when Zeffie gets to duel friends!" Zeffie cheered, "Go, Spirit of the Books (1400/1200)!"

Zeffie's deckmaster leaned back his head, unleashing an echoing squawk. The cry was answered by a wise-sounding cry, and from the sky above descended a figure dressed in green robes. He had the head and wings of an eagle, though he seemed to be moving on in the years, and carried a dusty book in his talon-tipped fingers.

"Spirit of the Books just loves to read, but Zeffie prefers to duel." Zeffie said with a grin, "But we both love feeling the wind blow…So Zeffie plays her Rising Air Currents card!"

Zeffie's disk slid open its field slot, into which Zeffie inserted a card. The effect was immediate as the gentle breeze that had been blowing through the canyon suddenly increased in intensity. Spirit of the Books (1900/800) smiled as the wind blew under his aging wings, lifting him higher into the air.

"Attack with winds of wisdom!" Zeffie called out.

The bird opened his book, and raised one hand over its pages. The winds around him began to swirl, tinted green by a strange power that now flowed from the tome, and then they blasted toward Gold's hiding monster. The creature flipped out (a pillar of stone rising beneath it as it did), revealing a roughly human-shaped statue with a large sword strapped to its back. The whole figure was made of solid stone, which explained why the winds had little effect on it.

"I thought you knew better than that Zef." Gold laughed, "My Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000) is too tough for most of your monster to get through, even with your field spell."

Zeffie giggled a bit, and nodded.

"Sorry, Zeffie's just so happy to be dueling you again Goldie!" Zeffie cheered, bouncing on her heels, "Don't worry, Zeffie will do better."

"What sportsmanship!" Roland called out, "I've rarely seen a pair of duelists be so friendly toward each other in the middle of a match. Hey, don't start going easy on each other you two, these folks came out here to watch the finalists try and rip each other apart and Kaiba Corp doesn't want to disappoint!"

"Don't worry, Zeffie's just getting started." Zeffie grinned, "Go on Goldie!"

**Gold: 8000**

**Zeffie: 7900**

Gold drew his next card, and nodded as he slid it into his disk.

"I'm opening this turn with a spell card." He decided, "It's called Continuous Destruction Punch."

A spell (showing an unlucky boxer getting slammed silly by a Des Kangaroo) appeared behind Gold's sole monster. Zeffie nodded as she saw the card.

"Zeffie remembers that card." Zeffie said brightly, "Anytime Zeffie attacks a defense monster, and Zeffie's monster doesn't beat it, Zeffie's monster is destroyed!"

"Right." Gold nodded, "And I'm ending my turn right now Zeffie, so go ahead."

Zeffie drew her next card, giggling with glee as she held it up.

"Okay, Zeffie just drew a way to beat your rock." Zeffie said, "Zeffie powers up Spirit of the Books with Gust Fan!"

From nowhere leapt an orange fan with a dragon image painted on it. The old eagle claimed the fan, holding it in his claws and smiling again as the winds around him strengthened. His stats leapt once more to (2300/600), and he opened the book up with his free hand.

"Next, Zeffie will summon Winged Sage Falcos (1700/1200)." Zeffie announced.

Another bird-man swooped from above, this one with the head of (predictably) a falcon. His white robes flapped in the breeze of Zeffie's field spell as his stats jumped to (2200/800) along with his altitude.

"Okay birdies, let's go!" Zeffie cheered, "Attack, Falcos, with shriek of pain!"

Falcos opened his beak up, a devastating wave of sound issuing forth. As it did, Gold pointed at his face down card.

"I activate my Castle Walls trap card!" He declared, "This'll boost my Soldier's defense by 500 points for one turn, making him tougher than Falcos."

The trap lifted, and Zeffie gasped as the Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2500) suddenly was covered in the pattern of a brick wall. His body seemed to change from rough granite to smooth cement as he unsheathed his sword and intercepted the incoming assault on it. Falcos shrieked as his own attack reflected back at him, sending the feathers flying from his wings and causing him to plummet into the abyss below the duel.

"Oops…" Zeffie grinned sheepishly.

**Gold: 8000**

**Zeffie: 7600**

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"Hey, Gold's monster is stoned." Tim chortled, gesturing to the field.

"Like I said, that's really unnecessary." Kaiba grumbled.

------------------------------------------------------------

Looking at her remaining three cards, Zeffie just shook her head.

"Okay, Goldie's turn now." She declared, causing Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000) to return to normal.

Gold drew his next card and smiled as he removed his current monster.

"Okay Zefs, I'm tributing my Giant Soldier of Stone…" Gold declared.

The statue faded away, and Zeffie seemed worried for a minute as Gold placed a new monster onto his disk.

"And I'll set this monster in defense mode." He announced.

The pillar that Gold's monster once occupied now took on a new resident, another facedown card. Zeffie breathed a sigh of relief; she had been expecting something worse.

"_It's probably Goldie's Labyrinth Wall."_ Zeffie told herself, _"Zeffie better get a good draw before Goldie gets Shield and Sword…"_

Gold was looking at his remaining four cards. He shrugged as he placed one into his disk, and it appeared behind his monster.

"I'll lay this facedown too." He announced, "That's it for me."

Zeffie drew her card. This time she stopped bouncing for a minute, thinking carefully over her options. She nodded, and placed one of her cards onto her tray with a nod.

"Zeffie will summon Takuhee (1450/1000) in attack mode." Zeffie said.

From the gorge below swooped the brown-feathered eagle, which began to hover next to Zeffie's first monster. The wind under his wings lifted him higher, changing the bird's stats to (1950/600).

"Then Zeffie lays one card facedown." Zeffie announced.

The hidden card appeared behind Takuhee. Obviously forgetting that he was no longer serving as a deckmaster, the bird landed on the card and glared at Gold as if daring him to try and get rid of it.

"Go on Goldie." Zeffie grinned.

Gold took his draw. Smiling, he placed another card onto his disk.

"I'll summon Grave Ohja (1600/1500) in attack mode." He stated.

Another pillar rose from the bottom of the void, on it was riding a man whose skin seemed to be made of purple stone. He wore a kilt made of brown leather, and his massive arms were adorned with black armlets.

Gold continued, "And now I'll flip over my facedown monster."

"Labyrinth Wall?" Zeffie guessed.

The card turned over, and whatever monster it was clearly _wasn't_ a wall of any kind.

Behind Gold rose a statue known across the world as the Great Sphinx of Giza. But while that statue was missing its nose and showed centuries of wear and damage, this one seemed to be brand new. Its entire body was covered in gold, and its headdress was decorated with brightly colored jewels. Its nose was also in place, and right now its eyes were looking down said nose to Zeffie, who gasped at this monster.

"Hey, that's your Guardian Sphinx (1700/2400)!" Zeffie shouted, pointing to the monster, "Bouncing is supposed to be Zeffie's deck style!"

Gold just chuckled a bit before answering, "Sorry, but I got a new monster in my deck and I thought this guy might help get it out."

Gold smiled again as he pointed to Zeffie's field.

"Plus, this guy lets me send every one of your monsters back to your hand when I flip him over." Gold stated, "So keep your eye on the birdies…"

Guardian Sphinx's eyes began to glow with red light, and both of Zeffie's monsters screamed as they vanished. Their cards shot from the tray, and Zeffie frantically grabbed them from the air. The Gust Fan that had empowered Zeffie's Spirit of Books now plummeted into the chasm below and vanished.

"Plus, now I can use my Grave Ohja's effect." Gold continued, "If I flip summon a monster, he'll deal you 300 points of direct damage."

Grave Ohja glowed with a purple aura and sent a wave of stones and gravel flying at Zeffie. Zeffie shielded herself from the pelting rocks with her arms, which were soon covered with scratches. Zeffie gasped and rubbed a hand over the cuts, only for them to vanish under her fingers in a second.

"Whoa…You okay Zef?" Gold asked, looking worried for his young cohort, "I didn't think you'd really get cut up."

"It's okay!" Zeffie cheered, "That was really cool! Zeffie wonder's what else she can heal now…"

"I think we're about to find out." Roland called out.

Gold smirked and pointed right at Zeffie.

"Okay Grave Ohja, attack with…" He began.

He didn't get any farther before Zeffie's hand snapped out over her facedown card.

"Zeffie activates Windstorm of Etaqua!" Zeffie shouted, the card lifting, "Now your monsters go to defense mode!"

From behind Zeffie soared a massive eagle, this one covered in blue feathers and crisscrossed with ugly scars. It began to beat its wings, forcing Garuda to grab hold of his duelist before she blew away, and sent a punishing gale force toward Gold's two monsters. Both rocks began to tremble, and Grave Ohja fell to one knee in an attempt to avoid the winds. Guardian Sphinx didn't change much, but its eyes did stop glowing and the gems adorning its headdress seemed to dim slightly.

"Nice block." Gold congratulated, "Well, before I end my turn, I'll use my Guardian's other effect. I just do this…"

Gold took the sphinx's card and flipped it over so it was now facedown. In an instant, the massive stature mimicked the action and vanished, being replaced by a facedown card.

"And my Guardian Sphinx can flip himself facedown again." Gold smiled, "Plus, if I have a facedown monster, you ain't allowed to attack Grave Ohja until you get rid of it. Now go ahead Zefs."

**Gold: 8000**

**Zeffie: 7300**

Zeffie drew her next card, and looked over the monsters in her hand. She smiled as she saw the card she had drawn.

"Okay, go Mystical Space Typhoon!" Zeffie called out, a blast of wind shooting from the card as she held it up, "Get rid of Goldie's facedown card!"

The winds surrounded the trap, which flipped over to show a Negate Attack. Gold flinched as it vanished, but then shook his head.

"Nice shot, but you don't have a monster that beats Guardian Sphinx." He pointed out.

"No…But Zeffie has a deckmaster!" Zeffie cheered, putting down another monster, "Come back Takuhee (1450/1000)!"

The brown eagle swooped in once again, hovering in the breeze as his score once more shifted to (1950/600). He seemed confused as to where Zeffie's facedown card had vanished to, but Zeffie smiled at him and he just went back to glaring at Gold's monsters.

"Now, Zeffie uses Garuda's power: Rising of Etaqua." Zeffie smiled as she held up Spirit of Books, "Zeffie removes a Wind-monster from her hand, and then adds that monster's attack to another Wind-monster on the field!"

The card faded into nothing, and a ghostly image of the wise old eagle appeared behind Takuhee. Garuda raised one hand, causing the image to burst into a blast of wind. Takuhee (3350/600) screeched in surprise as he suddenly was shot twenty feet over the heads of even the box-seats!

"Wow…" Zeffie smiled, "Didn't think he'd go that high…"

"Aw crud…" Gold muttered.

-------------------------------------------------------------

"Wow, Gold's monsters are stoned, and Zeffie's are high." Tim laughed

"Okay, I'm with Kaiba, that's really not necessary bro." Brian sighed.

"Those corny puns are hard to put up with." Rex grumbled.

"Try living with them." Brian moaned.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Zeffie pointed at the facedown card.

"Takuhee, get his sphinx with high-dive doom drop!" Zeffie called out.

The eagle tucked its wings in close, and went soaring talon-first at Gold's facedown monster. The card flipped over, revealing the sphinx once more, just in time for Takuhee to hit terminal velocity and slam right into its nose! The bird continued through the now-unobstructed nasal cavity, and plowed out through the other side with a triumphant cry. Gold held up his hand over his face as his monster collapsed into a pile of gravel, boulders, and a king's ransom in gold and jewels, along with a cloud of gritty dust that covered the rest of his field before being scattered by the winds.

The monumental mess faded away, leaving a very worried Grave Ohja alone on Gold's field. Gold frowned at this while Zeffie bounced up and down.

"Your turn Goldie!" She cheered.

Gold drew his card, and Takuhee (1950/600) lowered himself back onto Zeffie's field.

"I activate my Pot of Greed." Gold announced, the sinful jar falling past him and shattering on the ground far below.

Gold, Zeffie, and Roland all looked down at where the jar had fallen. A grunting sound was heard as a tiny ball of light with a mischievous smile on its face hauled itself up onto Gold's platform. Grumbling, the little imp walked up to Gold, and jumped onto his disk. He tapped it, causing two cards to slide out, and then faded away.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay, these card effects are getting weird." Joey stated after observing that incident, "And why didn't Guardian Sphinx blow Zeffie's monster back to her hand?"

"Because a Guardian Sphinx needs to be flip summoned for its effect to work." Yugi pointed out, "Forcing it to flip with an attack stops its effect from going off."

"That would also be why Gold had a Negate Attack rather than Waboku." Victor nodded, "They do almost the same thing, but Negate Attack meant that he'd have been free to flip his monster by himself on his turn."

Joey nodded in acknowledgement of this, while Kaiba just sighed.

"Don't waste your breath you two. You'd have better luck explaining that move to a fly than to Wheeler." Kaiba stated.

Joey shot an angry glare in the CEO's direction and opened his mouth to say something. Mai just placed a restraining hand on his shoulder, and shook her head.

"Just ignore him Joey, he's trying to get you riled up." She warned.

"It's working…" Joey grumbled.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gold just shrugged after that latest display, and pulled the two extra cards into his hand. He frowned, placing one onto his disk while sliding a second one in behind it.

"A facedown monster and one facedown card." He said, simply, "That's all for me."

The hidden cards appeared, and Grave Ohja seemed somewhat relieved as he moved behind the facedown monster. Zeffie just giggled at the monster's action, and drew her card.

"Zeffie will summon Takuhee's brother to the field." Zeffie stated, playing another monster, "Go Faith Bird (1500/1100)!"

Another shriek sounded from the sky, and down from it swooped a monster that looked very much like Takuhee. This one, however, had blue feathers that shimmered under the simulated sunlight, and a long set of tail feathers trailed beneath it. It seemed to be enjoying the breeze a great deal, and that was justifiable seeing as its stats had been adjusted to (2000/700).

"Faith Bird, attack his facedown monster with rainbow breeze!" Zeffie ordered.

The bird clapped its wings together, generating a shimmering stream of wind that flew at Gold's monster. It flipped over, revealing a gray stone jar with a black blob in it that was immediately recognizable…

"That would be my Morphing Jar (700/600)." Gold said as the winds shattered his monster into fragments, "You know what that means."

A strong wind picked up, tearing the remaining cards in Zeffie's hand away and dropping both of them into the graveyard. Gold pushed his three in himself, and prepared to draw his five cards when one of the cards Zeffie had lost suddenly flew out of her graveyard.

"What the…" Gold started to ask, then he stopped, "Oh wait, I get it…"

"Yep yep yep! One of the cards in Zeffie's hand was Roc from the Valley of Haze!" Zeffie grinned as the massive hawk appeared behind her, translucent like a ghost, "Now he shuffles back into Zeffie's deck…"

The ghost vanished, but a powerful wind pulled Zeffie's cards from their slot. The cards swooped all over the arena in a chaotic pattern, Roc mixing itself in with them, before settling back into the tray one card at a time.

"…And now Zeffie draws for your Morphing Jar." Zeffie grinned as she drew five new cards.

Gold took his five, and nodded.

"Alright, still your turn you know." He pointed out.

"Yeah, and Takuhee will attack your Grave Ohja!" Zeffie called out, "Doom drop!"

The eagle swooped over head, and paused for a moment before barreling down toward Gold's lone monster. Grave Ohja grunted as the bird plowed into its chest, and cracks spread over its surface. As Takuhee pulled away, the monster shattered into a pile of pebbles which faded into nothing.

"Looks like Gold's defenses are finally open folks! Time for Zeffie to get in a few good shots of her own." Roland announced.

"But first, Goldie's turn." Zeffie smiled.

Gold drew his card and looked at it. He shrugged, placing it onto his disk. A facedown monster appeared. He then slid another card into his tray, causing it to appear behind the facedown monster.

"That's all." He said with a wave.

Zeffie drew her card, giving the facedown cards on Gold's field a worried look. She smiled as a thought occurred to her though.

"_Zeffie bets those facedown cards are just his Rock Bombardments that Zeffie told him about!"_ Zeffie thought as she looked over her hand, _"Zeffie doesn't need to worry about those, they don't stop attacks! And now Zeffie won't need to worry about high-defenses…"_

"Zeffie summons Bladefly (600/700) in attack mode!" Zeffie called out, throwing her card into place.

A loud buzzing sound echoed through the canyon, and a giant bee hovered in from above. It beat its wings in the refreshing breeze, its stats flying up to (1100/300) as it brandished a massive forelimb that was shaped like a curved sword.

Then, its buzzing increased in pitch. Its wings started to beat so quickly that they actually generated a breeze of their own that began lift all of Zeffie's monsters higher! Zeffie cheered as all three of her monsters suddenly got a second boost to their attack (Bladefly: 1600/300, Faith Bird: 2500/700, Takuhee 2450/600).

----------------------------------------------------------

"Got Raid?" Tim asked, chuckling a bit.

"Okay, that's really enough." Brian sighed.

"No wait, I've got more!" Tim said, "Cue, Flight of the Bumblebee!"

"That's enough." Kaiba grumbled.

"I hope Gold brought some bug spray." Tim laughed.

"SHUT UP!" Brian, Rex, Weevil and Kaiba all yelled at once.

"I will not be silenced!" Tim retorted.

This statement was clearly false. A swift strike to the back of his head from Brian caused Tim to clamp his mouth shut quite quickly. Kaiba just snickered behind his hand at this, while Tim lowered his head and rubbed the back of it.

"_Since when does Kaiba laugh like that?"_ Joey thought, noticing the businessman's snickering.

--------------------------------------------------------

"Thanks to Bladefly, all Wind monsters get 500 extra points!" Zeffie cheered.

"Oh…Crud." Gold said, stepping and bracing himself.

"Takuhee, attack his facedown monster!" Zeffie shouted.

The brown bird soared skyward once more, and then dove right at Gold's monster. The card flipped to reveal a pair of strange statues shaped like human heads, each one topped with a stone cap and each one with a laser poking from its hewn lips. Takuhee dodged a barrage of laser fire, and swooped between the two statues causing them to shoot at one another.

Takuhee pulled himself upward, looping over the statues and resulting in the blasts by passing one another and smashing into the other statue. Both of them were vaporized in an instant, leaving no sign of their passing.

"Guess I need something stronger than Moai Interceptor Cannons (1100/2000)…" Gold sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

"You're gonna need more than that!" Zeffie laughed, "Bladefly, buzzing scythe!"

The bug swooped forward and sliced Gold across the chest with its gigantic blade! Gold grunted and pulled back, a glowing slash appearing across his chest as the bug backed off. The scar faded as Zeffie pointed at her other monster.

"Your turn Faith Bird, rainbow breeze!" Zeffie shouted.

The bird's wings slammed together again, and a barrage of colorful winds flew out at Gold. He braced himself as the colors washed over him, forcing him back a few steps before they faded away.

**Gold: 3900**

**Zeffie: 7300**

-----------------------------------------------------------------

"Dad!" Mary shouted as the attacks stopped.

Ruby just smirked as she laid back in her seat.

"Don't worry Mary, it takes more than that to break your father." She said.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Gold lowered his arms as the attacks stopped, and the audience was going wild over Zeffie's performance. Zeffie grinned and took a bow, sweeping her arm in front of her in a dramatic fashion. Gold just watched as she soaked up the attention, chuckling a bit to himself.

"_Zeffie's really coming into her own."_ He thought, _"I've let her come to the Kansas City Regionals before. She was there when they started calling me the Fighting Mountain again. But this is her first international tourney and she's acting like she was born to do this."_

Gold looked at the cards in his hand, and thought of what was on his field.

"_Course, that doesn't mean I'll go easy on her."_ He thought with a grin.

Zeffie looked over the rest of hand as she finished bowing, and thought over her options.

"Zeffie will end with two facedown cards." Zeffie stated, the two cards appearing behind her monsters.

Gold drew his next card and nodded.

"Okay Zef, time move up a level." Gold declared, "I activate my facedown card: Soul Resurrection!"

The trap lifted up, and white smoke issued from it. Gold smiled as his Moai Interceptor Cannons (1100/2000) were pieced back together in front of him, one molecule at a time.

"They aren't that tough." Zeffie giggled, "Beside, Bladefly takes 400 attack points away from Earth-monsters!"

The winds Bladefly produced definitely seemed to be having a negative effect on the statues. Before, they weren't on the field long enough for it to matter. Now, the winds buffeted them and eroded at their forms until they were covered in chips and pits (700/2000).

"Well they aren't here to attack." Gold stated as he removed them from his disk, "I'm tributing them to summon my Hieracosphinx (2400/1200)!"

The cannons faded away, and a roar sounded across Windy Canyon. All three of Zeffie's monsters began to tremble as a monster appeared on one of Gold platforms, one that did not seem overly friendly. It possessed the body of a lion, covered in golden fur, with the head and wings of a falcon. It pawed the ground as Bladefly, in accordance with its effect, nailed it with a barrage of wind and brought its attack down to (2000/1200).

"Uh oh…" Zeffie said as the sphinx monster glared at Bladefly.

"I'm not done yet." Gold smiled, "I use my Mystical Space Typhoon to get rid of your field card!"

The winds that fired from Gold's spell swirled around and mingled with the winds from Zeffie's. Both duelists braced themselves as several tornados rose up on the field. The winds finally stopped and a gentle breeze replaced them. All three of Zeffie's monsters dropped in altitude a bit, their stats falling along with them (Bladefly: 1100/700, Faith Bird: 2000/1100, Takuhee: 1950/1000).

"Now then, Hieracosphinx will squash your bug!" Gold called out, "Riddle rush attack!"

The magical beast leapt forward, gliding on its wings and slamming against the bug. Zeffie and her deckmaster scampered backward as the two creatures slammed into where they had been standing only moments ago, and Bladefly shattered under the weight of the monster on top of it.

"_Guess those facedown cards ain't Compulsory Evacuation Device."_ Gold thought as he took the monster card off of his disk.

**Gold: 3900**

**Zeffie: 6400**

All monsters on the field were now reacting to Bladefly's death. Hieracosphinx (2400/1200) looked much happier now that the draining effect was no longer sucking away its attack score, while Takuhee (1450/1000) and Faith Bird (1500/1100) both looked drained themselves as they now hovered much lower than before.

"And now, before I end my turn, I'll tribute my sphinx here…" Gold announced.

Zeffie looked confused, then gasped as a rumbling sounded from below.

Once more, the monster rose up behind Gold rather than in front of him. But this time, it formed from the ledge behind him. A massive golden statue formed into the shape of Exodia the Forbidden One, with a ring of gold behind it. It had its arms crossed over its chest as it remained crouched on the field.

"Say hello to that new monster I told you about: Exxod, Master of the Guard (0/4000)!" Gold called out.

Zeffie stared up at the massive monster, and her jaw dropped.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

"Forget Gold, that thing's a fighting mountain…" Tim muttered, staring at the massive creature behind Gold.

"Whoa!" Yugi gasped, staring at the giant statue, "That thing looks just like Exodia!"

"Another one of Pegasus's brain children no doubt." Kaiba sighed, "I'd almost forgotten about this one. Seems Gold down there must be pretty good, that was one of the prizes my eliminators were assigned to give out."

"Wait, you give him some big Exodia look-alike, and you give me a little puppy dog!" Joey exclaimed.

"I thought you'd like to have someone of your own species in your deck." Kaiba smirked.

This time it took both of Mai's hands to hold Joey down before he could jump up and try to strangle Kaiba. Joey fell back into his seat, grumbling about the injustice of the overall situation.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Celeste and her posse, in the meantime, were all leaning back to try and see the entirety of the massive monster at once.

"Do you think he's trying to compensate for something?" Espa Roba gulped.

"He's almost as big as that thing! What is there to compensate for?" Kevin shouted.

"Wow, I didn't know about this one." Celeste gasped, "He must have just got it…"

"That seems likely. Your friend must be a skilled duelist." Ronaldo nodded.

The other two gave nods of agreement while Celeste thought for a minute.

"But it's in defense mode, and Zeffie wouldn't attack something that big without the right monster." She pointed out.

"Guess it's just insurance in case she gets something that could have beat his sphinx thing." Kevin pointed out, "Don't forget her deckmaster's power."

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Zeffie was staring up at the monster, shaking a bit as she looked at it.

"Okay Zefs, I'll lay this facedown and end my turn." Gold announced, sliding another card onto his disk.

It appeared before him, and Zeffie drew her card.

"Zeffie…" Zeffie trailed off, trying to think of a way past Gold's huge monster.

Unfortunately, she held no other monsters in her hand that could help, and the other cards she did have didn't seem to do much important.

"Your move." Zeffie sighed, waving one hand.

Gold drew, placing another monster onto his disk.

"Well, I hate to have to do this to ya Zeffie, but I didn't plan on taking it easy." Gold said, "I summon Great Spirit (500/1500)."

A curl of mist appeared next to Gold, from which emerged an interesting looking monster. He was dressed in Native American-style outfit, complete with feather headdress, and carried what looked like a lightening bolt in one hand. He was chanting in a strange language and, strangely enough, his legs still seemed to be made of smoke.

"And now I'll activate my Shield and Sword card!" Gold called out as the glowing spell appeared on his field, "So that means all monsters trade their attack scores for their defense scores!"

Both of Zeffie's monsters squawked as the spell's energy reached out to them. They landed on the platform before Zeffie, their feathers dropping out at an alarming rate and their wings slumping from the effort of holding them up. (Takuhee: 1000/1450, Faith Bird 1100/1500)

Gold's monsters, in the meantime, were glowing with energy as well. Great Spirit's (1500/500) chanting increased in volume as the lightning bolt he held began to spark and glow, while Exxod was shimmering with golden light once again as its stats flip-flopped to (4000/0).

Zeffie let out a squeak of fear as Gold turned Exxod's card on his disk, allowing his monster to stand up into attack mode. The megalithic idol looked down at Zeffie with golden flame burning in its eyes.

"And here goes." Gold stated, "Exxod, attack Takuhee with oblivion fist!"

Exxod pulled back one hand, the golden light focusing into it. The molting eagle attempted to fly away, but was no where near fast enough as the crushing force of the statue's fist plowed into it and knocked it through the ledge and plummeting toward the ground. As it did, Gold discarded one card from his hand (another Grave Ohja).

"And now I'll use my deckmaster. By discarding one card, I'll double the damage you take from Exxod's attack." Gold declared.

A shockwave of light emitted from the fist of Gold's monster, knocking Zeffie off of her feet. The girl let out a shout of pain as she fell onto her rump.

"And now, Great Spirit will take down Faith Bird and end this duel with ancient lightning." Gold announced.

Looking at her score (400 life points), Zeffie quickly pointed to one of her facedown cards from her position on the ground.

"Go Insurance!" Zeffie shouted, a grid of red lasers flying over her field, "Now Zeffie can send one spell or trap on her field to her hand, and Zeffie picks her other facedown card!"

The lasers all focused onto the hidden card, and it vanished in shimmering light.

The spirit pulled one arm back, and tossed his lightning bolt forward. Faith Bird shrieked as the electricity coursed over its form, causing the last of its feathers to fall out. It collapsed to the ground in a crumpled heap before disappearing from sight. Zeffie just moaned as she finally got back to her feet, with some help from her deckmaster.

------------------------------------------------

Everyone up in the box seats watched as Zeffie got to her feet. Tim just snickered a little and shook his head.

"Powned." He said, "So freakin' powned."

"Okay, no one should use that term outside of chat-speak." Victor said.

"Hey, S-T-F-U or G-T-F-O." Tim joked.

"Say one more chat-speak word an I W-B-R-F-W-H." Brian warned.

Tim gave his brother a confused look, and Kaiba grimaced.

"I get it. 'Won't Be Responsible For What Happens.'" He guessed.

"Ahh…" Everyone else nodded.

---------------------------------------------------

"Sorry Zeffie, but that's the end of this duel." Gold sighed.

"And it looks like our winner is…" Roland began to announce.

"Not yet!" Zeffie shouted, holding up her duel disk.

**Gold: 3900**

**Zeffie: 500**

"What the heck!" Gold and Roland both shouted.

Zeffie smiled as she held up one of the cards from her hand. It showed a trio of men standing behind a grid of security lasers, and Zeffie giggled a bit again.

"Zeffie's Insurance trap has two effects. If Zeffie activates it, then Zeffie gets to send one spell or trap back to her hand from her field." Zeffie explained, "And if Insurance goes back to Zeffie's hand, Zeffie gets 500 life points."

"But you activated your Insurance." Gold said.

"But Zeffie's other facedown card was Insurance too!" Zeffie cheered, "Zeffie thought Goldie might use Shield and Sword soon, so Zeffie set these cards to help."

Gold stared at Zeffie for almost a minute before he burst into laughter over the situation. He clutched his stomach as he attempted to hold onto his remaining cards.

"That's a great combo Zef!" He chortled, "What did you take out for it?"

"Um…Zeffie got rid of her Ordeal of a Traveler and a Reckless Greed." Zeffie said, tucking the card back into her hand, "Zeffie didn't think they'd help against Goldie's deck."

"A clever move by Zeffie pulls her out of the fire at the last second!" Roland shouted, "She's still in this game folks!"

The audience was waiting with baited breath as Gold looked over his empty hand.

"Nothing else I can do. So I guess now, I'll use Great Spirit's effect and move it into facedown defense mode." Gold said as the spirit was replaced by the back of a card, "And that will end my turn."

Exxod returned to its normal stats (0/4000), the overpowering light fading away. Zeffie drew her card, and smiled as she saw it.

"Zeffie will set one card facedown…" Zeffie began, sliding a card into place, "Then Zeffie activates Giant Trunade!"

The facedown card appeared, only for a storm of wind and water to follow it soon afterward. Gold braced himself, and pointed to one of his two facedown cards.

"I chain my Desert Sunlight trap!" He called out, "This makes all my monsters go to face-up defense mode!"

A shining light suddenly beat down on Gold's field. Exxod fell to one knee, wiping its stony brow with one hand. It was joined by the Great Spirit which flipped up, panting due to the heat.

"_Too bad that doesn't count as a flip-summon, other wise Exxod's effect could have ended this."_ Gold thought as his Continuous Destruction Punch and Cross Counter leapt back into his hand.

Zeffie smiled as she turned around the card that she had just returned, revealing Insurance once more. A blinking, red light scanned over her body, bolstering her life points by another 500.

"And now, Zeffie will use Card Destruction!" Zeffie shouted, holding up the spell.

Oh boy…" Gold said as his two cards vanished into thin air, "And me without my Elephant Statues."

Zeffie drew three new cards, while Gold picked up two. She smiled as she placed another monster onto her disk.

"Zeffie summons Sonic Duck (1700/700)." Zeffie smiled.

From out of nowhere burst the high-velocity mallard, its bucket hat falling over its eyes as it snapped into place on the ledge before Zeffie. It flipped its head back, causing the bucket to slide back into place before it flapped its wings and began to hover in the air.

"Next, Zeffie will set two cards facedown." Zeffie said as she slid her last two cards into place, "And Sonic Duck will attack Great Spirit with beak bomber!"

The duck quaked so fast that it almost sounded like a buzz as it rose higher into the air. Tucking its wings in, it dove toward Great Spirit and plowed into the monster face first. The Native American-style monster moaned before vanishing into smoke, and Zeffie breathed a small sigh of relief.

"That's all!" She said.

**Gold: 3900**

**Zeffie: 1000**

Gold picked up his new card, looking at it with a smile on his face.

"Uh oh folks, it looks like Gold has managed to draw a way to finish Zeffie off…" Roland announced, "And after she'd managed to save herself from such a narrow defeat…"

"Actually, you're right." Gold said as he held up his card, "I equip Exxod with a spell called Shield Attack!"

The image on the spell showed a man striking at another man with wooden shield. The picture seemed comical, but there was nothing funny about it when Exxod's stats suddenly flipped over again to (4000/0)! Zeffie pointed at Exxod just before Gold cut her off.

"You guessed it: This spell acts like a Shield and Sword for one monster." Gold smiled, "Thing is, the change sticks until the spell is gone. Sorry Zef, but now we're really done. I move Exxod to attack mode…"

The statue stood up once more, balling up one fist in preparation for its attack…

"Oblivion Fis…" Gold started to order.

"Zeffie chains a trap!" Zeffie called out, "Spiritual Wind Art Miyabi!"

The facedown card flew up, and a young woman in brown robes and green hair leapt out of the trap. She carried a silver staff that had a small tornado swirling at the top of it, which she used to gesture to Sonic Duck. Zeffie nodded, and the duck vanished in a pulse of light that was absorbed into the girl's staff.

"Now Exxod goes to the bottom of your deck!" Zeffie cheered, "Bye-bye!"

The girl held the staff over her head, and a blast of wind shot out and began to push against Exxod's fist. The massive monument strained against the wind, trying to force its way through, but in the end it was futile. The winds blew against it, knocking the massive creature onto its back where it was eroded until nothing was left but a single card. This card vanished, a pulse of light appearing at the bottom of Gold's deck, and Gold frowned as he checked the rest of his hand.

"I'll set this card facedown." He decided, sliding one card into his disk, "That's about all I can do."

Zeffie drew her card and held it up immediately.

"Zeffie plays Pot of Greed." She said, drawing two new cards before the jar even had time to appear.

Despite that, the green pottery still fell past Zeffie. The spirit was riding in the pot and waved an angry fist at the girl as it went soaring to the ground.

Ignoring this, Zeffie pointed to her facedown card.

"Now Zeffie activates Call of the Haunted, bringing back a monster Zeffie lost thanks to Card Destruction." Zeffie smiled as purple smoke began to fill her field, "Meet Storm Shooter (2300/500)!"

From the smoke emerged another new monster. This one was another bird-human hybrid, this time with a human face crowned with yellow feathers. His arms were wings with feathers of the same color, and the rest of his body sported purple and blue plumage. He looked toward Gold's field, smiling as he saw Gold's facedown spell/trap card lying right across from him.

"And this monster has a strong power. Once a turn, he'll blow a spell or trap you have back to your hand, but it needs to be across from him." Zeffie stated, "So Zeffie sends that card back."

Storm Shooter waved one wing, and a blast of wind and yellow feathers flew out. It picked up Gold's Call of the Haunted, depositing it back in his hand.

"And now Zeffie summons Chaosrider Gustaph (1400/1500)!" Zeffie called out.

Garuda jumped to the side as a motorcycle engine roared to life behind him. Riding on the ledge came the green-skinned punk, pulling his bike to a stop right in front of Zeffie. Zeffie pointed right at Gold, who crossed his arms in preparation for an attack.

"Go!" Zeffie shouted, "Exhaust rush!"

Gustaph revved his engine and focused his eyes on Gold. He flashed a thumbs-down to the rock-duelist before charging his bike forward. It went flying over the edge, soaring through the air, and landed right in front of Gold! It then continued forward and barreled into him, knocking his mass several feet backward into his deckmaster.

Gustaph then pulled a quick turn and, engine roaring, jumped back across the gap to Zeffie. Zeffie pointed at Gold as he got up from his deckmaster.

"And now for Storm Shooter: Hurri-cannon!" Zeffie shouted.

The bird-man held his feathered limbs overhead, an orb of air and feathers gathering above him. He gestured toward Gold, causing the winds to fly toward him and slam into his body, the feathers inside proving to be razor sharp as they blew around Gold and sliced across his body!

Gold fell to his knees and chuckled a bit as he looked up at Zeffie.

**Gold: 0**

**Zeffie: 1000**

-------------------------------------------------------------

"O-M-G!" Tim shouted, "Powned?!"

_Thwack!_

Tim rubbed back the back of his head as Brian rubbed his fist.

"Well I warned you." He said, "Can we just go back to the regular level of jokes in the next duel?"

"Eh sure." Tim shrugged, "That will get me back to the regular level of brain damage."

-----------------------------------------------------------------

"Just like back home, huh?" Gold asked as he got up.

"Yep, you can never beat Zeffie there, either!" Zeffie cheered, "How many is that?"

"That would be…Thirty wins and no losses between us two." Gold said, "Ya done good kid."

"And the winner is, Zeffie Gale!" Roland called out, "Say goodnight Mr. Gold!"

Gold looked over his shoulder as a loud crack sounded behind him. His eyes went wide as he saw the piece of ledge he stood on beginning to break away. He swiftly jumped over the crack, and smiled, certain he had avoided a painful fate…

Only for the entire cliff face that he stood on to crumble away beneath his weight. Gold screamed as he began to plummet an immeasurable distance toward most painful landing.

Zeffie looked down, waving goodbye to Gold before she herself was transported by the rind of light.

--------------------------------------------------------------

"Holy crud she actually won." Jackson said, staring at the screen, "YES!"

Sota took a turn to bang his face against his own keyboard in frustration.

"I don't believe it! Was this man sent to Earth to punish me for something?" Sota shouted, "He wrecks my mountains, my church, and now I owe Jackson 5000 freakin'' yen!"

In attempt to vent frustration, the technician slammed his head into his desk, which resulted more in a headache than anything else.

Rei began to chuckle, vainly attempting to hide the laugh with a loud cough.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Gold let out a shout of pain as he crashed into one of the chairs in the audience.

"Ye-ouch!" He shouted, "That wasn't a nice landing…"

"Daddy?" A voice trembled.

Gold looked over his shoulder and gasped as he saw that he had landed in the row in front of Ruby and Mary. Mary had a broad grin on her face as she jumped from her chair and ran down to her father.

"You were so awesome down there!" Mary shouted as she hugged her dad.

Gold smiled, returning the embrace to his child. Ruby just shook her head and chuckled a bit.

"So were you serious about that girl beating you thirty times?" She asked Gold.

"Hey, she coulda been the champion of Kansas if the finals hadn't lasted past her bedtime." Gold said.

"How cruel fate can be sometimes." Pegasus said from the seat next to Ruby, "But from what Ruby has told me you know quite a bit about that, eh Julie-boy?"

Gold gave Pegasus a confused look.

"Julie-boy?" He muttered.

_**And Zeffie's monsters finally wear Gold down. But the finals aren't over yet, not by a long shot.**_

_**Up next is rematch that's been a long time coming. Our next two duelists haven't faced off in almost four years, and they've been itching for a decent match all day.**_

_**I speak of course of Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood!**_

_**So who'll triumph? Dinos or bugs?**_

_**Find out in**_

_**Amber Trap**_

_**Be there or be square!**_

---

Original Card

---

Insurance

Trap

Image of three men standing behind a grid of red lasers.

When this trap is activated, you may send one other spell or trap on your field back to your hand. If this trap is sent from your field back to your hand, gain 500 life points.

_This card was first used by Jaden Yuki in the anime episode "Field of Screams (Part 3)." All credit for this card goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Shield Attack

Spell/equip

Image of a man striking another man with a wooden shield

A monster equipped with this card switches its attack score with its defense score for as long as this card remains equipped.

_This card will be used by Jaden Yuki in a future episode of Yu-Gi-Oh GX. All credit for it goes to the writers of the show._


	30. Amber Trap

_**We're back everyone, ready for another exiciting match!**_

_**In the realms of professional duelists, new stars rise almost everyday.**_

_**But with every rising star, one starts to go out. And today, we've got a couple of the dimmer stars lined for a match.**_

_**Stand back, this one might go supernova on us!**_

_**First, in the green shirt and glasses, it's Weevil Underwood! A master of Insect-monsters and all of their tricks.**_

_**His opponent, in the tan vest and red hat, is Rex Raptor! This dino-maniac has a terrifying team that gnash you and bash you!**_

**_So who'll come out on top? Bugs or Dinosaurs? Let's find out!_**

Amber Trap

Zeffie's return to the box seats didn't have much to make it stand out from any one else's. There was plenty of applause and a generic 'Congratulations' or two from Brian and Yugi. Zeffie gave Yugi a sly grin as she returned to her seat, as if making a silent pact to take him down should they meet in the arena.

Now, all eyes were on the big screens over Roland's head as they blazed with the images of the last six finalists: Rex, Joey, Yugi, Kaiba, Weevil, and Noah. All six of them rotated past the screen with increasing frequency, before the images slowed to a halt and stopped with a loud chime.

"And now for a match to remember: Rex Raptor vs. Weevil Underwood!" Roland called out, "Gentlemen, start your disks!"

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Gold looked up at the choices for the next finalists to duel, nodding as he heard the announcement.

"Well, this ought to be good." He said to Mary, "Nobody has seen these two duel for a while now."

"Except their opponents." Mary reminded him, "You know, I have to say that Rex isn't as stuck up as I'd expect as I'd expect a former champion to be."

Gold and Ruby both looked surprised at this comment.

"Mary, did you…" Ruby started to ask.

"He was my second match today." Ruby admitted, "Once you get past the big dino's trying to eat you though, he can be pretty sporting."

"Sporting, yeah…" Gold said, looking shocked, "Um…Just how easy is it to get past those dino's?"

"Not very…By the time I did I'd lost anyway." Mary admitted, "He said I had a few good combos during the duel…"

Now Pegasus seemed interested in this conversation, and leaned in closer to hear.

"Then he got all smug and said I should stick to card shops until I could play at his level." Mary shrugged, "Still, I heard that he used to laugh and bully the duelists he beat."

"I see…" Ruby nodded.

----------------------------------------------------------

Richington turned his monocles eye to Mako, who was thinking over something in his seat.

"I trust you know what we can expect from this match." He said.

"A quiet audience. Last I heard Rex and Weevil weren't very popular." Mako said, "We can think of this as a break in the action, I doubt anybody cares who wins this match when Yugi and Kaiba have yet to go at it."

"Good point." Richington nodded.

--------------------------------------------------------

"Well, looks like I can take a bathroom break." Tristan said, getting to his feet.

"You don't want to see this? It's their first professional duel in ages." Duke pointed out.

"Last time I checked, Weevil wasn't much for dueling." Tristan said as he headed for the door, "He doesn't seem to mind cheating though…"

"At least he can't cheat in there." Tea sighed as she took Tristan's spot on the couch.

"I heard that little rapscallion Bandit Keith managed it." Grandpa Mutou said as he got up from his chair and dusted off his jeans, "I think I'll go mix some lemonade for now. You two thirsty?"

"No thanks." Tea smiled, waving one hand.

"I could go for a drink." Duke admitted.

"That's cause you ate half the popcorn." Tea sighed.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Sota and Jackson were both looking up at the screen. They then looked to one another.

"Not worth betting on." They both said together.

-------------------------------------------------------------

While this talk was going on, Rex and Weevil were both ignoring whispers and a couple giggles from Zeffie as they worked on their own decks. Weevil spotted Brian watching him, and smiled as he took one of the cards and held it up.

"Want to see what I'm putting in?" He asked.

Brian nodded, leaning close before Weevil pulled the card back.

"Tough!" He barked, "You can wait till after I've mopped the floor with Raptor."

Rex trembled a bit at these words as he moved his Tyrant Dragon into his side deck.

"_Ooh…I've been waiting for this Weevil. I'm not gonna lose to you…again."_ Rex thought as he added another monster, _"Tyrant Dragon is strong, that's for sure, but I'm a dino-duelist. It's time I left the dragons to Kaiba, and this card from that eliminator is just what I needed."_

Rex shook a bit, remembering the fearful face of the eliminator he had dueled. A ghost that had no legs and wielded a pair of sharp scythes, with stringy white hair and a skull-like face. It was known as Malice Ascendant and its power to force Rex to lose the top of card of his deck every time he took effect damage had almost taken him out.

Fortunately for Rex, whatever fates guided his life had seen fit to send him his Heavy Storm in time to blow away his foe's Wave Motion Cannon and Dark Room of Nightmare before it was too late. This also had the effect of freeing his Black Tyranno from Nightmare Wheel and, seeing as his opponent had nothing left on the field but a Big Shield Gardna and 2000 life points, had allowed Rex a direct attack for the win.

Rex now placed the card he had been awarded into his deck. He'd earned plenty of cards from his recent back-alley dueling alongside Weevil, but this was more powerful than any card a regular street duelist would have.

"_I'm on my way back to the top of the food chain. If I need to be an insectivore on the way…Well, protein is protein."_ Rex smiled, substituting another trap called Jurassic Heart for one from his side deck.

Weevil was also hard at work, chuckling a bit after snapping at Brian.

"_It feels good to show these losers their place."_ Weevil thought, _"That Hokage guy will rue the day he messed with me, but first I've got bigger fleas to flick…"_

Weevil's Insect Princess and Millennium Scorpion had found their way to his side deck ever since Brian managed to trounce him back in the forest. Weevil gave the two new monsters he had added a proud smile, especially the one that sat closest to the center of the screen before him.

"_Who'd have thought a Tiger Axe would make such a tough deckmaster?"_ Weevil thought, _"Well, I turned that kitty into cat food easily."_

Easily may not have been exactly the right word, but after wandering the woods once Brian beat him Weevil had found himself in an encounter with an eliminator modeled after Tiger Axe, a walking tiger dressed in armor and carrying a large axe. This one had used a dangerous deck filled with Beast-Warriors, including a hideous monster called Segenjin, and its deckmaster ability to protect such creatures from traps that didn't target would have spelled the Insect-duelist's doom.

Unfortunately, while Weevil still had a good deal of cards that benefited from his opponent's monsters being insects, the two cards that he'd added since his loss earlier did not and were more than enough to help bring down Weevil's foe. This had led to him being awarded with a rather useful new monster, which now occupied a special spot off to the side.

Weevil smiled as he moved it into his deck, taking out Neo Bug in the process. He also moved a trap from his side deck, sliding out one of his Insect Barrier cards as he did so.

"_I don't care what he thinks is going to happen."_ Both Rex and Weevil thought at the same time, _"This duel is as good as mine, and then I'll be on top again!"_

"Time's up, get in your corners and come out dueling!" Roland shouted as Rex and Weevil both vanished.

"Well, this ought to be entertaining." Tim smiled, "Any chance we can get some virtual nachos to enjoy this?"

"Don't start with nachos." Brian warned, "Remember what happened before we got in here?"

Tim thought for a minute, then smiled, "Cotton Candy then?"

----------------------------------------------------------------------

The darkness in the arena had gathered around Roland, who gave the shadows an almost bored look. After having to start five introductions this way, he was whishing that the programmers would give him something more exciting to start with. Sighing, he lifted his microphone in order to begin his spiel.

"Time passes for all things. No matter who you are or where you go, the power of time is always present." Roland called out, "But for somethings, time moves a bit slower. Take plants for example: Trees can live for hundreds of years before they finally give in the rigors of time, eventually leading to this…"

The shadows lifted, and Roland now stood amidst a forest made of what seemed to be statues of trees. Some were cracked, others downright shattered into fragments, but most stood tall as perfect replicas of real trees. The ground was even littered with stones shaped like leaves, and the earth itself was dry and cracked.

"Our Petrified Forest arena contains thousands of plants which, upon their death, became immortal monuments to their former life!" Roland shouted, "Just like dozens species of animals and insects before them. Speaking of which, we thought it would be nice if a few of those creatures saw what happened to their old home."

Two rings of light descended to the field, and out of them stepped Rex and Weevil. There was smattering of applause, but it was very quiet when compared to the roar of the earlier matches.

"May I present, Rex Raptor! His dinosaurs may have once called this land their home turf, and now their looking for a chance to take it back!" Roland called out.

Another smattering of applause. Rex adjusted his cap, and loaded his deck into his disk.

"And his foe today is Weevil Underwood, the master of insects!" Roland continued, ignoring the quiet audience, "His creepy-crawlies might just give Rex the heebie-jeebies needed to take him down!"

Another small round of applause sounded. A rude voice rang out from the audience amidst the clapping.

"Give us a real match!" It shouted.

Rex and Weevil both shot indignant looks toward where the unseen heckler, while Roland lowered his head.

"_They can't all be popular…"_ He thought, raising a hand overhead.

"Seeing as many remains of prehistoric species can be found in fossilized tree sap, this match will be titled: Amber Trap!" Roland shouted, "Boys, let's see those deckmasters!"

Rex and Weevil both nodded, Weevil waving a hand before himself.

"I choose my Pinch Hopper for my deckmaster!" He shouted.

Behind Weevil, a loud chirping began. From one of the trees leapt a giant, green grasshopper which landed behind him. It clicked its oversized mandibles, and a hungry look appeared in its compound eyes.

Rex was unfazed as he took one of his own cards.

"I'm going with one of the runts of the litter." He declared, "I choose Uraby!"

From the trees behind Rex raced a dinosaur (Definitely a predatory one based on the sharp teeth it sported) with brown scales. It stopped behind Rex, standing straight up with is body perpendicular to the ground. It grasped at the air with its forelimbs, brandishing sharp claws as it did, and thumped its tail against the ground.

"Man, someone at Industrial Illusions needs to update their dinosaur drawings." Rex grumbled, "A real carnivore would be holding its body parallel to the ground."

"Funny, that's the position you'll be in once this is done." Weevil laughed.

"Ooh, sparks already!" Roland shouted, trying to get the audience excited (it wasn't working), "Let's light this candle!"

A phone suddenly appeared in midair next to Roland, ringing so hard that the receiver shook. Roland took the phone, and nodded before placing it back on the hook. It vanished, and he pointed to Weevil.

"It has been decided that since Weevil chose the deckmaster with the lower attack score, he can have the first move!" Roland called out.

"_Thanks for not doing any favors guys."_ Roland thought, _"You could at least have made those monsters fight a bit to choose who goes first!"_

Weevil was snickering as he drew six cards, Rex remained silent as he picked five.

"Well Rex, we may not the most popular, but I think this match is at least important to us." Weevil said, "After all, one of us won't have a shot at Yugi and Joey once this is done."

"Enough talk Weevil, let's duel!" Rex shouted.

**Weevil: 8000**

**Rex: 8000**

Weevil was scanning over his hand, and a grin crossed his face. The bespectacled boy placed two cards onto his disk.

"I'll open our match with one facedown card." Weevil stated, "And I'll summon Girochin Kuwagata (1700/1000)."

Weevil's deckmaster sounded off with a deafening chirp that echoed around the forest. From underground burrowed a large insect, about the size of the duelist that had summoned it. Its carapace was pink, and it stood on its two back legs while holding a large roll of metal in its four arms. A giant set of pincers extended from the top of its head, and it clicked them together ominously.

"They say this little guy can chew through metal, so he shouldn't have a problem with flesh and bone." Weevil snickered, "Go on Rexie."

Rex drew his card with a grimace at Weevil's last statement, but it turned to a smile as he placed a card onto his disk.

"I'll start my turn by summoning a monster known as Sabersaurus (1900/500)." He announced.

His own deckmaster let loose a roar and the trees around them began to tremble. A few of the fossilized flora were knocked to the ground as it split apart. From the crack emerged a pile of bones, which assembled themselves into a full skeleton of what must have been some form of dinosaur at one point. Uraby roared again, and the head of the skeleton shook itself as though waking up from a nap. A few members of the audience groaned in disgust as muscle tissue, skin, and red scales began to grow over the bones as Uraby finished summoning the monster.

It looked, for all intents and purposes, like a triceratops one might observe in any book on dinosaurs. This one stood at least twice as Rex, and its horns glistened under the light showing they were made of metal rather than keratin. It swung its tail about, showing off a sharp blade attached to the end of it.

"What the…That wasn't in your deck before!" Weevil shouted.

"I know, it's new…Very new." Rex smiled, "And did I mention that it's stronger than your monster? Attack with saber charge!"

The dino snorted and lowered its head. It barreled forward, heading toward the trembling insect that stood between it and Weevil. As it did, Rex held up another of his cards.

"Oh, and I can just guess what that facedown card is." He sneered, "So let's not bother with that. I chain to my own attack with a spell called Dinostamp!"

Rex slid his card into place and Sabersaurus, in a remarkable display of agility for a creature its size, suddenly jumped into the air and turned one-hundred eighty degrees so that it now faced back the way it came. It landed with an earth-shattering stomp right on top of Weevil's facedown card. Said card was flattened against the ground before it shattered into a million bits from the punishment.

"So much for DNA Surgery…" Weevil groaned.

Hardly done yet, Sabersaurus resumed its charge and crushed Girochin Kuwagata under its feet as it trampled back to Rex's field. Rex gave the dino a satisfied smile as it turned back around to face Weevil.

"That's all from me." Rex smiled.

**Weevil: 7800**

**Rex: 8000**

"Hm…First round to you…" Weevil admitted as he drew, "But I have other plans in mind. I set one monster facedown and end my turn."

Rex drew his card with a grin.

"That's the best you got, huh?" Rex challenged, "Good, I wanted to crush you fast. I summon Black Stego (1200/2000)!"

It was clear the programmers were proud of the work they had done one this particular method summoning, as another hole was opened in the ground and from it emerged another skeleton. This one stood lower to the ground with a series of bony plates along its back and sharp spikes in its tail. Even Roland looked slightly ill as the flesh and muscle tissue were restored, leaving a green stegosaurus on the field with cherry-red plates on its back. It swung its spiked tail about with an angered roar, showing a set of teeth that seemed surprisingly sharp for a supposed herbivore.

"Okay Sabersaurus, get his facedown monster!" Rex shouted.

Sabersaurus charged forward again, this time skipping the theatrical jump and just lowering its head into a position in order to skewer its target on its horns. The card flipped over, and a beetle with a red shell and four black stars on said shell emerged. It shrieked as it was turned into a bug-kabob by Rex's monster and burst into fragments.

Rather than rejoicing, Rex smacked himself.

"Don't tell me…" He grumbled.

"That was my Four-Star Ladybug of Doom (800/1200)!" Weevil laughed, "And since you flipped it, all four star monsters on the field, in other words all of yours, will die right now."

Rex growled as both his monsters suddenly broke out in a strange rash. Glowing green stars appeared on each of them, and they both roared weakly as they succumbed to the curse of the insect and fell over. Both of them shattered into bits, and Weevil laughed again.

"Oh that was fun!" He chortled.

"Enjoy while it lasts…" Rex growled again, "It's your move."

Weevil drew his card, whistling a little tune as he looked over his hand.

"I think it's time to show off a little…" Weevil smiled, "I'll use my deckmaster's power of pheromone signal. So long as I have him, all Insects in my hand and on the field are treated as thought they were two stars lower than they really are!"

Rex thought about this for a minute, his eyes going wide with realization. Weevil just laughed again as he tossed a monster into play.

"That, of course, means that I can summon a level six monster without a sacrifice!" Weevil called out, "Come my Saber Beetle (2400/600)!"

A buzzing filled the air as a giant beetle soared in from overhead. It landed, folding its wings up beneath its brown shell, and it brandished a large horn on the front of its head toward Rex. The horn began to glow with white energy and Weevil pointed right at Rex.

"Saber Beetle, attack!" Weevil shouted.

The large bug let out an eerie chittering sound as it trampled forward. Rex braced himself as the monster plowed into him, goring him in the stomach with its massive horn! Rex felt the breath fly out of his lungs as they were punctured and compacted against his ribcage by the large protrusion that now penetrated his form. The horn was withdrawn, and with it Rex fell to the ground gasping for breath as the hole in his stomach immediately healed over.

**Weevil: 7800**

**Rex: 5600**

"An impressive move from Weevil takes out more than a quarter of Rex's life points!" Roland called out, "That had to hurt…"

The audience still didn't seem overly enthusiastic about this match. But there was less grumbling from its members. Some actually seemed to have become more interested after the brutal display from the recent attack. Rex had just managed to struggled to his feet, while Weevil slid a card into his duel disk.

"I'll end with a facedown card and let you move." Weevil smiled, "Oh, and don't embarrass yourself by trying to hide behind defensive monsters. Saber Beetle just tramples right through them."

Rex drew his card and smiled at it.

"You want to talk about trampling, no one knows better than the monster I'm gonna summon!" He called out, "I start by special summoning Gilasaurus (1400/400)!"

This time, in a rather interesting display, the skeleton of Rex's monster zipped out from behind one of the trees. This one was much smaller than the previous two, standing slightly shorter than Rex himself, and sported long, dexterous arms and long legs. It stood with its body parallel to the ground (just like a predator would according to Rex) as brown scales covered it. It let out a roar as it ran two laps around Rex so fast that it actually lapped its own dust cloud before coming to a stop.

"Hah! Bad move Rex!" Weevil laughed, "Since you special summoned your Gilasaurus by its effect, I can summon a monster from my graveyard..."

"You only have two monsters in your graveyard, and one of them is useless." Rex grinned, "Your ladybug only kills four-star monsters, and only when it's flipped."

Weevil shrugged as a hole appeared in the ground next to him.

"Even so, Girochin Kuwagata (1700/1000) will be more than a match for your creature." Weevil laughed as his pink insect leapt out of the hole.

Gilasaurus looked at the oversized beetle and trembled a bit as the bug glared at him and chomped its way through the metal cylinder it carried using the mandibles on its head. Rex just smiled again as he removed Gilasaurus's card.

"You know, I didn't plan on leaving this monster on the field." Rex said as he put down another card, "I'm tributing him to summon my Dark Driceratops (2400/1500)!"

Gilasaurus vanished into thin air as another pile of bones took its place. The audience groaned again as this one stood up and towered over Rex by a good three feet. It seemed to be a quadruped, with a beak on its mouth and the framework of a pair of wings extending from its back. Green scales quickly wrapped around the creature, and pink feathers sprouted over its face and wings. It began to flap its wings, holding itself roughly two feet from the ground.

"And since even I'm getting a little weirded out by monsters de-fossilizing like this, I'm gonna see if a little change in scenery puts a stop to it." Rex said as he slid open his field zone.

"What are you gonna play? Wasteland?" Weevil chortled, "200 points won't make a big difference."

"Good point, that's why this isn't Wasteland." Rex grinned, "It's an even better card called Jurassic World!"

The tree fossils around the field began to shake and rattle as Rex played his card. The ground started rolling like waves on an open sea, forcing Weevil to try and keep his balance against the earth. As all this was going on, a slow and inspirational piece of music began to play. Rex smiled as he and Dark Driceratops both listened to the music amidst the rumbling ground.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the box seats, Brian scratched his chin as the music played.

"Isn't that the Jurassic Park theme?" He asked.

"Sure sounds like it…" Yugi nodded.

"Sheesh Kaiba, you license enough stuff for this tournament?" Joey asked.

Tim just chuckled a bit as the iconic music played some more.

"Well, I think that Rex might be taking charge now." He said, "Remembered what happened in Jurassic Park bro?"

"Yeah, the dinosaurs ate the loudmouth lawyer." Brian nodded, "And Weevil about as loud as they come…"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Around the arena the trees slowly turned from gray stone to a living brown. Leaves and buds sprouted from these trees, and a carpet of grass covered the floor. The air became hot and humid causing Rex and Weevil to break into a sweat from the spike in temperature. Bizzare flowers sprouted up amongst the grass, and Dark Driceratops (2700/1800) seemed quite at home as it chomped on one of the flowers and began to chew.

"Heh, heh, heh, welcome to the last field you're gonna see in this tournament!" Rex laughed, "My Jurassic World card grants all dinos an extra 300 attack and defense!"

"Only Dinosaurs? Hey, bugs were around for a lot longer than your oversized iguanas!" Weevil protested.

"True, but dinos were always bigger." Rex grinned, pointing at Weevil's field, "And for the record, most Dinosaurs are believed to be more closely related to birds than lizards. Driceratops, attack and destroy his Saber Beetle! Opteryx assault!"

The flapping dino landed, and then thrust itself into the air with its four powerful legs. Its wings fluttered as it managed to hover over its unfortunate target, and then it stopped and allowed itself to plummet downward and crush the unfortunate bug underneath its body.

**Weevil: 7500**

**Rex: 5600**

"Go ahead Weevil." Rex challenged, "Try and get past my monster."

Weevil drew his card and set it onto his disk with a sly smile.

"You won't scare me Rex. I'm not intimidated by your monsters even if they have the advantage!" Weevil declared as he set another card into his disk, "I'm setting one monster in defense mode and a card facedown."

A card appeared next to Girochin, followed by one behind it. Weevil waved his hand to signal the end of his turn, and Rex drew a card.

"Hey, it's my favorite monster." Rex grinned, "And I think he has a score to settle with you Weevil. I'm sure you remember him from the Japan Regional Championship five years ago..."

Rex slammed a card into play with and a bloodthirsty roar echoed through the forest!

"I summon Two Headed King Rex (1600/1200)!" Rex howled.

The roar echoed again as from the trees stomped another massive monster. It was easily the same height as Dark Driceratops, covered with purple scales and yellow claws. It had two heads, each one fully equipped with yellow eyes and three horns each along with drooling mouths. It also, strangely enough, had a pair of leathery wigs sprouting from its back. It gazed about the domain around it, letting out a growl of approval at the scenery (1900/1500).

"And now my monsters will make what's left of this match very unpleasant for you." Rex declared, "Driceratops, attack his facedown monster!"

The four-legged monster jumped into the air again and slammed its bulk down on top of the facedown card. Weevil was thrown off his feet by the resulting shockwave, but he smiled as a large, green caterpillar suddenly jumped out from beneath the monster and landed on his shoulder. It sported a pair of horns and yellow circles along its body, which elicited a smile from Weevil.

"Rex, meet my Parasite Caterpillar (800/800). When you attack this monster, the creature that attacked it gets equipped with a cocoon token that renders it incapable of attacking me or defending you!" Weevil laughed, pointing at Dark Driceratops, "Now my little friend, there's you new host! Feel free to move in…"

The worm-like monster sprang from Weevil's shoulder, but Rex just placed a card (Black Ptera) into his graveyard and Uraby let out a roar and jumped forward. In a flash, it caught the caterpillar in its mouth and bit the squirming bug in two. Both halves fell to the ground and twitched before vanishing. Weevil's eye twitched as he saw this.

"What…" He squeaked out.

"Weevil, we know all of each other's tricks." Rex growled, "Did you think I hadn't guessed that was your obnoxious little worm? Luckily, my deckmaster's power of protection instinct lets it save any Dinosaur I control from a targeting effect. I just have to discard a card that matches the type of effect, monster for monster effect in this case."

Two Headed King Rex was drooling as it gazed down on Weevil's lone monster.

"And seeing as my King Rex hasn't had a decent meal all day…" Rex grinned, "Double dino chomp!"

The big purple dinosaur stomped forward and leaned down in an attempt to gobble up Weevil's sole creature. Weevil nervously struck his duel disk, causing the facedown card on his field to lift up.

"I activate The Carrier!" He shouted, "This lets me swap an insect on the field for one from my hand! So Girochin can escape, and I'll replace it with Gokipon (800/800) in defense mode."

Weevil's trap glowed as Girochin Kuwagata jumped into a nearby tree to avoid becoming lunch. Not one to be left hungry, Rex's monster slammed it tail against the ground, causing a much smaller bug to fall out of the tree. It was shiny brown, wearing a green cape with large eyes that made it look like a cartoon character. Rex (both the monster and the duelist) gave the creature a disgusted look and shrugged just before it was gobbled down in spite of being sickeningly adorable.

"Well, I'd imagine that bug has an annoying effect also. They all do." Rex sighed, prepared to discard another card.

"True, but this one doesn't affect your monster." Weevil smiled as he took out his deck, "Now I can add any Insect I want to my hand, as long as it has less than 1500 attack points."

Weevil plucked a card from his deck and gave it a good shuffled before returning it to his tray. Rex just shrugged and waved a hand.

"Eh, it's not like your life points are safe in this round." He said, "Dark Driceratops has the same power your Saber Beetle did. I'll just end my turn now."

**Weevil: 5600**

**Rex: 5600**

Weevil drew his card and played it immediately as he had before.

"I activate Premature Burial, reviving my Saber Beetle at the cost of 800 life points." Weevil announced.

A circle of red light appeared on the field, and from it emerged the massive, brown beetle. It's horn was dimmer, and a few cracks were visible on its exoskeleton, but it was ready and willing to fight as it demonstrated by shuffling its limbs in place.

"Attack his Two Headed King Rex!" Weevil shouted, "Energy horn ram!"

The bug trilled and rampaged forward, tearing up the ground and plants beneath it. Two Headed King Rex didn't stand a chance as it was speared through the stomach by the insect and fell over in pain before vanishing. Weevil placed a card from his hand into his disk, resulting in a green light forming around his monster.

"And now I activate Multiplication of Ants, tributing my Saber Beetle in order to summon two Army Ant Tokens (500/1200) in defense mode." Weevil explained.

The green light split into two orbs which settled into adjacent spots. From the orbs emerged a pair of large ants standing with their sides facing toward Rex. Rex just sneered at the two bugs and his Dark Driceratops growled at the new intruders.

**Weevil: 4800**

**Rex: 5100**

"And then I'll set another facedown monster followed by another facedown card." Weevil said as two more cards appeared on his field, one after the other, "Your move Rexie…"

"Would you stop calling me Rexie?" Rex growled,

Weevil frowned at this, and sneered back as he responded, "Okay, what's up with you Rex? You act as though you really want to hurt me now. I thought we both wanted to get even with the guys that beat us…"

"Funny thing, I _wanted _to get even with Joey for a while, that's true." Rex declared, pointing at Weevil, "But you know what I realized about a month before we got invited here Weevil? As much as I wanted to get even with Wheeler, I wanted to get back to my rightful place as one of the top duelists even more!"

Weevil's eyes went wide, and the audience looked as though it were beginning to take a more sincere interest in the match now as Rex continued.

"Think about it Underwood, we were the champions for so long before Duelist Kingdom. Our names were known all over Japan, but then after just one loss it all seemed to vanish." Rex shouted, "For a while, yeah I blamed Wheeler, I could only dream of the day I'd get even with him for humiliating me! But after getting myself knocked back to the minor leagues and spending almost a year dueling in the streets for new cards, I finally decided something."

Rex looked around the audience around him, and raised his fist overhead.

"I mostly loved all the attention that I got for being a champion. All the recognition, all of the fans that worshipped the ground I stood on! I'd need to be an idiot to throw my chances at that away just because of one lucky punk that managed to beat me once! I'd managed to conquer almost every other duelist I fought, and if I had worked my way up before I could do it again!" Rex declared, pointing to Weevil now, "And if Joey gets in my way…Then all the worse for him. But I'm not wasting the rest of my life on some stupid vendetta! I'm going back to the top, without the past holding me back."

Weevil sneered in response to this, and snickered a little.

"You can say what you want Rex, but can you really prove you're over your little Wheeler-hatred?" Weevil challenged.

"Who says I'm over it? I can't stand the guy!" Rex shouted, "But I'm not wasting more time hunting him down. Now then, I believe it's my turn…"

Rex drew his card with a smile, and held it up, "And I'm gonna show you just how far I've moved on!"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the VIP seats, Joey looked surprised after Rex's speech.

"Well, he still hates me that's for sure…" He said, "But he's not gonna keep hunting me, that's a nice change. A little weird, but nice."

"If he wins this match though, he might have that chance to even up the score with you." Kaiba pointed out, "Personally, I think he wouldn't have much trouble."

Joey glared at Kaiba, not noticing as Yugi consulted with the pharaoh.

"_Well Yami? What do you think?"_ He asked.

"_Rex does still carry a great amount of anger and jealousy directed mostly at Joey." _Yami responded, _"But if he's able to avoid making revenge his only goal in life, he may actually become stronger for it. There's no denying that the drive for vengeance can be powerful, but if it's your sole reason for living you have nothing but an existence centered on hatred. True, Rex is replacing that with a drive for power and respect, but it does give him a bit of depth to his life."_

"_How much depth would you say?"_ Yugi thought, _"I'd still wager that I could stand in a puddle of him and not get my feet wet."_

"_Maybe the soles of my shoes, but it's a slight improvement. If he can move past even that, we might see more improvement on his part."_ Yami smiled, _"It would seem his encounters at the hands of the Orichalcos changed him, slightly for the better."_

"_Maybe Weevil ought to take a leaf from his book."_ Yugi thought, leaning back in his chair.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Weevil was glaring at rex on the arena floor, and he held up one hand as Rex selected a card.

"Before you make any moves, let me point out that you and I both enjoyed the perks of stardom at one point." Weevil declared, "Taking rare cards from kids who wanted our autographs, having fans follow us wherever we went, what makes you think you're so much better than I am?"

"Maybe it's because I always played fair in my duels and never tried to bend the rules." Rex smiled, "Let's not forget, you got your hands on an advanced copy of the rule book for Duelist Kingdom…You tried to sabotage both Yugi and Joey's decks in the past…And I'll bet you even managed to get some info on the deckmaster system once you received your invitation to this tournament."

Weevil just laughed again and shrugged at the accusations.

"I do what it takes to win Rex. There's no rules against studying up on your opponents or the rules of tournament last I checked. So what if it's a little unfair, at least I never hid cards up my sleeves like a certain other champion we both know." Weevil pointed out.

"And I'd agree that your more fair than Bandit Keith, I think everyone can." Rex said, "But that doesn't change the fact that you've always bent hte rules when given the chance while I've always played straight. So who do you think is really the stronger duelist in a fair match?"

"Guess we'll find out!" Roland shouted, "Enough talk, get back to dueling or I'll have to disqualify you Mr. Raptor!"

The audience, which had been listening to Rex and Weevil's banter, now seemed more into the duel before them. Roland's threat was greeted by cries of protest, most of which were along the lines of 'We want a real winner, don't disqualify anyone!' Rex placed a card onto his disk with a grin.

"No problem, I'm gonna stomp Weevil out of existence!" Rex shouted, several audience member (Mary Gold included) cheering at this declaration, "I summon Element Saurus (1500/1200)!"

Form the trees jumped a miniature version of Tyrannosaurus Rex, its arms and body ringed with strange symbols. It roared as the humidity around it boosted its stats to (1800/1500) and it glared at Weevil's facedown card. About half of the strange letters on its body began to glow with a brown light, shimmering in the warm air.

"Now then, since there are Earth-monsters on the field, my monster negates the effects of your monsters when it beats them." Rex grinned, "Take down his facedown monster with magma blast!"

The glowing creature spat a blob of molten rock from its jaws which splattered over the facedown card. On it appeared what looked like a mass of green tentacles which writhed in agony as they were burned away by the magma. Rex grinned as Weevil drew back in fear.

"Parasite Paracide (500/300)? Thought so." Rex smiled, "Driceratops, get one of his army ants!"

The larger monster took flight again, slamming its massive body on top of one of the ant tokens. Weevil shrieked as he was shaken to the ground again, and his life points plummeted as a result.

**Weevil: 3400**

**Rex: 5100**

"_So much for my Jade Insect Whistle…"_ Weevil thought, looking at his now useless facedown card.

"That's my turn Weevil. Send out another bug so I can squash it!" Rex roared.

Weevil drew, scowling at his hand. He reluctantly took one of his cards and placed it into his disk.

"I'll start this turn with Card of Demise, letting me draw five cards." Weevil stated.

Above Weevil appeared something that was highly out of place in the tropical setting: A giant guillotine blade. Five ropes held the blade up and a bare-chested man wearing a black hood over his face stood behind Weevil, hefting an axe over one shoulder.

"Of course I'll lose my entire hand after five of my turns, but why worry about that?" Weevil shrugged as he placed another card down, "I play my Insect Barrier spell card!"

A grid of yellow lasers extended over Weevil's field, forming a tightly knit net of light around him. Rex burst into laughter at the sight of this, holding his sides as a stitch developed.

"That's the biggest waste I've ever seen!" He laughed, "You haven't turned my monster into bugs yet!"

"Did I mention this is just a tribute?" Weevil asked, ignoring the laughter.

Rex stopped laughing, a confused look crossing his face.

"Um…You can't tribute spell cards." He pointed out, "Have you just gone crazy or something?"

"Oh no, I'm quite sane." Weevil smiled.

"That's debatable." Roland muttered as Weevil began to laugh again.

"You see Rex, I'm about to summon a monster that requires me to get rid of two of my spell or trap cards. So I'll tribute my Insect Barrier and my facedown Jade Insect Whistle…"

The two cards began to tremble as out of the ground burst thousands of tiny black ants. They swarmed over the two cards and slowly broke them down into little piece which were transported underground by the workers.

"And I summon my Anteatereatingant (2000/500)!" Weevil shouted.

The ground shook violently as the trees behind Weevil all toppled to the ground. A massive pile of dirt rose up, and fell away revealing a giant ant that dwarfed even the Dark Driceratops! A sharp ridge of bony exoskeleton extended down each of its six legs, and orange drool oozed out from its mandibles, sizzling as it hit the ground.

"So it's a big ant." Rex shrugged, "No match for my monsters…"

"I'm not done yet. I now tribute my other ant token to summon in my favorite monster." Weevil declared, "I summon her royal majesty: Insect Queen (2200/2400)!"

The lone ant token faded away, and from above plummeted a more frightening figure. With the face of a woman on the body of a giant spider, colored red and blue, it was no surprise that this creature elicited another gag from Kevin Fischer in the audience (Espa Roba moved over a couple seat so he now was seated directly behind Celeste rather than Kevin).

Insect queen looked at the Anteatereatingant, and a drop of green drool slid out of the side of her mouth. Her hunger drove her attack strength up to (2600/2400). Weevil just grinned at his favored creature before sliding another card into place.

"And next I'll activate Graceful Charity, so I draw three cards and discard two." Weevil said as white light was infused into his deck, "Let me see…I'll discard my second Insect Barrier and Elegant Light Level 4."

The two cards were slid into his grave, but above the bug duelist appeared a lantern made of red and pink paper. A single light appeared in the lantern, and Weevil pulled his deck from its slot once again.

"Since I discarded Elegant Lantern, it gives off its light and attracts a level four monster from my deck to the field." Weevil explained, noting Rex's confused stare, "And since insects are naturally attracted to light, I think this will be a big help. I choose my Chainsaw Insect (2400/0)!"

The sound of a revving could be heard, and another tree on the sidelines fell over as a large beetle skittered over the stump. This one had a pair of massive pincers on its jaws, with edges that were currently spinning much like a chainsaw blade, hence the monster's name. Weevil pointed up to his Insect Queen (2800/2400), who had begun to drool again.

"Of course, another Insect on the field gives my queen another 200 attack points." Weevil stated, "But before we get to attacking…"

"Yeah, are you just gonna wait till my dinos go extinct or something?" Rex asked, "This has to be the longest turn I've ever waited through!"

"Patience Rex, I'll be destroying your monsters soon. But first I activate the effect of my Anteatereatingant: If I choose to give up my chance to attack with her, she'll destroy one spell or trap you have!"

The giant ant sprayed a foul gout of orange mist from its mouth. The mists settled over the forest around them causing the grass, flowers, and leaves to immediately shrivel up and vanish. The bark of the trees had its color leeched away, leaving the field awash in gray once more. Rex's monsters looked depressed that their home was now destroyed and their attack scores fell back to their starting level (Driceratops: 2400/1500, Element Saurus: 1500/1200).

Rex stood tall, staring up at the giant Insects as they prepared to attack…

"Chainsaw Insect, chain mandible crush!" Weevil ordered, "Get his Element Saurus!"

The insect's chainsaw mouth tore into the waistline of the weaker dinosaur, which roared as it was cut in half and collapsed, turning back into a pile of bones. Rex's disk let out a beeping noise, drawing his attention to it.

"Oh, and since my Chainsaw Insect was in a battle, you get to draw one card. Like it will matter…" Weevil grinned, watching as Rex picked up his card "Insect Queen, devour my Chainsaw Insect so that you can attack his Dark Driceratops!"

The Chainsaw Insect looked worried all of the sudden as the royal bug descended on him. A squeal was heard, followed by a loud crunch and a slurping noise (Kevin Fischer once more retched over the back of his seat, Espa did not regret his choice to move). The Queen (2600/2400), her hunger somewhat satiated, glared at Rex's Driceratops and opened her mouth. A vile liquid shot out from her mouth, dousing the poor dinosaur. It groaned as the queen's green acid ate away at its form until nothing was left but bones that collapsed into dust.

Cheers and jeers rang out from the audience at the gruesome display. Weevil smiled, taking a bow in response.

**Weevil: 3400**

**Rex: 4000**

"You done yet?" Rex asked.

"Not quite." Weevil grinned, "First I set a facedown card, and then I end my turn. And since she destroyed a monster on this turn, my queen will lay an egg, known as an Insect Token (100/100)."

The queen's abdomen quivered and she lowered to the ground. Kevin Fischer retched again as a slimy, brown egg emerged from the queen's rear end. She gave the egg a loving look, and her stats leapt again (2800/2400). The executioner behind Weevil lifted his axe and cut through one of the ropes. It snapped, the blade dropping a bit as a result. Rex just drew his card, trying to swallow the bile that was now building up in his throat.

"_Ugh…Insects have to be the most disgusting monsters ever."_ Rex lamented.

He looked over his hand, shrugging as he placed a card into his disk.

"I activate Pot of Greed." He stated, drawing two more cards.

Seeing the extra two cards, he quickly slapped one onto his disk.

"And now I summon Granadora (1900/700)." Rex announced.

From behind his deckmaster emerged another monster. True to the standards set, this one wasn't very nice to look at. It had pale green scales, stood on two legs, and sported a pair of arms that ended in sharp spikes. Its head was massive and deformed, with six eyes running down the length of its muzzle. It opened its mouth wide, showing a second set of jaws within the first set along with rows of jagged teeth. It roared, and Rex glowed with blue energy as he took a deep breath.

"Ah…Music to my ears. Since I summoned this guy, he thanks me with an extra 1000 life points." Rex said as he played another card, "Of course I'll lose 2000 if he's destroyed, but tributing isn't destroying. So I can give him up for my Ultra Evolution Pill!"

A large medicine capsule colored red and blue dropped from above and landed inside Granadora's mouth. The creature gulped the pill down, and then doubled over in pain as its scales turned pitch black. Its body swelled in size until it was at least three stories tall, and its forelimbs lost their spikes. Said spikes were replaced by large, clawed hands, and gray armor sprouted all over the monster's body, sporting jagged edges. It roared as four of its eyes disappeared, its jaws reducing in size compared to the rest of its head. The creature growled as it stared down at Weevil's two monsters with a hungry look in its eyes…

"That was disgusting, but certainly effective!" Roland called out, "Rex has summoned…Um…Anybody know what that is?"

"I don't think I want to!" Weevil shouted, falling back as he stared at the massive beast.

"Allow me to introduce you: This guy is Ultimate Tyranno (3000/2200)." Rex explained, "Tyranno, meet breakfast…"

Rex pointed at the Insect Token…

"Lunch…"

He gestured to Anteatereatingant, which trembled and squealed in fear…

"Dinner…"

Insect Queen gave a frightened trill at the monster…

"And dessert." Rex grinned as he pointed at Weevil, who looked close to wetting himself.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the VIP seat, Brian was doing some quick math in his head. He let out a low whistle, and shook his head.

"Weevil has had it. If that monster does what Rex is implying it can do, then Weevil will lose 4700 life points." Brian said.

"So do you really think that thing can attack all of Weevil's monsters?" Joey asked, looking to his best friend.

"I don't doubt it. I've heard a bit about this monster. It's incredibly rare, and for good reason." Yugi trembled a bit, "I almost feel sorry for Weevil."

"_Almost being the operative word in that sentence."_ Mai thought with a grin, _"I'm going to enjoy this…"_

"Rex, kills bugs dead." Tim smiled, "Who needs chemicals?"

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the audience, Mary pointed at the massive beast with a trembling hand.

"That's the monster he beat me with!" She shouted.

"That guy attacked my little girl with that thing!" Gold shouted angrily, "If I wasn't such a nice guy I'd…"

"Nasty monster that one. If it has the chance, it has to attack first, and it needs to attack all of the opponent's monsters." Pegasus stated, nodding at the creature, "Mr. Raptor is truly a talented duelist to be able to use such a monster."

"So he's gonna win now?" Ruby asked.

"Now, I think Mr. Underwood has one last trick." Pegasus smiled.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Can you see well enough?" Mako asked, looking to Mr. Richington.

"Quite." The rich man nodded.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

After the transformation of Granadora, Kevin had lost his sense of balance due to a wave of nausea, causing his head to fall into Ronaldo's lap. The Spanish boy didn't seem happy with the arrangement, but at Celeste's prompting made no attempt to move him.

"I'll be fine, give me a minute." Kevin groaned.

"Poor dear…" Celeste muttered, "You sure you're okay?"

"This entire duel has been an exercise in disgust, and if I may be frank I've never dealt with the holographic gore and such very well." Kevin admitted.

"Out of simple curiosity, what cards do you have?" Ronaldo asked, trying to picture a monster someone with a queasy might use.

"Archfiends." Was Kevin's answer.

Ronaldo just sighed, and resisted the urge to push the geeky teen's head from his lap. He doubted Celeste would approve.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Ultimate Tyranno…" Rex began.

"I activate my facedown card!" Weevil shouted frantically, "Electric Fence!"

The card lifted and a chain link fence with a sign reading "Warning: High Voltage" attached to it burst out of the ground between the two. Ultimate Tyranno crashed into the barrier, bolts of lightening shooting over its body and forcing it back to Rex's field. Weevil breathed a sigh of relief as he grinned at Rex through the links.

"A little surprise for you Rexie. My trap here prevents attacks from Beast, Winged-Beast, and most importantly Dinosaur Type monsters for as long as I have it!" Weevil laughed.

"You little…How long have you owned this card?" Rex shouted.

"About a year now, I was gonna need something if we wound up dueling." Weevil explained, "And since it doesn't target, your deckmaster is useless. Why'd you even pick such a lame deckmaster against me? I barely have any targeting cards!"

Uraby was growling, looking eager to tear out Weevil's throat. Weevil just sneered in response, stroking the head of his Pinch Hopper which was settled to him. Rex just looked at Uraby and sighed.

"To be honest, I haven't found the best deckmaster for my deck yet." He said, "Uraby here was a random pick. Sorry boy…"

Uraby gave Rex a slightly hurt look, but growled gently as though forgiving him. Rex looked at his last card and sighed.

"It's your turn Weevil." He admitted.

**Weevil: 3400**

**Rex: 5000**

Weevil drew his card with a smile, and frowned again as he saw it.

"Um…I'll move all my monsters to defense mode." He decided, turning both the cards on his disk "Go ahead."

Insect Queen and Anteatereatingant both lowered their bodies so they now stood closer to the ground. The Insect Egg Token rolled backward, away from the battle to indicate a move to defense mode. The executioner sliced through the second rope, causing another shift in the guillotine above.

Rex drew his card, and smiled as he held it up.

"I activate Heavy Storm!" He shouted, a powerful wind blasting over the field.

The chain link fence was quickly torn down by the winds, falling flat to the ground before it vanished. Weevil squeaked in fear as Rex slapped another card onto his disk.

"And now I summon Crawling Dragon #2 (1600/1200)." Rex continued, slapping down another monster.

With Jurassic World no longer influencing the field, another skeleton rose up. This one sported an almost cylindrical jaw, only the end of which was hinged with oversized teeth, and implied another four-legged monster. The muscle structure grew over it, followed by brown and black scales with pink over its stomach and chest. The monster growled as it glared at Weevil with hunger in its eyes again.

"Why do all these dinosaurs look hungry?" Weevil commented.

"What do you expect? It's been millions of years since their last meal." Rex pointed out, "And before anybody says anything, my Crawling Dragon #2 is a dinosaur type. I don't why it's called a dragon, but it's a dino. And now, my Ultimate Tyranno will rip all of Weevil's monsters apart. Jurassic rage!"

The massive dinosaur roared and spun around, slamming its tail into the Anteatereatingant. The huge bug shrieked as it flew to the side, slamming into Insect Queen on the way and causing both of them to crash land on top of the defenseless Insect Token. All three monsters leaked out green ooze before they shattered apart (A sight that didn't help Kevin very much, he finally passed out).

"Crawling Dragon, grinder jaw!" Rex shouted.

The dinosaur launched itself forward and clamped its disfigured teeth around Weevil's leg. Weevil screamed in pain as the jaws ground down on his leg, and he frantically beat at the carnivore with his duel disk until it released him. His leg was unharmed, of course, but the tingling sensation was convincing enough that Weevil would have believed it was missing.

The audience was cheering this display, Mary calling out especially loud support for Rex.

**Weevil: 1800**

**Rex: 5000**

"That's all I can do Weevil." Rex grinned, "Make your move, this is getting fun."

Weevil drew, a look of relief finally coming over his face. He placed a monster onto his disk, and a large bug with a black shell that sported a white skull mark on it rose up before him.

"I start with Skull Mark Ladybug (500/1500)." Weevil announced, pointing at his bug as he played another card, "And then I activate a spell known as Different Dimension Gate!"

Above the battle field, a howling portal tore open. Inside shimmered a myriad of colors and light, which Rex and his monster cast suspicious glances at.

"Like it? Then you'll love this." Weevil smiled, "Now I select one of my monsters and one of your monsters to take a trip through the gate. I send my Ladybug and your Ultimate Tyranno through the portal and out of play!"

The gate howled louder, and began drawing up air, dirt, the fallen trees, and both of the monsters Weevil had named. Crawling Dragon #2 dug its claws into the ground to avoid being yanked into the portal, while Rex kept a firm grip on his hat in order to avoid losing it. The last of Ultimate Tyranno's tail vanished into the portal, which fell silent and stopped pulling.

"Fine, but you got rid of your only monster." Rex pointed out.

"Not quite, I have another one right here." Weevil said, "A powerful eight-star monster that will seal your doom."

"And nothing to tribute for it. Even with your deckmaster you need one tribute." Rex pointed out.

"This is a different kind of monster. I remove Parasite Caterpillar and Parasite Paracide from my graveyard…" Weevil smiled, taking the two cards.

The ground trembled once again, and from the ravaged earth burst what was easily the largest monster yet. It was huge centipede, with a black carapace, easily as long as a bus (at least what could be seen above the ground) with a look in its segmented eyes that suggested nothing would please it more than to rip Rex into two separate pieces and then eat him.

"…Meet my Doom Dozer (2800/2600)!" Weevil shouted.

Rex stared up at the monster, speechless at the force before him.

"And now…Attack his misnamed monster with devil drag!" Weevil ordered.

The huge bug plunged forward, grabbing the Crawling Dragon as it attempted to slink away. It pulled the creature underground with it as the rest of its body followed it along it path. By the time its rear end vanished from sight, the head reemerged, with blood dripping its mouth, in its original spot. Weevil ducked to the side, avoiding several drops that were about to land in his hair, and he laughed at Rex.

"You don't have a chance now. Doom Dozer is stronger than anything you could hope to summon!" Weevil called out, "And every time he damages your life points, you lose the top card of your deck!"

Rex numbly pulled a card from his deck (Polymerization) and tossed it into his graveyard after confirming it. Weevil nodded to the executioner behind him, whom then cut the third rope that suspended the guillotine. Rex numbly drew his card and looked at it in the hopes that it would save him.

**Weevil: 1800**

**Rex: 3800**

He frowned at the card, but knew there was no other choice.

"I activate Card of Sanctity!" Rex called out, golden flooding the field, "Go ahead and draw Weevil!"

Rex pulled six cards, while Weevil grabbed four. Rex winced at his hand; it was one card short of what he needed.

"I set one monster face down, and set a card facedown." He grumbled, the two hidden cards appearing before him, "Your move."

Weevil was snickering as he drew.

"You had me worried for a minute. Top-decking a Card of Sanctity right when you need it? I thought only Yugi could pull stuff like that." Weevil laughed, setting down a card, "Ah well, this was fun while it lasted. I summon my Insect Knight (1900/1500)."

From behind Doom Dozer jumped what looked like a fusion between a man and praying mantis. His chitinous armor was tan, and he carried a small buckler and a sword. He pointed the sword at Rex's facedown card, his red eyes shimmering with glee.

"Attack his facedown monster my knight!" Weevil commanded.

The bug-warrior jumped forward and drove its sword into the center of the facedown card. On the card appeared another dinosaur (as expected), this one with yellow scales and a snout shaped like a large mallet. The sword was stuck through its chest, but the monster managed to thrash about its head well enough that it clobbered Insect Knight in its chest and sent it flying back toward Weevil. The knight vanished a second before striking his master.

"That was my Hyper Hammerhead (1500/1200)." Rex explained, "I was hoping you'd attack it with Doom Dozer, because any monster that fights it goes back to its owner's hand."

"Tough luck, I figured your monster couldn't defend you." Weevil chortled, "Get him Doom Dozer!"

The massive centipede charged forward, its massive jaws aimed to crunch down on Rex. The dino duelist braced himself as the monster slammed down over him, swallowing him with a single gulp. Doom Dozer continued to move underground, popping out once again just as its tail end vanish underground. It groaned, and spat Rex back out onto his field, covered with purple goop from head to toe.

In the audience, almost everyone looked pale after that display, Ronaldo clapping one hand over his mouth in an attempt to avoid gagging. Celeste was gasping for breath as she leaned forward, while Mr. Richington was mopping his brow with an expensive silk handkerchief. (Personally embroidered and monogrammed).

Roland watched as Rex got back to his feet, sliding due to the slippery covering he now had. Rex regained his balance just as his life points stopped falling, and he reluctantly took the top card of his deck (Mad Sword Beast) and showed it to Weevil before he put it into his graveyard.

"Looks like this match is almost over folks!" Roland called out, "Weevil is coming out on top!"

**Weevil: 1800**

**Rex: 1000**

"I'm ending my turn now, and discarding this useless Howling Insect due to the hand limit." Weevil said, dropping a card from his hand as the masked man cut the fourth rope.

The guillotine overhead hung by a single rope now, and threatened to drop at any time.

Rex drew his card, his eyes lighting up as he saw it.

"I special summon Gilasaurus, using its effect!" Rex shouted, another of the lightning fast raptors forming in front of him from its own bones.

Weevil just laughed as another hole opened next to Doom Dozer.

"You're dumber than your dinosaurs Rex! You'd have to be to let me get my Insect Queen (2200/2400) back that easily!" Weevil shouted as the empress of arachnids burst from the hole.

She looked at Doom Dozer, and squealed out an approving noise as her stats were bolstered to (2600/2400). Rex just chuckled as he pointed to his facedown card.

"Thanks Weevil, you did just what I wanted you to do." Rex smiled, "I activate my facedown card: Hunting Instinct!"

The trap flipped over, and another roar shot out of it. Green smoke began to rise from Insect Queen, and the sound of something sniffing could be heard as Rex slapped another card onto his disk.

"This trap only works if you special summon a monster." Rex explained, "Then, I get to special summon a Dinosaur from my hand. So let's give a warm welcome to my Black Tyranno (2600/1800)!"

A giant skeleton, much smaller than Doom Dozer (About half the height) rose up behind Rex. The muscles formed, large and powerful in the legs and jaw but considerably smaller in the forelimbs. Black scales with red scars crossed through them covered the internal workings of the monster. A pair of beady, red eyes set themselves into the skull, and the creature roared with its new life.

Weevil just glared at the beast with a loud guffaw.

"What a waste of time! It only ties with my Insect Queen…" Weevil pointed out.

"That's where this last card comes in." Rex said as he held up another card, "It's called Mystical Space Typhoon, know what it does?"

"Of course, but there are no spells or traps to destroy!" Weevil shouted.

"Oh no? Look up." Rex challenged, pointing at the still silent gate above them, "Remember what you sent through that? These other two monsters are a 'just in case' sort of deal. My real monster is up there thanks to you."

Weevil stared up at the gate. To be honest, he remembered very well what went through it, but he had forgotten about the gate itself until now. Wind shot from the gate, tearing the dimensional hole open once more. Out of the gate was spat a very disgruntled little Skull-Marked Ladybug (500/1500), which chattered angrily as it settled onto Weevil's field.

It was followed by a much larger, and proportionally angrier, dinosaur: Rex's long lost Ultimate Tyranno (3000/2200)! Rex smiled as the beast glared at Weevil's field, obviously not amused after its jaunt through the multiverse. Weevil drew back, holding up his hands in protest as the portal vanished overhead.

"Now just hold on a minute…" He started.

"No, I've had enough waiting." Rex growled, "Utimate Tyranno, Jurassic rage! Attack the Ladybug, then Doom Dozer, and then Insect Queen!"

The huge carnivore plowed forward, stomping on Skull-Marked Ladybug and skidding to a stop. It spun around, looking for its target, accidentally striking Doom Dozer with its tail as it did so. The Doom Dozer went flying into the weakened Insect Queen (2200/2400), both of which shattered against the nearest wall. Ultimate Tyranno managed to lift one foot enough to see the squashed remains of a beetle on the bottom, growled in disgust, and wiped it off on the ground before returning to Rex. It stopped in front of Weevil, growling as though saying 'You're next.'

"Guess my monster wants to deal you the damage personally." Rex commented with a smile, Drawing a thumb across his throat in a slashing motion, "Finish it!"

Ultimate Tyranno lifted one foot to smash Weevil into pulp on the ground. Weevil cowered, folding his arms over his head.

"WAIT!" He howled.

Rex held up a hand, and his monster stopped in mid attack. Weevil nervously got up, and pointed to his face.

"You wouldn't hit a guy wearing glasses, would you?" He challenged.

Ultimate Tyranno responded by leaning in closer, and snorting a blast of stinking breath into Weevil's face. The boy coughed, causing his glasses to slide off his nose and fall to the ground with a tinkle of breaking glass.

"Uh oh…" Weevil moaned.

Everyone looked away, except Rex and Roland, as Weevil was quickly reduced to dinosaur toe jam with one well-placed stomp.

**Weevil: 0**

**Rex: 1000**

"And Rex Raptor pulls out a victory!" Roland called out.

The stunned audience was silent for minute. Then, applause started to sound off. It slowly grew, until the whole audience was cheering and drowned out even the noise of Rex's monsters roaring in victory.

"_I'd be lying to myself if I said I hadn't wanted to do that for years."_ Rex thought as his monster vanished.

Weevil was lying on the ground, moaning and twitching.

"That couldn't happen. I couldn't have lost to the dino dork!" Weevil groaned.

"Sorry Weevil, but we have a lovely parting gift. How does a five-hundred foot drop into boiling tree sap sound?" Roland smiled.

A hole opened beneath Weevil, who screamed and grabbed the edge.

"No! It's a mistake! I can't have lost!" Weevil protested.

He stopped as Rex planted a foot on his forehead. A grin crossed Rex's face as he applied gentle pressure.

"I'd be lying if I said I hadn't dreamed of doing this as well." He muttered, forcing down with his foot.

Weevil screamed as he lost his grip and vanished down the hole. The pit vanished, and the audience cheered again at the ruthless display. Rex took a deep breath as he started to vanish.

"That was better than a lifetime of therapy." He smiled.

-----------------------------------------------------------

In the audience, Mr. Richington had been clapping with the others. Mako had been silent, listening to the rowdy applause with interest.

"_At first, no one cared about that match. Before they knew it everyone got drawn in."_ Mako realized, _"Rex and Weevil might just make it back to champion status. Well…Rex might anyway."_

"Boy, do I feel bad for the poor saps that will have to sit next to Weevil." Richington said, laughing, "Oh wait, no I don't. They aren't me!"

A scream sounded from above, and Weevil Underwood (covered in a sticky golden substance) landed with a crash in the seat to Richington's left.

"Oh bugger…" Richington grumbled.

"Sap…burns…pain…" Weevil moaned, unable to a coherent sentence after the vicious beating.

"How do kids say it these days…Ah yes. I believe you have been 'owned.'" Mr. Richington said as the sap vanished.

"Please…stop…talking…" Weevil groaned, sliding down to the floor, "Must…save…anger…for…Yugi…and Rex…"

"There is no getting through to that guy." Mako sighed.

_**Well, sometimes the most important lessons are the hardest to learn.**_

_**I guess we'll see how certain other lessons have gone now. It's time for another long awaited rematch.**_

_**They've dueled in Duelist Kingdom, and after Battle City…**_

_**Their names are known far and wide…**_

_**And next time, they're gonna settle which is truly the strongest once and for all.**_

_**That's right, it's Yugi Mutou vs. Joey Wheeler! Catch it next time in**_

_**Friendly Fire**_

_**If you miss this match, we all get to laugh at you.**_

---

Original Cards

---

Electric Fence

Continuous Trap

Image of a Black Tyranno, Behemoth the King of All Animals, and Roc from the Valley of Haze all standing behind a gate. A High Voltage warning sign is attached to the gate

As long as this card remains on the field, neither player may declare an attack with any Beast, Winged-Beast, or Dinosaur-type monsters.

---

Dinostamp

Spell/Quickplay

Image of a Black Tyranno preparing to stomp on something. The picture is from the point of view of whatever is being stomped.

You may only activate this card when you declare an attack with a Dinosaur-type monster. Destroy one spell or trap on your opponent's field.

_This card was first used in the anime by Tyranno Hasselberry in the episode "Camaraderie Contest." All credit for this card goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Parasite Caterpillar

Insect

EARTH

Three Star

800 attack

800 defense

When this monster is destroyed as a result of battle, attach a 'Cocoon Counter' to the monster that destroyed it. A monster equipped with a 'Cocoon Counter' may not attack or change its battle position. If it is the only monster on your opponent's field, you may attack directly. After a monster has been equipped with a 'Cocoon Counter' for three of your opponent's standby phases, you may tribute it to special summon one 'Poison Butterfly' from your hand or deck to your opponent's side of the field.

---

The Carrier

Trap

Image of a goblin with a glowing parasite jumping away from its body.

You may only activate this card when your opponent declares an attack against a face up Insect-type monster that you control. Return the targeted Insect to your hand, and special summon another Insect from your hand to the field. The special summoned monster becomes the new attack target.

_The above two cards were first used by Weevil Underwood in the anime episode "On the Wrong Track (Part 1)." All credit for them goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Elegant Light Level 4

Trap

Image of a lantern made of red paper, with a light floating around inside of it.

When this card is sent from your hand to the graveyard you may special summon one level four monster from your deck.

_This card was first used by X in the anime episode "Not Playing with a Full Deck." All credit goes to the writers._

---

Card of Demise

Spell

Image of a man preparing to cut a deck of cards in half with a guillotine.

Draw five cards. After five of your end phases, discard your entire hand.

_This card was first used by Seto Kaiba in the anime episode "Clash in the Coliseum(Part 4)." All credit for it goes to that episode's writers._

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Pinch Hopper

Insect

EARTH

Four star

1000 attack

1200 defense

Pheromone Signal: As long as this monster remains on the sidelines, all Insect-type monsters in your hand and field are treated as though they had two fewer stars.

---

Uraby

Dinosaur

EARTH

Four star

1500 attack

800 defense

Protection Instinct: If a Dinosaur-type monster on your side of the field is targeted by a card effect, you may discard one card from your hand that is the same type as the targeting card (Monster, Spell, or Trap) in order to negate and destroy that card.


	31. Friendly Fire

_**Ladies and Gentlemen, if we were to hand out awards for the most anticipated match of the tournament, I'd have to say this one…**_

_**Actually, it seems that it wouldn't rank as high as you might think. But if an award were given for 'Greatest Dueling Friends' I'd personally give it to our next competitors.**_

_**Up first is Joey Wheeler, a duelist known for his amazing luck, which seems to be on the rise again!**_

_**And his opponent is his best friend: Yugi Mutou, the uncontested King of Games!**_

_**It's time now for these two to have their first broadcasted match since Duelist Kingdom.**_

_**And even though Joey doesn't seem as popular, this is one for the history books.**_

_**But can one of them really bring up the guts to finish off their best friend?**_

Friendly Fire

The audience had been whipped into frenzy by Roland's latest introduction speech. The pictures of Yugi and Joey shone overhead, and Roland pointed up at them.

"Okay folks, get ready to cheer your lungs out!" Roland called out, "In two minutes…"

Roland stopped, and clutched at his ear-piece. He looked shocked for a minute, and then cleared his throat.

"Um…Make that _five _minutes folks." Roland said, sheepishly, "We seem to be having a minor…Technical difficulty. Until then, warm up those vocal chords!"

If the audience had heard this, it didn't register. Apparently, there were enough Yugi and Joey fans in the audience that there was little difference between five and two minutes to them.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Rex was chortling from his seat as he looked at the pairing. Joey cast a glare at him.

"What's so funny Raptor?" Joey challenged.

Rex stopped laughing long enough to respond.

"Oh, I was just thinking that it was too bad the next match is gonna be so short." Rex grinned, "After all, you're facing off with Yugi. You don't have a prayer, Wheeler!"

"I actually agree with Raptor for once." Kaiba grumbled.

Joey clenched his fists as Mai and Victor muscled him back into his chair as he tried to jump out of it. The end result was Joey slipping from his chair and falling to the ground, eliciting even more laughter from Rex as he climbed back into his seat.

"Don't let them get to you." Mai said to Joey, "Just show them that their wrong. After all you and Yugi practically know each other's decks by heart. You're just as strong as he is."

"Don't get his hopes, please." Kaiba sighed, "My stomach can't handle it."

Joey's cards appeared before him, and he hastily looked them over. Sighing, he slid out his Battle Warrior and Alligator Sword, replacing them with a pair of monster from the sidelines. Looking at his remaining cards, he cast his gaze on one from his side deck. With a smile, he took out Legendary Sword for another spell card. He nodded as his cards vanished, and turned to Yugi.

Yugi had been dutifully going over his own cards. He hadn't made any changes yet, but finally gave a nod and slid out two traps (Divine Wind and Chain Destruction) for another pair of traps. He nodded as he moved a spell (Hand Control) replacing it with another spell. Smiling, he looked up to Joey.

"Okay Joey, I'm all set." Yugi smiled as the two shook hands, "To a good match."

"You bet Yug'." Joey grinned, "This'll be one to remember. Nothing on the line this time."

"Yeah, good point." Yugi nodded, as they broke off the handshake, "Hey, what sort of technical difficulties do you think they're having?"

"Search me." Kaiba growled, "But if they know what's good for them, those computer technicians will fix it. And I mean fast…"

----------------------------------------------------------------

In the real world, Sota attention was divided at the moment.

"For the last time Jackson, I get to choose who I bet on because I lost our last bet!" Sota shouted.

"But you decided not to bet on the last duel. We start over again with me!" Jackson responded.

"We _agreed _to not bet on that duel!" Sota practically screamed.

Rei cleared her throat as she typed in some commands.

"And no, we are not having them duel in your little 'Ruined Castle' arena." Sota declared, "I say they duel at the 'Magic Coliseum!'"

"Well who put you in charge of choosing?" Rei challenged.

"Enough!" Mokuba's boomed out from the back of the room, causing the argument to come to a halt, "That was fun to watch for the first two minutes, I'll admit, but if you three can't agree then I'll have to choose."

Mokuba's screen lit up, and he smiled as he typed in some commands. He then pointed to Jackson and Sota.

"Okay, I'm thinking of a number between one and ten. Jackson?" The black-haired boy asked.

"Um…Five?" Jackson guessed, not seeing where this was going.

"I say three." Sota grumbled.

"It was two, Sota gets to choose who to bet on first." Mokuba said, punching another command, "And just so I'm fair, we're going with the arena that Jackson designed in case this duel came up."

"What!" Rei, Sota, and several other programmers all protested.

Mokuba looked down at all of them, and their complaints were silenced. Jackson sighed and looked up to the screen.

"Almost makes it worth losing this bet." He said as Sota wrote down his wager on the betting slip.

"Okay, double or nothing says that Yugi wins." Sota grinned as he wrote, "Almost makes it worth not getting them to duel in my arena."

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Pegasus clapped his hands in glee as he looked to his neighbors.

"Well isn't this wonderful? Yugi and Joey are finally going to duel again!" Pegasus cheered, "Oh, how I have waited to see another of their matches. The last duel I ever saw between them was in my Duelist Kingdom Tournament."

"Yeah, this'll be fun to watch." Gold grinned, "Too bad Wheeler will probably go down."

"I wouldn't be sure about that." Mary shook her head, "I've seen some replays of their last matches before, and they were always pretty close. Duelist Kingdom, Battle City, it didn't matter. Joey and Yugi are both really tough."

"Then this will be fun to watch." Ruby smiled.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Weevil was groaning his seat, not from pain this time but rather disappointment.

"Ugh…If there's one thing I can't stand its having to sit through a duel between two nauseatingly close friends." Weevil grumbled, "I wish I could throw up in here…"

"Now don't even joke about that. You'd hit my shoes and they're worth more than everything you've ever owned…And for that matter will ever own put together." Richington stated, looking to the bug duelist, "Besides, these two are some of the best in the world."

"The only duel I wanted to see more than this one, was Kaiba and Yugi." Mako said, "But I'm not complaining."

---------------------------------------------------------------

Ronaldo was on his feet, applauding like he would never the chance to again. His hands were starting to turn red, and Celeste and the others were observing this little spectacle with some interest.

"You should probably save your energy for the match." Celeste warned as Ronaldo sat down, blowing on his hands.

"I cannot help it, I get excited over watching high class duels." Ronaldo said, wincing as he tried to set his hands in his lap only to experience an unpleasant stinging sensation.

"Well I've been looking forward to a duel like this." Kevin said, finally recovered from the last match and sitting up straight.

"What, one that doesn't make you sick to your stomach?" Espa asked, "Because the next time you retch in my general direction…"

"Silence, the match is about to start!" Ronaldo interrupted, "We are going to be witnesses to greatness!"

Espa fell silent, but gave Kevin a stern gaze before looking into the arena.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Joey's finally up!" Serenity cheered, the lights slowly dimming, "I've been looking forward to him dueling, and to Yugi…But I didn't think I'd get to watch them duel each other!"

"Trust me, you won't be disappointed." Bakura grinned, "I saw them in Duelist Kingdom, and what a duel. I'm amazed that they know so much about the other's deck, and can still give still challenge each other so much."

John was remaining silent. In his head, he was saying a small prayer of thanks that he had an excellent view of the arena. He may have been training to become a clergyman, but John Peter was a duelist none the less.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twin flashes of light illuminated the box seats, and Brian grinned.

"Here we go." He said, turning to his brother.

"This is gonna be like Bruce Lee versus Chuck Norris…If they played Duel Monsters." Tim responded, "If anybody does a roundhouse kick, I'm outta here."

-------------------------------------------------------

Not even the monotony of the shadows around him could break up Roland's good mood at getting to host this duel. He held up his microphone and took a deep breath before starting.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this match is about to explode!" Roland called out, "In our arena today, Yugi Mutou, the King of Games, is about to face off with one of his best friends, Joey Wheeler. Get ready, because even between great friends, the duels can be long and bloody battles. So where better for our match to take place, than in a temple dedicated to such fights?"

Torches flared up, revealing the inside of a stone temple. Carved pillars rose up, and statues of armored soldiers lined the walls. The walls themselves were carved with images of war, and behind Roland was a massive monument: Twenty feet tall and made of bronze, depicting a man dressed in full battle armor with six spikes growing from his back and a massive hammer clutched in his hands. His hair and beard seemed to glow like fire in the torch light, as did his smoldering eyes.

"Welcome to the Temple of Ares, the god of war! And if anybody can appease this guy's lust for battle and bloodshed, our competitors certainly can." Roland called out, "First, a duelist who needs no introduction but will get one anyway, the King of Games and all around great guy, Yugi Mutou!"

The audience erupted into cheers as Yugi appeared, standing on a disk of gold that hovered about five feet off the ground.

"And his best friend slash opponent, Joey Wheeler, the Dueling Underdog!" Roland shouted.

Cheers (Significantly quieter Yugi's but still quite loud) rose up around the arena as another disk of gold appeared supporting the blond teen. Joey glared toward Roland with a serious expression.

"Call me a dog one more time…" He started.

"Okay gentlemen; don't feel the need to hold back!" Roland continued (ignoring Joey) as he floated up onto the top of the statue's head, "This is the temple of a war god, so we'd better see some great fights! Ready?"

Yugi and Joey both nodded to each other. The audience responded with one loud cry.

"YEAH!" They all yelled.

"THEN LET'S GET STARTED!" Roland shouted, his voice magnifying as it echoed off the walls, "SELECT YOUR DECKMASTERS!"

---------------------------------------------------------

In the real world, Mokuba uncovered his ears.

"Rei, turn his microphone down a notch, will ya?" He asked.

"No argument here." Rei nodded as she tapped on her keyboard.

---------------------------------------------------------

Joey was looking over his monsters, struggling to choose his deckmaster. His hand wavered in front of Flame Swordsman for a moment.

"_Come on, no pressure. It's just another friendly duel with Yugi."_ Joey told himself, _"Sure, I never beat him in a fair match, but I ain't just gonna roll over and play dead…Damn it, now Kaiba's got me doing it!"_

Joey stopped and looked at one of the monsters and gasped. A happy looking little dog sat on the card, causing Joey to clench a fist.

"_Where did…Aw crud, I got so distracted up there I added this Marron thing instead of my Sasuke Samurai!"_ Joey realized, _"This thing wouldn't do much good if I draw it and…Wait a sec…"_

Joey gave the puppy on the card a look and tapped it.

"_Last time I played by deckmaster rules, weak monsters had strong effects."_ Joey reasoned, _"Maybe this'll work."_

"I choose Outstanding Dog Marron for my deckmaster!" Joey called out.

Behind Joey, a red ball bounced out of nowhere and rolled into his leg. Joey looked down just as a puppy covered in curly, brown fur with a tag that read 'Marron' hanging from its collar bounded into view. It looked up at Joey and barked happily. Every female audience member (except Mai) and several male members responded with a unified 'Awww!'

"_Or, it could make me a laughingstock. Either one's good."_ Joey thought as the puppy bounced the ball on its nose.

"_Don't worry Joey, I'm a good deckmaster!"_ An adorable voice sounded in Joey's mind.

Joey looked down at the puppy with wide eyes as it continued to bounce the ball.

"_Five…Six…Seven…Eight…My power is as fun as this ball. It's called loyal companion."_ The voice (apparently Marron's) continued, _"Eleven…Twelve…"_

Joey caught the ball, and the puppy whimpered.

"I'll give it back. But what does 'loyal companion' do?" Joey asked.

"_If a monster on either field is destroyed, just pay 500 life points and I'll shuffle it back into the owner's deck!"_ Marron thought, whimpering as he pawed for the ball, _"Ball…"_

Joey smiled and tossed the ball to the little pup. He then turned back to Yugi to see who he had chosen.

Yugi had been selecting his own deckmaster when he heard the audience's reaction to Joey's. He paused to watch the dog play with its little toy before smiling and chuckling a bit as he chose a deckmaster.

"I think I'll go with my Dark Magician Girl!" Yugi declared.

A flash of pink light illuminated the area as Joey turned back to Yugi. Everyone blinked, and then several male jaws in the audience dropped as the buxom sorceress jumped into view behind Yugi.

"I'm so glad I get to help you again!" Dark Magician Girl cheered as she took up position behind Yugi, "You remember my power, right?"

"Yes, once per duel I can draw one card for every monster in my graveyard." Yugi nodded, "I don't know what Joey's monster can do, but I guess we'll find out."

The two monsters floated into the center of the arena, hovering between the two disks.

"We have out deckmasters, now let's see…" Roland began.

"Aww, how cute!" Dark Magician gushed as she stroked the top of Marron's head.

The puppy yipped happily as it was scratched behind the ears, wagging its tail as it rolled onto its back to have its tummy rubbed. Dark Magician Girl giggled as she scooped up the pup and hugged it.

"You're too adorable! You can go first!" She cheered as she put down the dog.

Marron barked its thanks, and both monsters returned to their controllers. Roland blinked in shock and finally shrugged as he pointed to Joey.

"Okay folks, looks like Joey gets the first move!" Roland shouted, "Let's go!"

"Duel!" Joey and Yugi both shouted as they drew five cards.

**Joey: 8000**

**Yugi: 8000**

Joey picked up his first card. He selected one of his monsters and set it onto his disk.

"I start with Little-Winguard (1400/1800) in attack mode." Joey announced.

Marron barked and bounced his ball high. It shone with red light for a minute like a beacon before it fell to the ground again. From behind one of the pillars swooped the tiny knight who adjusted his winged helmet before drawing his sword.

As two more cards appeared on his field, Joey declared "I set two cards facedown and end my turn."

Yugi drew, giving careful thought to his move. After about one minute of solid thinking, he set a card on his disk.

"I start with Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000) in attack mode!" Yugi announced.

Dark Magician Girl waved her staff, conjuring up an orb of red light. From this orb emerged a man in scarlet armor that seemed reminiscent of Dark Magicians. He carried a sword and shield, the sword set with a purple sphere. The sphere began to glow and the sword ignited with purple flames (1900/1000).

"Since I summoned him, Breaker gets a spell token and 300 extra attack points." Yugi explained, pointing at the facedown cards, "If I choose to, I can get rid of the spell counter and destroy one of your spell or trap cards. Breaker, get the card on the right!"

Breaker's sword glowed with increased fury as he drove it into the ground beneath him. Purple fire engulfed the first of Joey's two cards, which was revealed as a colorful box pouring out carnival music. The music warped and distorted as the box melted, finally coming to a halt as it shattered. Breaker withdrew his sword, the flames extinguished and his power back at its base level.

"_Joey still has a facedown card, but I got rid of one of his more dangerous traps."_ Yugi thought, _"It's still early in the duel, but Joey's a skilled opponent. Should I take the risk?"_

Yugi nodded and pointed to Little-Winguard.

"Breaker, attack Little-Winguard with spell blade!" Yugi ordered.

The spell slinging soldier raised his weapon overhead, charging forward in preparation to strike. Joey smiled as he pressed down on a button on his duel disk.

"Sorry Yug, you just ran right into my Kunai with Chain trap card!" Joey called out, the trap lifting.

Little-Winguard sheathed his sword, a large, steel blade attached to a chain materializing in his hands. He swung the blade over head a couple times, swinging a weight on the other end of the chain with his left hand. He then cast out the weight with a flick of his wrist, watching as it spun around Breaker and wrapped him up with the chain! Breaker stumbled back to his starting position, dropping his sword as he was forced to his knees.

"Thanks to my trap, your monster goes to defense mode while mine gets 500 attack points." Joey grinned as Little Winguard (1900/1800) brandished his new weapon.

"Nice move Joey." Yugi said as he took another card from his hand, "I'll set one card facedown and end my turn."

The facedown card appeared behind Breaker, who continued to struggle against his bindings. Joey drew again, smiling as he settled into the rhythm of the duel.

"Okay, I'll summon Gearfried the Iron Knight (1800/1600) in attack mode!" Joey called out.

From behind another of the pillars stepped the warrior clad in black armor. Each step clanked on the floor as he moved into position and raised his right arm consisted solely of a black blade attached to the armor.

"Gearfied, you're up first." Joey ordered, "Attack Breaker with iron frienze!"

The sword glowed with energy as Gearfried lunged forward. His weapon plunged into Breaker's chest, and the spellcaster let out a gasp before falling over and vanishing. Yugi's facedown card flipped over, and a golden cord shot into Yugi's deck.

"Good idea Joey, buy my facedown trap is Soul Rope. It lets me pay 1000 life points in order to summon a level four or lower monster from my deck." Yugi explained.

The golden line snapped taut, and a single card flew out of the deck. Yugi caught it and placed it onto his disk with a grin.

"And the monster I select is Big Shield Gardna (100/2600)." Yugi declared.

Before Yugi appeared a man dressed in a green shirt and orange pants, with wild black hair and carrying a massive, purple shield. Joey and his two monsters all gave the defensive monster a frown, realizing they couldn't get past.

"Okay, I'll set a facedown card and call it a turn." Joey decided, sliding another card into his disk.

**Joey: 8000**

**Yugi: 7000**

Yugi drew, and smiled at his new card. He placed it onto his disk, removing Big Shield Gardna as he did so.

"I tribute my Big Shield Gardna so I can summon Archfied of Gilfer (2200/2500)." Yugi announced, "Get ready Joey, here I come!"

The shielded man disappeared as the shadow of one of the columns extended over Yugi's field. From the shadow rose a monster wearing pure-black armor. Its skin beneath the armor was blue and red, and a pair of black wings extended from its back. It snarled at Joey, who just tapped on his disk. A perfectly round hole opened beneath the monster, which howled as a strong wind suddenly sucked it into the opening!

"That was my Trap Hole, and it got rid of Gilfer before he could attack." Joey smiled, holding up the trap he had just used before placing it into his graveyard.

Yugi nodded as a card slid out of his graveyard. He held it up to reveal the Archfiend of Gilfer that he had just lost.

"Clever, but when Gilfer goes to the graveyard I can activate his special ability." Yugi explained, sliding the monster into his spell and trap zone, "I can attach him to one of your monsters, and decrease their attack by 500 points. Since Gearfried destroys spells that equip to him, I'll have to give it to Little-Winguard."

A blob of shadow rose up on Yugi's field, and it launched itself forward. Before it had a chance to do any harm, Joey nodded to Marron. The puppy barked and bounced its ball forward, landing it inside the shadow blob and causing it to vanish from sight. The card Yugi had just set in his disk spat out, and flew back into his deck which glowed for a minute.

"Thanks to Marron here, I can shuffle any monster that's destroyed back into its owner's deck." Joey explained, smiling, "Not bad, eh Yug? I can save my monsters, and keep the effects of yours from going off."

Yugi nodded thoughtfully and smiled.

"That's a great strategy Joey. Where did you get the idea to use Marron as a deckmaster?" Yugi asked.

"Just lucky I guess." Joey smiled, "And all it costs me is 500 points to activate Marron's effect."

Up in the VIP seats, Kaiba seethed at the very idea that Joey had actually benefited from that card.

Looking over the rest of his hand, Yugi selected a card and placed it into his disk.

"I'll set this facedown and end my turn." Yugi said as the hidden card appeared.

**Joey: 7500**

**Yugi: 7000**

Joey drew his card and shrugged as he saw it.

"Okay, right to the attack! Little-Winguard, flying slice!" Joey ordered.

The tiny soldier flew forward, preparing to strike Yugi with his chained blade. Yugi countered by waving a hand toward his facedown card. One of the statues behind Yugi came to life, extending its shield into the path of the knight and turning silver in the process. Little-Winguard bounced off the shield as a bell-like tone rang through the arena.

"Draining Shield stopped your attack, and added the points to my score." Yugi explained, the statue returning to normal, "Look before you leap Joey."

"Yeah, you taught me that. But I'm gonna knock a few of those extra points off right now." Joey smiled, "Gearfried, fore-arm thrust!"

Not bothering to focus his power this time, the iron knight lunged forward and stabbed at Yugi with his weapon. Yugi stumbled backward in pain as the sword left a wound in his side that swiftly sealed up. Yugi looked at where the wound had been with wide eyes, and breathed a sigh of relief as he ran a hand over it.

"Ow…Looks like Kaiba wants us to play for keeps." Yugi warned.

"_That's nothing new."_ Yami pointed out from inside Yugi's mind, _"Besides, nobody has been hurt seriously, so we needn't worry."_

Joey was sliding another card into his disk. Next to him rose up a large machine, colored green and shaped like an orb. Six windows were set in the orb, and it sat on a small stand that read 'Type-6.'

"I'm gonna end my turn with Dangerous Machine Type 6, which will start on my next turn." Joey decided, "Go ahead Yugi, but be careful. Kaiba really seems to be getting a kick out of this virtual attacking stuff."

**Joey: 7500**

**Yugi: 7100**

Yugi drew now, stifling a second sigh of relief as he played a card.

"I activate Card Destruction." Yugi declared, both his and Joey's remaining three cards vanishing into thin air, "Now we discard our hands and draw new ones."

Each of them drew three cards, and Yugi placed two of them onto his disk.

"Next, I'll set one monster facedown, followed by one card facedown." Yugi decided, the two cards appearing between him and Joey, "Go ahead Joey."

Joey drew his fourth card, and the machine next to him began to spark and groan. The six windows began to flash, numbers flying through them so fast it looked as though the entire contraption might collapse.

"Well, since it's my standby phase, my Dangerous Machine goes off. Now it picks a number between one and six and, depending on the number, something happens." Joey said.

The machine whirred to a halt, the number three appearing in all six windows. Joey's deck shimmered for a second, and a mechanical hand reached from the machine and took a card from the disk. It then presented the card to Joey.

"Thanks." Joey smiled as he took the card, "A three means I draw an extra card…"

Joey looked at it, and set it into his disk. A facedown monster appeared next to his current two.

"…Which I'll set facedown." Joey said, "And then, Winguard attacks!"

The little knight jumped forward again, slamming its weapon with increased fervor upon the facedown monster. A large, rocky arm shot out of the card and knocked the warrior away, causing it to land on its behind back in front of Joey. From Yugi's card rose up a blocky, human like figure carved from solid granite.

"Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000) is one-hundred points too strong to be brought down." Yugi smiled, "You'll have to try again Joey."

"Don't worry, I will." Joey smiled, "Go ahead Yug."

"What a match so far, neither player is able to get past the other's monsters!" Roland called out, "And they're showing an amazing amount of sportsmanship today. I can't wait to see where this goes."

**Joey: 7400**

**Yugi: 7100**

Yugi drew his second card now, and set it into his disk. A laughing pot rose up before him, covered with green and blue glaze.

"I'll use my Pot of Greed first." Yugi began, tapping his disk, "But I chain to it with a card called Serial Spell."

An aged wizard in purple robes rose up as Yugi's facedown lifted. He began to chant, while Yugi held up the other card from his hand.

"Serial Spell becomes an exact copy of the spell I chain it to, but I need to discard my whole hand to use it." Yugi explained.

"Then you'll lose the cards you get from Pot of Greed." Joey pointed out, "Why'd you do that?"

"Remember Kaiba Corp Grand Championship?" Yugi asked, "Chains work in reverse order. Serial Spell will go off first, since it activated last…"

Joey was holding his head, and held up one hand to stop his friend.

"Ugh, I never want to relive trying to understand that!" He gasped, "Just sum it up for me, okay buddy?"

"Sorry. Basically, I discard the last card my hand and get the effects of Pot of Greed twice." Yugi explained, sliding his card into the graveyard.

The man finished chanting, a green auar5a flaring around him. He pointed to Yugi's deck which flared with a similar aura, while the Pot of Greed on the field shattered apart. Yugi drew four cards, and from his graveyard emerged the one he had discarded. Yugi picked it up, and slid it into his disk with a smile.

"And as for the card I discarded, it was my Archfiend of Gilfer that you shuffled back into my deck." Yugi explained, "So now I can attach it to your Little Winguard."

The shadows rose up again, flying unhindered this time and latching onto the chest of the soldier. It gasped, slumping toward the ground as the darkness ate away its strength (1400/1800). Joey winced, and looked to Marron who shook his head.

"_I only work if they go from the _field _to the graveyard. I can't stop him this time."_ Marron lamented, one paw resting on his ball, _"Sorry Joey…"_

"That's okay, we'll make up for it." Joey promised in a whisper.

"Next, I'll tribute my Soldier of Stone for Summoned Skull (2500/1200)!" Yugi declared.

The blocky statue faded away, and from the shadows burst out another demon. This one was skeletal, with horns extending from its skull. Lightning crackled over its entire body, and it glared down at the three targets before it.

"Summoned Skull, attack his Little-Winguard with lightning strike!" Yugi commanded.

The skeleton lifted its hands and lightning burst down from the ceiling. Winguard screamed as the fatal bolts slammed into it, and shattered it into a billion pieces. Joey braced himself as a shockwave washed over his field, knocking him back a step.

**Joey: 6300**

**Yugi: 7100**

Sliding another card from his hand, Yugi nodded to Joey.

"I'll end my turn with one card facedown." Yugi declared, "Go ahead Joey."

The blond drew his next card, and next to him the malfunctioning slot machine began to spin again. The numbers blew past, finally settling on three once more. Joey smiled as the mechanized hand granted him another card. He gave it a smile before setting it into his disk.

"I'll set one card facedown, and then I'll flip over my facedown monster…" Joey stated.

The hidden card appeared, while Joey's facedown monster came out of hiding. A small, blue portal appeared in the ground the facedown card once occupied, and from it came a strange figure. It looked like a red clock, with arms and legs, wearing a purple hat and cape. It carried a staff, topped with another clock that was spit into quarters: The top and bottom quarters looked like red gravestones with three little knobs on top, while the side ones were equipped with two black skulls each.

"The Time Wizard (500/400)!" Yugi gasped, drawing back at the sight of this monster.

"Yep, you know what that means." Joey grinned, "If the time spinner stops on a skull, all my monsters get destroyed and I lose half of their attack points. But if it lands on of those time-machines, I'm in business. Time roulette go!"

"TIME MAGIC!" Time Wizard buzzed in a mechanical voice as it raised its staff overhead.

The spinner began to turn, moving faster and faster until it was a black blur on the smaller clock. Everyone watched with baited breath as it slowed, approached one of the skulls…

Moved past the skull, past the one above it, and stopped on the top red shape (Or time-machine as Joey called it).

"Oh boy…" Yugi said as blue energy began to swirl around the field.

Both of Joey's monsters were surrounded by a green bubbled, but Yugi's Summoned Skull had no protection. The rigors of time took their toll on the demon, causing its bones to pit and decay as they turned black. The monster let out a weak roar as its horns fell off, and it crashed to the ground before vanishing. The blue energy vanished, along with the green bubble, and Joey pointed at Yugi.

"Okay Yug, here I come again! Gearfried, attack!" Joey ordered.

The iron knight made another attempt on Yugi's life, only for the spiky-headed boy to hurriedly activate his facedown card.

"I use Spellbinding Circle, to halt your attack!" Yugi called out, a mystical ring of glowing energy flying from the trap.

Gearfried stopped his advance as the ring snapped around his waist. He immediately stopped moving all together, frozen by the powerful magic.

"Drat…" Joey grumbled, "Nice counter…Eh, Time Wizard, you try and attack with…Um…What's your attack called?"

The wizard held up its staff, and pointed it at Yugi.

"FUTURE FORCE!" It intoned, a blast of digital numbers flying from its staff and slamming against Yugi's chest.

Yugi brushed off a few remaining digits. The attack hadn't hurt him physically, but it had still damaged his life points.

**Joey: 6300**

**Yugi: 6600**

Looking over his remaining cards, Joey shrugged.

"_Nothing that helps right now. Better save these for when Yugi turns this around."_ He thought.

"Go on Yug, it's your turn." Joey announced.

"Thanks." Yugi said as he drew, "You're doing really well Joey."

Yugi looked at his new card with a grin.

"So let's move this game along! I summon Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700)." Yugi announced.

From the floor rose a plume of black smoke, which swirled in place for a moment before gathering into a teenager dressed in black robes. He carried an iron staff and had a long cape that extended to the floor and wrapped around his shoulders. Three crystals held the cape in place, each one holding three small triangles. He spun his weapon in one hand, aiming it at Joey's field.

"Attack his Time Wizard with dark magic blast!" Yugi ordered.

An orb of dark energy fired from the tip of the boy's staff. Time Wizard beeped in alarm as the magical power slammed into him and exploded. The energy and smoke faded away, leaving the Time Wizard relatively normal. Joey and Yugi both looked confused, until a loud noise like a spring bouncing from its place sounded from within the clockman's body. Time Wizard collapsed to the ground as a broken mass of red metal.

"Aw shoot." Joey frowned as his life points slipped, "Marron, save the little guy."

Marron yapped, bouncing its ball toward Time Wizard's broken remains. The ball glowed, and gathered up the pieces which then faded away. Joey's deck glowed for a minute, and Marron barked as its ball returned.

**Joey: 4400**

**Yugi: 6600**

"That's all for now Joey, go ahead." Yugi smiled.

Joey drew, the machine whirring again as its numbers spun wildly. They slowed to a halt, landing with a five in each window!

"Oh yeah! On a five I get to destroy one of your monsters!" Joey cheered, "Sorry Yug, but that Skilled Dark Magician has gotta go. No hard feelings?"

"None at all." Yugi assured him.

The machine's sparking became wilder, and a blast of lightning shot out of it. The teenage spellcaster screamed in pain as the electric hit him, reducing him to a smudge of black on the floor. Joey then selected another card from his hand, sliding it onto his disk.

"Now, I'll summon Axe Raider (1700/1150) in attack mode." Joey continued.

From behind another pillar sprang a man in red and gold armor. He hefted a hand axe over one shoulder, and he was fairly well-built, his armor barely covering his muscles. He glared at Yugi, and flashed a thumbs down to him.

"Hey, show some respect. Yug's my best friend." Joey scolded, taking another card, "Anyway, I'll also activate my Release Restraint card!"

The frozen Gearfied began to glow, his armor melting away into an overpowering light. Yugi's Spellbinding Circle shattered apart, its target no longer on the field. A single card emerged from Joey's hand and landed on his disk.

"You know what this does, don't ya? It tributes Gearfried and lets me summon Gearfried the Swordmaster (2600/2200)!" Joey called out.

Everyone was covering their eyes against the light, which slowly faded away to reveal the transformation. In place of the iron-coated warrior, there was now a man dressed in nothing but a blue loincloth. His hair was long and wild, and despite a long imprisonment inside a suit of armor, his skin was remarkably tan and his muscles were highly developed. He brought his hands together, and a sword made of pure light formed in them.

"Sorry Yugi, but this is gonna hurt." Joey warned, "Gearfried, attack!"

The Swordmaster jumped high into the air, swinging his weapon toward Yugi. Yugi looked up at his foe, calmly discarding one card as he did so. A squeaking ball of brown fur suddenly appeared in front of Yugi and Gearfried slashed right through it. A small explosion went of as the little fluff was destroyed, sending Gearfried flying backward to the floor in front of Joey.

"Looks like Kuriboh can still stop Gearfried, even after you get rid of the armor." Yugi observed.

"But it won't stop Axe Raider!" Joey called out, "Axe crush!"

The warrior in red and gold jumped right toward Yugi, swinging his axe into the boy's ribs. Yugi gasped in pain as a few of his favorite bones cracked under the force, rapidly repairing themselves but still leaving a painful sting.

**Joey: 4400**

**Yugi: 4900**

"Ouch, I felt that from here!" Roland called out, "Looks as though Joey might have Yugi on the ropes now! The king of games only has two cards in his hand!"

"_Soon to be less, if I get the right draw."_ Yugi thought, looking at his cards.

"Sorry again Yug! Sheesh, Kaiba's got a screw loose…" Joey sighed, looking to Axe Raider who seemed apologetic for his attack.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You know, I'm thinking Joey's right." Tim said, "Of course I only need to be _speared through the chest _once to figure something is seriously messed up with these finals!"

"Don't like it, then drop out." Kaiba said, turning to the younger Hokage, "I gave you all fair warning before we began, but you all came this far anyway. Now you'll have to deal with what everyone throws at you."

Tim frowned, opening his mouth to say something.

"If that's gonna be another smart-ass comment, it might be a better idea to keep it to yourself." Brian advised.

Tim closed his mouth again.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Do you think Joey might actually win?" Kevin asked, staring at the score.

"Not on your life. Yugi does his best when he's in the red." Celeste stated.

"But Joey's made some big comebacks too." Espa Roba pointed out, "And I should know."

"Either way, this duel is shaping up nicely." Roanaldo smiled, "Why argue about who might win, when we can see who actually wins?"

Seeing no point in arguing to the contrary, the other three nodded and resumed watching.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Yeah! Go Joey!" Serenity cheered, cupping her hands over her mouth.

Then, as if having second thoughts, she stopped cheering for a second and blushed a bit.

"Oh, and hang in there Yugi!" Serenity called out.

"This is entertaining, but nothing truly groundbreaking." John pointed out, "Niether of them has made any spectacular moves yet."

"I'm sure the action will be picking up soon." Bakura said.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi drew his card, placing it in his disk without hesitation.

"Apology accepted Joey, but I think that the least you can do to make up for it is let me borrow Gearfried for a minute." Yugi said.

"What do ya mean?" Joey asked.

"I mean, I activate Brain Control, brainwashing Gearfried for one turn at the cost of 800 life points." Yugi declared.

"Uh oh…" Joey moaned as the hideous brain floated next to Yugi.

Waves of energy floated from the mind, and Gearfried's expression went blank. The warrior stumbled forward onto Yugi's field and stood there, awaiting his orders. Yugi slapped down another card and Gearfried faded away.

"And now I tribute him to summon my Curse of Dragon!" Yugi called out.

A screech sounded, and from the ceiling swooped yellow monster that looked more like the skeleton of a dragon than one of the noble beasts. Its wings, tail, and muzzle were all tipped with shapr spikes, and it hand no legs to speak of. Yugi held up the last two cards of his hand, making his strategy apparent now.

"And now for Polymerization, fusing my Curse of Dragon with Gaia the Fierce Knight…" Yugi continued.

A portal opened up behind Yugi's dragon, pulling it in. The dragon was followed by the image of a man on horseback, clad in blue armor and wielding two lances. A horrid screech rose from the gate as Yugi pointed right at Joey.

"I summon Gaia the Dragon Champion (2600/2100)!" Yugi called out.

Curse of Dragon reemerged from the portal, but carrying a passenger this time. On his back rode a man dressed in blue armor, carrying a pair of red lances in his hands. He brandished his weapons before him, pointing them toward Joey's lone monster.

"Nice move Yug, haven't seen this guy in a while." Joey confessed.

"Yeah, I never needed him until now." Yugi nodded, "Gaia, attack Axe Raider with spiral spear strike!"

The draconic mount charged forward, Gaia's lance covered with green energy that swirled about the length of it. Axe Radier screamed as the lance was driven through his chest and pinned him to the floor before he shattered to pieces. Joey let out a cry as the excess energy of the attack sprang from the knight's lance and struck him in the chest!

**Joey: 3500**

**Yugi: 4100**

"Since that was my last card, you can go now Joey." Yugi said, "Are you okay? That looked kind of rough…"

"You know me Yug, I'm tough." Joey said as he drew another card.

His machine spun and sparked once more, spitting out a three in each window. Joey took his extra card, wincing a bit as he saw what it was.

"_Okay, this does me no good whatsoever."_ He thought, _"All these extra draws and nothing to get rid of that monster. I need something with at least 1300 points before my facedown card does any good, and all I'm drawing are my weakest monsters!"_

"Okay, time to think defense." Joey said as he held up a card, "I activate Landstar Forces!"

A card with the image of four, strange little people appeared before Joey. He took three of his cards and placed them onto his disk, all sideways to indicate defense mode.

"This spell summons any monsters in my hand that have 'Landstar' in their name right to the field." Joey declared, "So I summon Swordsman of Landstar (500/1200)…"

Before Joey appeared a child with a mushroom-shaped head, dressed in leather armor and carrying a toy sword and shield. He crouched down behind the shiled as Yugi's monster glared at him.

"…Knight of Landstar (1000/500)…"

Next to the first child appeared another one, this one dressed in steel armor and carrying a lance. He was on his knees, his lance in the floor next to him as he supported his weight on it.

"…And Grappler of Landstar (1000/500) all in defense mode!" Joey called out.

A third child dressed like a member of the Green Berets settled down next to the first two. He wore camo-clothes and had on a green hat, carrying a knife in one hand. The three boys gave one another nervous smiles as they sat on the field together.

"Unfortunately, I didn't get Gilford in this hand." Joey confessed, looking at his last card, "So go one Yugi, that's my turn."

"_He didn't get Gilford? Maybe Joey's luck is running out."_ Yugi thought as he drew.

Seeing his lone card, Yugi thought for a bit and turned to his deckmaster. Dark Magician Girl had been patiently cleaning her nails this whole time, and was now admiring their shine in the light of her staff.

"Um…Dark Magician Girl?" Yugi asked.

The sorceress stopped what she was doing and smiled at Yugi.

"Yes Yugi?" She asked.

"Could you use your deckmaster power?" Yugi asked with a smile.

"You got it!" Dark Magician Girl said as she jumped into the air.

Around her appeared nine orbs of light, inside each one appeared one of Yugi's monsters. They contained Breaker the Magical Warrior, Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts, Beta the Magnet Warrior, Kuriboh, Skilled Dark Magician, Summoned Skull, Curse of Dragon, Gaia the Fierce Knight, and Archfiend of Gilfer. All nine orbs fired pink energy down on Yugi's deck, and Yugi drew nine cards from it.

"Good luck." Dark Magician said with a smile as she floated down next to Yugi.

She planted a small kiss on his cheek, causing him to blush a bit.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Domino City, Japan, Tea Gardner's glass of lemonade suddenly shattered in her clenched fist. Tristan and Duke both drew back as they were doused with the tangy liquid, while Grandpa Mutou chuckled at the sight.

"Don't you think its' a little much to be jealous of a hologram?" Granpa asked as tez gently placed the shards of glass into a waste bin next to her.

"Who says I'm jealous? I'm not jealous!" Tea denied.

"_I'd love to say 'Denile ain't just a river in Egypt' but I'd hate to see what Tea would do to me."_ Duke and Tristan both thought, _"When is she just gonna come out and say it already?"_

"Uh, Tea? Isn't your hand all cut up after that?" Tristan asked, looking at Tea's palm.

Tea glanced down to see that few cuts had been placed on her hand by her reaction, but nothing to major.

"I'll fetch the first aid kit," Duke volunteered as he got up, "but ease up on your grip on a little."

"It's just an exciting duel is all." Tea said, dabbing her hand with a napkin, "It's been a long time since Joey and Yugi dueled for real like this."

"Yeah, I'm just glad that Joey has a bit of experience with losing to Yugi." Tristan said as he sat on the arm of the couch, "But at least nothing's on the line this time. It's just good, clean fun."

Duke returned with a roll of bandages and some antiseptic, and Tea took them from him.

"I'll handle it, thanks." She said.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Fantabulous move by Mr. Mutou!" Mr. Richington cheered, "I don't see how Mr. Wheeler's little puny brigade can protect for very long."

"You never dueled the guy. Wheeler can make anything work." Mako stated.

"That's the understatement of the century." Weevil grumbled.

Richington and Mako both looked at the boy.

"Pardon me, who said you could sit there?" Richington asked.

"Last I checked, I didn't have a choice." Weevil grunted, "The sap is sticking me to the seat!"

"I thought it all vanished after you got up." Mako frowned.

"Not…All of it." Weevil groaned, struggling to stand up only for his sticky-sweet clothes to hold in place like rubber cement.

"Well, I guess we'll just enjoy each other's company for a bit." Richington grinned.

"I'm not enjoying this." Weevil sighed, "I have a terrible view, and I can think of _at least _six people I'd rather sit near…But at least I get to see two of the people I hate most try to rip each other apart. It's not all bad."

"That's the spirit!" Richington cheered.

"_Why am I still sitting here?"_ Mako wondered, looking at his neighbors.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back on the field, Yugi placed another monster onto his tray.

"Get ready Joey, because I'm about to tear through your wall!" Yugi declared, "I summon Skilled White Magician (1700/1900)."

A column of light rose up in front of Yugi, and from it stepped what looked like the twin brother of Skilled Dark Magician. This one wore white robes and carried a white staff carved from wood. His cape sported three gems, each with the same triangle pattern etched inside. He held up his weapon and began to charge it with silver light.

"Next, I'll activate a spell called Spiral Spear Strike." Yugi continued, placing a spell onto his disk.

Gaia lifted his lances, and they began to shimmer with green energy. An aura of power appeared around each lance and knight smiled.

"So now, thanks to my spell, Gaia can damage your life points even when your monsters are in defense mode." Yugi declared, "And when he does, I'm allowed to draw two cards and discard one. Skilled White Magician, attack his Swordsman of Landstar with light magic burst!"

The magician fired a beam of silver energy, and the child warrior screamed as it collided with him. The tiny swordsman vanished, and Yugi gestured toward the grappler.

"Now Gaia, attack his Grappler of Landstar!" Yugi ordered, "Spiral spear strike!"

The knight and mount launched forward once more, driving the point of their weapon into the helpless monster. It screamed as it shattered do to the blow, and Joey went flying to the back edge of his platform due to the force that carried through!

"Looks like this match is almost over!" Roland called out, "Won't Ares be pleased with us today?"

The audience was cheering, chanting Yugi's name as he drew two cards. Joey obviously wasn't the favorite in this situation, but he didn't seem surprised at it. Yugi finally selected a monster from his hand (Alpha the Magnet Warrior) and discarded it, then set three cards into his disk.

"Before I end my turn, I'll set three cards facedown…" Yugi announced as the cards appeared, "But I tribute two of them to my Emergency Provisions."

Two of the cards lifted up, revealing a pair of traps known as Penalty Game and Lightforce Sword. A giant mouth appeared in mid air, and swallowed won both of the traps. It let out a disgusting belch before vanishing, and Yugi glowed for a minute as his life points were boosted.

"I'll finally set one more card facedown." Yugi said, placing a card into his disk, "Go ahead Joey."

**Joey: 1400**

**Yugi: 6100**

The facedown card appeared next to its brother, and Joey drew. His machine began to spin again, coming up with a series of threes once more. Joey breathed a sigh as he took a third card for his hand.

"Hm…I activate Pot of Greed first." Joey decided, holding up the common spell.

The spell vanished from his hand, and was replaced by two new cards. Joey looked at them, and smiled for the first time in two turns.

"And now I set these two facedown." Joey said as the cards appeared behind his knight, "Go on Yugi."

"Has Wheeler flipped? If those cards can't stop an attack, then Joey's losing this duel right now!" Roland called out.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Good, the battle of the bad hair days will finally be over." Tim said, "I mean honestly, does everyone in Japan have a bad haircut?"

Kaiba cleared his throat, gesturing to his own head of brown hair. Tim looked at it, and smiled.

"Like I said…" He began.

"Shall I hit him, or would you like to Mr. Kaiba?" Brian asked.

"By all means, be my guest." Kaiba offered.

Brian pulled back his hand.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi drew his card, brining his hand to five, and held up another monster.

"I summon Magician's Valkyria (1600/1800) in attack mode." He announced.

Another column of light rose, and from this one jumped a female spellcaster. She had strawberry-blond hair and wore an outfit much like Dark Magician Girl behind her. Hers was a bit more revealing, and her staff was a bit fancier, made of silver with three green stone set in the head.

"With her on the field, she's the only Spellcaster you can attack." Yugi said, "Not that you can attack right now. Valkyria, get rid of his Knight of Landstar! Bright rainbow beam!"

Valkerya swung out her staff, and a blaze of colorful magic flew from it. It slammed into the final monster on Joey's field, disintegrating it in an instant.

"Now, Gaia the Dragon Champion, end the duel!" Yugi ordered.

Joey grinned as he pressed down on two of his disk's buttons.

"It's not over yet! I activate Hyper Refresh and chain Nutrient Z to it!" Joey called out, his facedown cards lifting, "Lucky for me, I'm finally starting to get this whole 'chain' thing. Since Nutrient Z was activated last, I use it first to get 4000 life points before your attack comes through…"

A bottle with a skull on the cap and bright red 'Z' on the front appeared in front of Joey. He unscrewed the skull cap and chugged down the liquid inside, grimacing at the taste.

"Ugh…Ah well, next I can use Hyper Refresh to double my life points before the attack hits…"

Another bottle appeared, this one containing an orange liquid. Joey took the bottle and uncorked it, slamming down the drink inside and smacking his lips afterward.

"Yum, orange juice." He smiled, "I wondered what was in this stuff. Okay Gaia, I'm all charged up so come and get me!"

The knight's lance pierced Joey's chest, sending him sprawling across his disk. He landed flat his back, a gaping chest wound shimmering out of existence as he fell.

"Ouch…That still kinda stings…" Joey grunted as he got up, "But at least I even things up a bit…"

Joey held up his duel disk, showing his score now read 8200. Yugi laughed at this, and wiped a tear from his eye.

"I should have known, you were faking not understanding chaining before, weren't you?" Yugi asked.

"Nah, I just sort of forgot about it for a minute there." Joey said, "Good thing I remembered when I did, or that would have been a real mess."

"Well, looks like we're back where we started. Skilled White Magician, you're on!" Yugi called out.

The white clothed sorcerer waved his staff, and fired out a beam of silver light. Joey stumbled a bit as his life points fell again.

"And before I end my turn, I use my facedown Dust Tornado to destroy your Dangerous Machine." Yugi announced, a blast of wind an dirt flying from his facedown card.

Joey's machine sputtered and groaned as dust and debris clogged its gears. In the end it shattered, transferring itself to the graveyard.

"Your move Joey." Yugi offered.

**Joey: 6500**

**Yugi: 6100**

"Impossible! That combo almost set Joey back to his starting total!" Roland shouted, "This duel has gone almost back to where it started, it's become a whole new card game!"

Joey drew, and looked pleasantly surprised by his card. He played it, and behind him appeared a man dressed in a purple suit, wearing top hat with a question mark on it.

"Yugi, it's time for my Question magic card." Joey smiled, "Now, you have to name the monster on the bottom of my graveyard."

"If I'm right, you remove it, and if I'm wrong then you get to summon it." Yugi said, scratching his chin, "But I've got a pretty good memory. The monster at the bottom of your grave…Is Little-Winguard!"

The man looked to Joey, who smiled. A loud buzzer went off, and the word 'WRONG' flashed in bright red letters overhead.

"Huh? But that was the first monster I destroyed." Yugi said.

"You were close, but you did something before you destroyed my Little-Winguard." Joey pointed out, "You played Card Destruction, and I had a few monsters in my hand. Now here's our right answer: Red-Eyes Black Dragon (2400/2000)!"

A green portal appeared behind Joey. From the circle of light swooped the ferocious form of his signature dragon. It breathed a stream of flame into the air, growling at Yugi and his monsters as it did so. The torch light reflected from its scales, and the statue of Ares seemed pleased with its presence.

"Now, I'll couple it with my facedown card: Metalmorph!" Joey continued, his facedown card lifting, "It'll power up my dragon my 300 points, and give him half the attack of any monster that he's attacking."

The dragon's scales turned to steel in the torchlight, and its eyes glowed like lasers (2700/2300). It roared again, this time with a mechanical edge to the cry, and glared down at Gaia.

"And since Valkyria won't defend your Dragon monsters, Gaia is my dragon's first target!" Joey called out, "But before I attack, I activate my Mystical Space Typhoon to get rid of the facedown card on your field."

A blast of wind slammed into Yugi's card, revealing his Magic Cylinder and blowing it to shards.

"Flash flare blast!" Joey ordered, "And I'll give up 500 points for my deckmaster, sending your monster back to your fusion deck."

Red-Eyes charged up a ball of searing plasma within its jaws as the Metalmorph boosted its stats to (4000/2300). It fired out the superheated attack, and Gaia and his dragon didn't even have a chance to scream before they were reduced to stains on Yugi's platform. Yugi braced himself against the aftershock, but seemed fairly unworried about the situation. Even as Marron's ball bounced around and the card floated away into Yugi's side pouch, he still smiled.

**Joey: 6000**

**Yugi: 4700**

"Nice Joey, I should have know you wouldn't waste question on your Little-Winguard." Yugi smiled, "But I have a way to handle your dragon."

"I wouldn't be surprised, so I set a facedown card and end my turn." Joey said, the card appearing behind his dragon.

Yugi drew, and pointed to his Skilled White Magician. The three orbs holding up his cape were shimmering with light now, and Yugi smiled.

"Since well over three spells have been played, I can tribute my Skilled White Magician to summon Buster Blader (2600/2300) from my deck." Yugi declared, the magician vanishing, "Come forth!"

A pool of light appeared, and from it rose the intimidating warrior in purple armor. He hefted a massive sword in his hands, and smiled as he saw Joey's dragon. Yugi looked to Joey's field and settled his eyes on the facedown card.

"_I can't deal with Joey's facedown yet, but if I just wait around then he'll destroy Buster Blader."_ Yugi thought as he looked over his hand, _"I haven't drawn anything yet that can handle his dragon other than Buster Blader…I'll have to take a chance."_

"Buster Blader gets 500 attack for each dragon on your field and in the graveyard." Yugi explained, "I see one…"

"Actually, I've got two. Baby Dragon was in my hand when Card Destruction went off." Joey confessed.

Buster Blader's sword shimmered with blue flames as his attack was bolstered to (3600/2300). He grinned at his quarry, hefting his blade overhead.

"And Red-Eyes (2700/2300) only gets a bonus from Metalmorph when he's the one attacking." Yugi pointed out, "So sorry Joey, but it's goodbye dragon! Blade Buster attack!"

Buster Blader leapt high into the air, aiming his sword at the throat of Joey's monster.

Joey's dragon took a step back, revealing a hole underneath one of its feet. Buster Blader plummeted down this hole and was impaled upon several iron spikes at the bottom with a loud screech. Fragments of his armor sprayed out of the hole, and cut across Yugi's arms as he raised them in defense.

"Oh…Your Chasm of Spikes trap." Yugi realized seconds too late.

"Stops one attack, destroys the monster, and takes a quarter of its attack from your life points." Joey said, "That's why I wasn't worried."

"Wheeler's amazing luck has pulled him out of the fire again folks! Can he go all the way?" Roland called out.

"Before we answer that, I'll give up another 500 points and send Buster Blader back to Yugi's deck." Joey said, holding up one hand as Marron's ball bounced down the hole and carried out the warrior's sword, "Now you can't just go and summon him from the graveyard."

"_This is fun!"_ Marron thought, bouncing up and down, _"Keep it up Joey! You're doing great!"_

Joey smiled, flashing a thumbs-up to the little pup.

**Joey: 5500**

**Yugi: 3800**

Taking another card from his hand, Yugi slid it onto his disk.

"I'll set one monster in defense mode and switch Valkyria to defense as well." He declared.

A facedown card appeared next to the sorceress, who knelt down and held her staff across her lap.

"That's my turn Joey." Yugi announced, waving one arm.

Joey drew his card and smiled as he held it up.

"I summon my Goblin Attack Force (2300/0)!" Joey declared as he played the card.

A gang of four humanoids with green skin charged to the field, clanging their weapons against their shields and armor and making a general racket.

"Goblins, get his facedown monster with goblin brutality attack!" Joey ordered.

The four goblins jumped forward and slammed their armaments as one upon Yugi's hiding monster. A blond woman in ruby armor was flung from the card, screaming before she shattered apart.

"So much for Queen's Knight (1500/1600)…" Yugi lamented.

"Now, Red-Eyes, attack Valkyria with flash flare blast!" Joey shouted.

Red-Eye roared as its glossy coat boosted its score again (3500/2300). Another beam of superheated energy flew from its jaws and tore through Valkyria. The poor girl screamed and fell over in a crumpled heap before she vanished.

"Alright Yug, your move." Joey smiled, "I might actually win this time."

Joey's dragon fell back to its regular attack level. His Goblins each pulled out a crystal mug filled with frothy ale and toasted one another before chugging them down. Within three gulps, all four of them lay on the ground unconscious and effectively in defense mode.

"_Strong stuff."_ Joey thought.

"My move Joey." Yugi said as he drew, "I use Graceful Charity!"

Yugi's spell shimmered with white light, and an angel in white robes descended from on high. She gently brushed a hand across Yugi's deck, and the boy drew his three cards. Looking them over, he discarded two of them to his graveyard. He then slid two of his cards into his disk and they appeared in front of him.

"I'll set these facedown, and set another monster in defense." Yugi declared as a facedown monster appeared in front of the cards, "Take your best shot Joey!"

"I always do." Joey smiled as he drew, "So here comes a heck of a shot! I tribute the Goblin Attack Force for Jinzo (2400/1500)!"

The snoring goblins vanished, and in their place appeared a block of solid, black metal. One side of the block opened up, and from within it emerged a man covered from neck to foot with a suit made of green metal. He was bald, and his eyes were covered by red lenses that focused on Yugi's facedown cards. Yugi gulped as he now realized both of his hidden cards were worthless before the master of disarmament.

"Thanks to Jinzo, no trap cards on the field will work." Joey smiled, "That includes Metalmorph, but I don't think I'll need that now."

Red-Eyes Black Dragon (2400/2000) roared as it turned back to its regular cover of black scales. Metalmorph itself turned black-and-white, indicating Jinzo's negation of it.

"Jinzo, cyber shock attack!" Joey ordred, pointing at Yugi's facedown monster.

The android cupped his hands, gathering an orb of black energy within them. It sparked and crackled as he drew his arm back and cast it forth like a baseball. Yugi's facedown monster, a blond man in gold armor, was obliterated before he could make a sound.

"King's Knight (1600/1400)? You must have been trusting on those facedown cards." Joey guessed.

"Right Joey." Yugi nodded, "Nice move with Jinzo."

"Thanks, now let's try my dragon!" Joey grinned, "Inferno fire blast!"

Yugi looked up into the blazing maw of the massive dragon, and quickly covered his head.

"_This is gonna hurt…"_ He thought.

"_Joey is doing quite well this time."_ Yami observed from behind Yugi's eyes, _"He certainly has grown much as a duelist. Perhaps he will win this match after all…He certainly won't make it an easy win this time."_

Before Yugi could respond to this, he was engulfed in a blast of black flames. Yugi screamed in pain as he fell to the ground, burns rapidly appearing and healing all over his body.

"This match is insane folks! It looks like Joey might actually come out on top!" Roland announced.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"DAMN IT!" Sota screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Like they say, there no such thing as a sure thing." Rei sighed.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Holy crap, Yugi's gonna lose!" Tim exclaimed, a confused expression on his face, "Wait…Yugi's gonna lose? Someone check the script, that can't be right!"

"You know, I told Celeste that Yugi can't be that hard to beat." Brian smiled, "He's a great duelist, sure, but in the end he's a duelist like the rest of us."

"But he's Yugi Mutou." Tim pointed out, "This guy beat Kaiba, Pegasus, and Needlez! There is no way in Heaven, Hell, or on Earth…"

"Yugi, is a duelist and in the end limited by his card selection." Brian smiled, holding up his own deck for emphasis, "No matter how many tricks his deck has, if he doesn't draw them then they can't help."

Kaiba, Mai, Rex, Victor, Zeffie, Noah, and Tim all looked at Brian like he was crazy.

"Trust me, Yugi doesn't just fail to draw what he needs." Noah said, pointing at Yugi.

"That's something 'not Yugi' duelists like you and me experience." Tim said, "I swear, he's drawn cards that weren't even in his deck before!"

"He just knows how to think ahead." Mia interrupted.

"I thought it was dumb luck." Tim said.

"No, Joey has dumb luck." Kaiba grumbled, "Yugi is on another level. The day he loses to Wheeler is the day I eat my Blue-Eyes White Dragons."

Silence reigned in the box seats.

"I'd take you up on that bet." Victor offered.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi pushed himself to his feet as his life points finished plummeting.

**Joey: 5500**

**Yugi: 1400**

Joey looked at the Fiend Mega Cyber in his hand, and shrugged.

"Your move Yugi." Joey offered.

Yugi just nodded, and drew his card. Seeing it, he paused in thought.

"This is risky, but…" Yugi played the card he had drawn, "I activate Premature Burial, resurrecting one of my monsters!"

A circle of red light appeared next to Yugi, and black energy crackled in it. Joey's eyes went wide as he saw the bolts.

"Um…I think I guessed what you might discarded with Graceful Charity." Joey said, drawing back.

"That's right." Yugi grinned, "My Dark Magician (2500/2100)!"

From the circle of energy rose Yugi's signature monster. He was a man, dressed in purple robes with a peaked hat. He carried his green staff folded in his arms as he stared down Joey's two monsters. At the moment, his clothes and face were smudged with dirt, but he didn't seem to care as he held up his tool.

"Dark Magic Attack, destroy Jinzo!" Yugi ordered.

Dark Magician swung his staff, firing a blast of energy from the tip. Jinzo beeped as he turned photo-negative for a split-second before shattering into tiny pieces. Metalmorph turned back to normal, and Red-Eyes (2700/2300) regained its metallic appearance.

"That's all Joey. Go ahead." Yugi said.

**Joey: 5400**

**Yugi: 600**

Joey drew, smiling as he did. He had pulled his Knight of Dark Dragon, not that it mattered at the moment.

"Sorry Yug, but by getting rid of Jinzo you reactivated my Metalmorph." Joey stated, "Thanks to that, Red-Eyes has more than enough power to wipe out your Dark Magician and your life points."

"Maybe, but I have two facedown cards." Yugi pointed out, "Do you really think you can risk it Joey?"

Joey paused and looked at the two cards. He frowned deeply, wondering whether or not to risk them.

"…_If I don't do anything, he might find a way around my monster…If I attack I could set off a trap…"_ Joey thought, _"Better if I…Attack. He can't overpower my dragon with what's on the field, but if he did get something strong enough then I'd never win this!"_

"Red-Eyes, attack!" Joey ordered.

The metal dragon charged up its assault as time seemed to slow…

Yugi's hand flew over his first facedown card, causing it to rise up…

The energy flew…

The audience gasped…

The energy struck a barrier of blue light in front of Yugi and two words escaped his lips as time snapped back to normal…

"MIRROR FORCE!" Yugi called out.

Joey lowered his in shame.

"I can't believe I ran into that!" He lamented as his dragon was blasted to kingdom come, "I…I can't do anything else."

Yugi breathed a sigh of relief as he drew his next card. He held it up before placing it into his disk. Dark Magician began to glow with a green aura as his attack points suddenly leapt to (4500/4100)!

"Oh now what?" Joey gasped.

"That would be my Mage Power spell card." Yugi explained, "It gives my Dark Magician an extra 500 attack and defense for every spell and trap I have, including my facedown card, Premature Burial, Spiral Spear Strike, and Mage Power itself."

"Oh yeah…Hey, what is that facedown card?" Joey asked, pointing at the unidentified card on Yugi's field.

"Oh, that's my Meteorain trap. I was bluffing with that in case you drew a way to destroy my facedown cards." Yugi shrugged, "Sorry Joey, I'm ending the duel now by moving Dark Magician Girl (2000/1700) to the field!"

The girl giggled as she jumped into the air, blew a kiss to the audience, and landed next to her teacher. The two spellcasters smiled as they crossed staves, and Joey drew back in fear.

"Oh this is gonna _hurt!_" Joey realized.

"Sorry Joey, brace yourself!" Yugi recommended, "Double dark magic attack!"

Twin beams of purple and pink magic flew from the pair and slammed into Joey. Joey howled in pain as he was lifted from his pedestal by the energy before being laid out on his back with his remaining cards scattering behind him. The scattered cardstock vanished back into Joey's disk, and his life point counter buzzed to indicate his defeat.

**Joey: 0**

**Yugi: 600**

"Talk about a come-from-behind victory! Yugi Mutou successfully defends his title as King of Games!" Roland called out as Joey staggered back up.

The audience was going crazy with cheering and chanting, while Joey looked to his friend.

"So, was being hit by Dark Magician all that bad?" Yugi asked.

"Nah, not really." Joey said as he cracked his neck a bit, "Actually helped worked out this little pain in my back I'd had all day…Probably from that tube hotel."

Joey's pedestal began to rise into the air, causing the blond to stumble as it lifted until he stood eye-to-eye with the statue of Ares.

"Okay Ares, here's your sacrifice!" Roland called out, "Sorry if he's a little undercooked."

"I sweat, I'm gonna hate what happens next and want to get even with Kaiba even more." Joey sighed.

Twin beams of fire shot from the eyes of the statue, and Joey screamed as he was immolated on the spot by the intense heat! Yugi vanished in apulse of light before he could voice concern for his friend, and the audience cheered at the impromptu light show.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Ouch…" Serenity, John, and Bakura all said at once.

"Poor Joey." Serenity sighed.

"It was good match, there's no shame in losing to a strong opponent." John smiled, "At least, that's my opinion."

"Does anyone else smell roast chicken all of the sudden?" Bakura asked.

"Don't even joke Bakura…" Joey's voice threatened.

Turning around, the trio of teens winced as they saw Joey behind them. He was covered in soot and ash, looking more like an obsidian statue of his former self.

"Joey! You're okay…Kind of." Serenity cheered, her smile wavering.

"I'll be fine, I'm just gonna let the dead skin peel of. Should only take until the end of the next duel." Joey assured his sister, "At least we can enjoy that together."

"Indeed?" John asked.

"Sure, Kaiba's going up against Noah…" Joey paused to chuckle a bit, "And he never manage to beat Noah in their duel."

_**The duels aren't over yet, we've barely reached a simmer!**_

_**Next time, it's the last of our major rematches! Seto Kaiba will be pitting his dangerous dragons against his step-brother Noah Kaiba!**_

_**If only these two got along as well as the Hokages…**_

_**Ah well, the next match is**_

_**Cain and Abel**_

**_Guess who's supposed to be who._**

---

Original Card

---

Kunai with Chain

Trap

Image of a three-pronged blade with a chain trailing from it.

This card can only be activated when an opponent's monster declares an attack. Switch the monster from ATK position to DEF position. Also, if there is a Warrior-type monster on your side of the field when you activate this card, treat this card as an "Equip Spell Card" to the selected Warrior-type monster and increase its ATK by 500 points.

_This card was first used in the anime by Joey in the episode "Double Trouble Duel (Part 1)." All credit for it goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Soul Rope

Trap

Image of a man with a golden rope extending from his chest.

When one of your monsters is destroyed in battle, pay 1000 life points to special summon a level four or lower monster from your deck.

_This card was first used by Yugi in the anime episode "Clash in the Coliseum (Part 2)." All credit goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Dangerous Machine Type-6

Spell

Image of a green machine with six windows in it.

During each of your standby phases, roll one six-sided die with the following results.

1: Randomly discard one card from your hand.

2: Your opponent randomly discards a card from their hand.

3: Draw one card.

4: Your opponent draws one card.

5: Destroy one monster on your opponent's field.

6: Destroy this card.

_This is an actual Japanese card that has yet to reach the U.S. Joey used it in the anime episode "Down in Flames (Part 2)."_

---

Landstar Forces

Spell

Image of four kids dressed in different costumes. One is a knight, one a soldier, one a Green Beret, and one is a gun man.

Special summon all monsters in your hand that have the word 'Landstar' in their title.

---

Knight of Landstar

Warrior/effect

EARTH

Three star

1000 attack

500 defense

This card cannot be the target of an attack if you control another monster with 'Landstar' in its name.

---

Grappler of Landstar

Warrior/effect

EARTH

Three star

1000 attack

500 defense

When this card is normal, flipped, or special summoned, you may special summon one monster with 'Landstar' in its name from your hand.

_The above three cards were used by Joey in the anime episode "Let the Games Begin!" All credit goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Hyper Refresh

Spell/quickplay

Image of a man holding up a bottle of juice.

You may only activate this card if you have no monsters on the field, and the total attack of your opponent's monsters is greater than your life points. Double your current life points.

_This card was first used by Joey in the episode "Down in Flames (Part 2)." All credit goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Chasm of Spikes

Trap

Image of a hole filled with sharp, metal spikes.

You may only activate this card when your opponent declares an attack. Destroy the attacking monster and subtract ¼ of its attack points from your opponent's life points.

_This trap was first used by Joey in the episode "Keith's Machinations (Part 1)." Credit for it goes to the writers of that episode._

---

A/N: Some news loyal readers. With the start of a new semester at college approaching, this fic might start updating a bit more erratically. We'll do our best to stay on schedule, but don't fret if a chapter isn't posted on Friday. We'll have it up as soon as possible.

A/N: Younger Hokage whishes to extend an invite for anyone that may have drawn fan pictures of our characters to show us some of their work. Just e-mail us the site that we can see it at, or send it as an attachment. Label it "Fan Art." Please.


	32. Cain and Abel

_**Attention Duelists, we are now in the last match of the final's first round…**_

_**And what a match it promises to be! We'll now be pitting our tournament's organizer against the one responsible for the magnificent tournament grounds we've been given!**_

_**So allow me to introduce Seto Kaiba, CEO of Kaiba Corp, master of the Blue-Eyes White Dragons.**_

_**And his opponent and step-brother, Noah Kaiba, the Cyber Spirit!**_

**_It's brother versus brother in a no-holds-barred match to the finish we call_**

Cain and Abel

Yugi reappeared within the box seats in a burst of light. He looked back over his shoulder at the arena floor where Joey had been just before he vanished, but the temple had already disappeared.

"Don't worry about Wheeler, he's probably sitting in the audience right now." Kaiba said.

"We put him next to his sister." Mokuba's voice explained, "Their looking forward to the next match."

"Oh…Okay then. As long as Joey isn't hurt." Yugi said as he started back to his seat.

He stopped when he noticed Tim was lying in the aisle between the two rows, facedown and moaning. Brian and Zeffie were both looking down at him and Brian looked sheepish.

"Huh, I guess I hit him too hard." Brian said as Zeffie prodded Tim with her finger.

"He's fun to poke." Zeffie grinned as she poked him in the ribs.

"Please…Stop that." Tim moaned, getting to his feet, "Ugh…Bro, did my joke really deserve that?"

"You going to pull the 'dueling monkey' joke out again so…Yeah, yeah it did." Brian nodded.

Tim took his seat, Zeffie giggling as she sat down next to him with Brian to his other side.

"Only one duel to go!" Zeffie cheered.

"Then we're all up again. That's gonna be fun." Victor grinned.

"But first, Seto and I get a little rematch." Noam smiled as his and Kaiba's faces appeared on the window, "This is going to be good."

"You have no idea…" Seto grinned.

---------------------------------------------------------

Roland was on the big screen in the computer room, with Kaiba and Noah's faces hovering overhead.

"It's time for us to choose the last contender for the quarter-finals! Everyone brace yourselves, because in two minutes we'll be setting Seto Kaiba loose on Noah Kaiba in a clash of two brilliant minds!"

The audience was cheering, and Sota and Jackson looked to the betting slip.

"We're all tied up at the moment." Jackson pointed out.

"There's always next round. I don't think Kaiba would like it if he heard someone bet against him." Sota said.

"No bets then?" Rei asked.

"Nope." Both men stated.

Rei nodded and crossed the match off her list. She then punched in a few commands to her computer.

"Okay then, and now we'll leave it to Roland to handle things for the match." She said.

------------------------------------------------------------

"So you've seen these two duel before?" John asked, looking to Joey (who had healed from his burns remarkably fast).

"That's right. During an…earlier trip to this place." Joey nodded, "And Seto lost that duel. To be honest, it was only cause Noah pulled a dirty trick, but Kaiba's done his fair share of that too."

"At least now they can put it behind them and have a nice duel." Serenity smiled.

"Knowing Kaiba, I doubt he plans to just 'Put it behind him.'" Bakura fretted, "He's probably been waiting for a chance to get even."

--------------------------------------------------------------

Back in the VIP seating, Noah was sliding out his Cost Down and Precious Cards from Beyond in order to make room for another pair of cards. He smiled as he slid them into place, and then closed his screen.

"I'm all set Seto." Noah said as Seto shut down his own editing screen, "Let's have a good match."

"I can assure you, this will be one to remember." Seto smiled, "Though I can't guarantee it will be a fond memory."

"Okay boys, get down and here and start tearing each other apart!" Roland shouted as the two vanished.

----------------------------------------------------------------

The two rings of light fell into the arena, and Roland stepped back as Seto and Noah appeared. The audience started to cheer, and Roland held up a hand for silence.

Nothing happened other than the audience quieting down. Roland looked around, confused, and finally tapped his ear piece.

"Rei, where's the arena?" He whispered.

"You're standing in it." Rei responded.

"The duelists are here and the scenery didn't change yet." Roland pointed out.

"Huh…Oh one sec, must have lagged for some reason…There." Rei responded.

The ground faded into inky blackness, and Roland cleared his throat.

"Okay folks, seeing as they're already here allow me to introduce the last of our top sixteen! I give you, in the smart white blazer with a good two feet on his opponent, Seto Kaiba!"

The audience roared in approval as Kaiba ignored them and flipped his duel disk into position.

"And, the boy who made most of this possible and step brother to Seto, Noah Kaiba!" Roland introduced.

Noah waved to the audience as they cheered for him, and then activated his own disk.

"Now then, it's time to go to our battle ground." Roland intoned, "A place for the greatest creatures of mythology and fairy tales to call their final resting grounds, where their spirits still live on…"

The shadows burst away, leaving all three of the arena's occupants standing on a giant skull that topped a massive skeleton! The skeleton itself looked to be reptilian in origin, with a pair of skeletal wings extending from its back. It was clear this was the skeleton of a giant dragon, perched atop a cavern entrance far below. Around the competitors were littered the skeletons of smaller dragons that looked as though they stood about the same size as Seto when they were alive.

"Our arena for this match is the Dragon's Graveyard!" Roland called out.

"Hmm…foreshadowing." Noah smiled.

Seto just huffed in reply as Roland pointed at the two of them.

"Seeing as our opponents are brothers in the eyes of the law at least, I've elected we call this match Cain and Abel…For obvious reasons." Roland grinned, "Now then, we've had enough of the formalities. Gentlemen, present your deckmasters!"

Noah waved one hand, and behind him appeared an orb of pure light.

"It's an easy choice for me. I select Shinato, King of a Higher Plane!" Noah called out.

From the light emerged the six-winged angel lord. His hands shone with awesome power, and he glared toward Kaiba with a solemn look on his face.

"Well, I'll choose my own creature of light for my deckmaster then." Kaiba stated, unfazed by his opponent, "I select the Kaiser Seahorse!"

A pool of light appeared next to Seto, and from it jumped the scaly humanoid wielding his golden trident. He nodded to Kaiba and tapped his weapon on the ground, causing a burst of light to cover Kaiba's deck.

"Alright then, now we'll see who goes first…" Roland said.

Two orbs of black energy suddenly shot into the air. Without missing a beat, both deckmasters looked up to the projectiles and charged up beams of light. They fired them off, each one aiming at one of the orbs…

Shinato's orb was easily eradicated by the sacred light he cast forth. The one that Kaiser Seahorse had aimed at swerved to the side and vanished into the distance.

"Okay, since Shinato scored a hit, Noah can go first!" Roland called out, "Let's duel!"

"Hey, that's our line!" Seto and Noah both shouted as they drew five cards apiece.

**Noah: 8000**

**Seto: 8000**

Noah drew his first card, quickly setting it in place on his tray. A facedown monster appeared, followed by a hidden card behind it.

"Here's an easy opening move: One facedown monster and facedown card to go with it." Noah smiled, "Your move Seto."

Kaiba drew his card with a smirk.

"_Ah, my deadly Crush Card. Perfect. Once I've set this off, Noah won't have a chance."_ Seto thought as he slid the lethal trap into his duel disk.

"I'll set two cards facedown." He said, following the first trap with another facedown card, "And then I'll summon my Giant Germ (1000/100) in attack mode."

Kaiser Seahorse waved his spear overhead, and a blob of disgusting, purple goo floated over head. It formed into an orb shape, with tiny hairs extending from it.

"Okay, that'll be my turn…" Seto stated.

"And before it officially ends, I activate my Dust Tornado card!" Noah interrupted, his facedown card lifting up and firing a blast of dirt and wind toward his opponent's field, "This will let me destroy one of your spells or traps, and since you're an orderly person I'm guessing you planned to combo that Giant Germ of yours with the trap directly behind it!"

The wind shattered the card behind Giant Germ, sending particles of red sludge flying everywhere. Kaiba scowled in response as he placed his Crush Card into his graveyard.

"Poor Seto, so predictable." Noah smirked as he drew, "Now, for my next trick, I summon my deckmaster to the field! Come forth, Shinato (3300/3000)!"

The glorious angel lord floated forward onto the field. As he hovered toward an empty spot next to Noah's first monster, Seto grinned as he slammed down on one of his disk's buttons.

"So, predictable am I?" Seto asked as the trap lifted, "Did you happen to see this Bottomless Trap Hole coming?"

A hole opened in the ground right in front of Shinato, and a powerful wind began trying to pull him into the chasm!

"Oh-no! Looks like we've got a short duel on our hands!" Roland called out, "Once that trap does away with Shinato, Noah will automatically lose!"

"Ack!" Noah squawked waving a hand to Shinato, "Shinato! Activate reversal NOW!"

Shinato vanished in a pulse of light, and the hole slammed shut. Noah breathed a sigh of relief as his deckmaster reappeared behind him.

"Okay…" Roland said, eyes wide.

Half of the audience had a similar expression on their face. Noah took a deep breath and gestured to his monster.

"Ahem…Sorry for that. Shinato has a deckmaster power called 'Reversal.' If he would be destroyed while on the field, I can call him back to my side." Noah explained, "But then I can't summon him anymore. At all. So Seto managed to save himself from that particular threat."

Seto had a smug grin as Noah turned over his facedown monster.

"I guess I'll have to go with plan B." Noah frowned, "I flip summon my Asura Priest (1700/1200)."

The facedown card vanished. Shinato waved one hand toward the field, generating a bright field of light that coalesced into a now-familiar figure. With six arms, three faces on one head, and blue briefs, the oriental angel hadn't lost his shock value with the audience.

"Oh, and since I'm not using mine as a deckmaster, his special power activates." Noah grinned, "He can attack as many monsters as I want him to, so long as there are monsters to attack. Let's start with Giant Germ: Daggers of demise!"

Asura Priest held up all six of his limbs, generating a glowing knife in each hand. He tossed two of the forward, spearing Giant Germ and causing it to burst into globules of filth. One large splatter struck Noah's chest and caused him to cry out in pain as it sizzled against his shirt!

"Thanks to that, you activated Giant Germ's effect." Seto said as two cards flew out of his deck, "I'm sure you remember it from our first duel: You lose 500 life points, and I get to summon two more germs in attack mode."

The remains of the first germ lifted up and pooled together with more sludge and filth from around it. It split into two pieces, a new germ forming around each piece (1000/100 X2).

At the same time, Shinato held one hand over Noah's head. A golden light bathed over the boy, who smiled as the sizzling chunk of bacteria was vaporized from his chest.

"And it also activates Shinato's second deckmaster power of life absorbance." Noah grinned, "Every time you lose life points in a battle, I get them."

Celeste was now looking her deck in the audience. She stopped at her own Shinato and looked at it with wide eyes.

"_Maybe I should have used this guy as a deckmaster…"_ She thought, _"Well, if whishes were fishes."_

Noah gestured to the other two germs, and his monster needed no further prompting. The blue-skinned monster cast forth his last two knives, splattering both of the germs across the arena and bathing Noah in another dousing of acid. Shinato was quick to administer the healing light this time, and Noah's pain and acid burns quickly faded.

**Noah: 8600**

**Seto: 5900**

"Looks like I've taken a commanding lead." Noah smiled.

"Hey, that's my line!" Roland protested.

Noah was looking over the rest of his hand, and shrugged.

"I've done enough damage, so I'll end my turn here." He said, pointing to Asura Priest, "And since I end my turn, Asura Priest returns to my hand right now."

The fairy faded away, and its card shimmered into Noah's hand. Seto drew his own card with cold look in his eyes.

"So my first plan was a flop, at least I kept you from summoning Shinato." He shrugged, "Now I'll just make sure that Asura Priest is useless. I summon my Vorse Raider (1900/1200) in attack mode."

A pile of bone nearby began to tremble. It suddenly burst into a fine, white powder as a hideous ogre dressed in leather straps and carrying a wickedly curved axe leapt out from behind it. He landed in front of Seto and ran his tongue over the blade of his weapon.

"Vorse Raider, attack him directly with blood axe slash!" Seto ordered.

Noah braced himself as the ogre slashed his weapon in a downward motion. The boy gasped as it carved open a wound over his heart, which promptly sealed shut but still tingled with pain. The wicked monster laughed as he paused to lick his blade again.

"Hate to tell you, but that's hardly sanitary." Noah grimaced, his life points dipping, "Seriously, you could catch something."

**Noah: 6500**

**Seto: 5900**

Ignoring that comment, Seto placed another card into his disk with a declaration of, "I set this facedown and end my turn."

Noah shrugged and drew his own card.

"Ah, just what I need." He smiled, holding up the card, "Seeing as I have little in my hand that actually helps right now, I activate my Magical Mallet card."

Above Noah appeared the toy hammer, which whizzed about in a chaotic pattern. Noah took three of the cards in his hand and placed them into his deck. The hammer came down and tapped Noah's deck before vanishing, causing the cards to glow for a second before Noah drew three new ones.

"Much better." Noah smiled, holding up a card, "I call forth my Susa Soldier (2000/1600)."

From the card jumped a bolt of lightening. It crashed to the floor in front of Noah, forming into a man with spiked, white hair. He was dressed in bronze armor that crackled with electricity, and carried a bronze sword in one hand. He smiled as he spotted Vorse Raider, who glowered at him in return.

"It's only fifty life points, but I've seen duels be lost because of less than that." Noah declared, "Susa, get rid of his Vorse Raider with thunder sword!"

Faster than the eye could follow, the oriental hero cracked his blade downward. Lightening flew from it, heading for Vorse Raider, but Seto's facedown card lifted.

"Nice try Noah, I applaud the effort." Seto said, "But my Negate Attack will put a stop to your little plan."

The bolt of lightening was hurled to the ground by an invisible shield. It blasted a hole into the skull of the dragon they stood on and whistled to the bottom of the arena somewhere amidst the darkness.

"Drat. Ah well, I activate my Spring of Rebirth." Noah said, sliding another card into his disk, "I'm sure you remember this one as well. I get 500 points anytime a card returns to our hands."

From the newly drilled hole in the head, a gush of pure spring water poured out. An angel carrying a glowing scepter floated down and hovered over the water with a smile. Noah slid one more card into his disk, causing it to appear facedown next to his spring's card, and then nodded. Susa Soldier sheathed his weapon and vanished in a clap of thunder. Seeing the card appear in Noah's hand, the angel waved her scepter causing the waters to shower down on the boy.

**Noah: 7000**

**Seto: 5900**

Seto drew his card with a grim smile. He removed Vorse Raider from his disk and the ogre vanished into a burst of sparks.

"I tribute my Vorse Raider for one of my lesser dragons." Kaiba declared, "I should think that I don't need my Blue-Eyes to handle you. Luster Dragon #2 (2400/1400) should do the job nicely."

A massive cluster of green gems appeared before Seto. The jewels shattered, sending razor-sharp crystal flying every which-way, and in its place stood a dragon with scales that glittered like polished emerald. The noble-looking beast spread his wings and roared at Noah.

"You're going to miss Vorse Raider now." Seto declared, "Attack with emerald flame!"

The dragon roared again and breathed forth a blast of green fire. Noah just yawned and tapped his disk gently. The green fire was redirected and landed into the pool of water from the Spring of Rebirth where it turned into a blast of steam.

"You know, Negate Attack is surprisingly common card." Noah said, polishing his nails on his shirt collar, "It's getting that everyone has one these days."

"Shut up and make your move." Seto grumbled.

Noah just shrugged and drew his hand up to seven cards. Setting one onto his disk, it took the place of the Negate Attack that had been used. Another card on his disk manifested itself as a facedown monster in front of the spring.

"That's all." Noah said, "You're having fun aren't you Seto?"

"Time of my life." Seto said as he drew, "Let's get right to the good part of this turn: My battle phase! Luster Dragon, tear his facedown monster to shreds!"

The emerald best roared as it prepared another gout of flames. Noah silently tapped his disk again, and a pink and yellow spear flew out of the facedown card in front of him and stuck into Seto's monster!

"What's that?" Seto shouted.

"You don't recognize the Enchanted Javelin?" Noah asked, "Since you declared an attack with a monster, I get life points equal to its attack score."

The green fire blazed from the dragon's mouth. At the same time, a blast of yellow and pink energy flew from the spear and surrounded Noah, boosting his points even higher.

"Life point bonus or not, your facedown monster is still destroyed!" Seto called out.

The facedown card flipped, revealing a young woman with red hair. She wore a silver skirt and halter top, and was laughing even as the fire closed in on her. Just before she was destroyed, her hands glowed with silver light, which formed an aura around the Luster Dragon #2.

In a blaze of heat, the woman was gone, but Kaiba's dragon let out a confused growl as its wings suddenly snapped shut against its back. It fell down onto its forelegs and lowered its head even as it struggled to avoid doing so.

"That wasn't…" Seto growled.

"It was." Noah nodded, "My Otohime (0/100) may be weak, but when she's summoned or flipped over she'll force a monster on the field to change its battle position. So your Luster Dragon is now in defense mode and, in case you forgot, I have two monsters in my hand that are quite capable of destroying it."

**Noah: 9400**

**Seto: 5900**

Seto grumbled to himself as he slid another monster card onto his disk.

"I set this monster in defense mode and end my turn." He stated, the back of a card appearing next to Luster Dragon.

Noah drew his own card with a childish grin.

"I summon Asura Priest (1700/1200) back to the field." Noah declared, the oriental angel once more descending into play, "And now, he'll take care of your defending monsters. Daggers of demise!"

The fairy hurled for his rain of knives, piercing through the wings and paws of Luster Dragon and pinning it in place. The dragon roared just before it shattered. Kaiba's facedown card was subjected to similar treatment, and from it emerged a figure in brightly colored clothes with black and white face makeup. He swept a red cap off the top of his head and made a dramatic bow before he vanished.

"That was Peten the Dark Clown (500/1200)." Seto explained as the monster's card vanished, "By removing him from the graveyard when he's destroyed, I can summon another Peten in defense mode and I will."

The hat of the first Peten fell from above, and out of it sprang another Peten in the same get up. He laughed at Asura Priest, clutching his sides as he chuckled.

Asura Priest held up another set of daggers. Peten fell silent.

"Aww, you stopped laughing." Noah said with a sarcastic tone, "Isn't it funny anymore? Or did you just remember that Asura Priest can attack as many monsters as I want him to? Asura, go ahead."

Peten gulped as the flurry of blades went right for him. He screamed as he was impaled and stuck to the ground like a butterfly. He vanished, and third copy of the clown jumped up from the hat again.

"This is ridiculous…" Noah sighed, waving for Asura Priest to attack.

The knives flew and Peten was no more. Kaiba reshuffled his deck and returned to its slot. Noah gave his step-brother a confused glare.

"Care to tell me why you wasted our time like that? You know what Asura Priest can do…" Noah began.

"Noah, you may be a genius but you still have the patience and maturity of a child. By getting rid of Peten now, I've insured that I won't need to worry about drawing any more of him later seeing as he's useless in this duel." Kaiba grinned, "It's called deck thinning, in case you were wondering."

"An interesting strategy, but will it pay off?" Roland questioned.

"I end my turn here." Noah said, Asura Priest vanishing.

The water of the spring washed over Noah again, soothing him with a cooling sensation.

**Noah: 9900**

**Seto: 5900**

----------------------------------------------------------------

"Roland asked a great question." Jackson nodded.

"Here's another one: What is it that makes this match an 'opposite' duel?" Rei asked, looking at Sota.

Sota shrugged as he laid his head in his hands.

"Nothing really. I just ran out of pairings." He stated, "Besides, tell me you guys didn't want to watch this."

The other two thought for a moment, shrugged, and resumed watching the duel. There really was no good reason not to.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

"Is that life point counter right?" Mai asked, staring at the score, "What are his points at?"

"They're over NINE-THOUSAND!" Tim shouted, raising one fist.

Everyone else stared at him, and he chuckled a bit as he lowered his arm.

"Sorry, always wanted to do that." He said, "But seriously, what's with Noah's monsters in this duel? They bounce around more than Zeffie does on a calm day!"

"Hey!" Zeffie shouted.

"They're spirit monsters." Yugi explained, "Very tricky creatures that return to the owner's hand at the end of the turn."

"Sound risky, you leave yourself open to attacks like that." Brian observed.

"Seems that Noah found a way to cover that little handicap." Victor pointed out, "And Kaiba can't strike back at his monsters."

"If I know Kaiba, he'll have found something that conquers those spirits." Yugi said.

"_And we know Kaiba."_ Yami thought, looking out the window.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, I can honestly say I never thought anybody would build an entire deck around spirit monsters." Pegasus said, stroking his chin, "I thought they could be useful assistants to other strategies, but a strategy in themselves…"

"You never thought of that?" Gold asked, turning to the creator.

"Of course I did! Who do you think you're talking to?" Pegasus said with a laugh, "That's why I designed a clever little card that gives spirit monsters a little help."

"Sound fun." Mary smiled.

"Not when you're on the receiving end." Pegasus frowned.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Seto drew another card and smirked again.

"This is where deck thinning comes in handy Noah. I put in a special card that was designed to deal with monsters like yours." Seto said as he played the card, "And I've just drawn it. I activate Fengsheng Mirror!"

A mirror in a silver frame appeared next to Seto. He smiled as the mirror spun around and projected an image…

An image of the cards in Noah's hand! Noah gasped at this sight as Kaiba calmly went over them.

"Let's see now…Chaos Barrier Field, Susa Soldier, Asura Priest, Inaba White Rabbit, and Next World." Seto observed, "Well, now that I've seen your hand, I'm allowed to take one spirit monster from it and force you to discard it. So I pick…Susa Soldier."

The mirror spun around again, and this time Susa Soldier appeared inside of the mirror! The Chinese warrior screamed and pounded his fist against the inside of his prison. It didn't do anything, the mirror shattered and took him with it.

"That's a dirty trick Seto!" Noah protested.

"You've pulled worse." Seto said calmly.

"Oh, touché." Noah countered, "Okay, I guess I over reacted a bit…"

"I have two more copies of that card in my deck. Special for you." Seto smiled.

"_Damn…it."_ Noah thought angrily as Seto put down another card.

Seto was obviously enjoying watching his step-brother lose his cool. He smiled as a new monster, this one a knight in silver armor with a rather large sword, clanked out from behind one of the skeletons. He hefted his weapon overhead with a furious battle-cry as an aura of light surrounded him.

"Meet my Blade Knight (1600/1000)." Seto smiled, holding his single card, "Since I only have one card left in my hand, he gets a 400 point bonus to his attack score."

Indeed, the knight did seem much more courageous than necessary. He picked up a scattered skull and crushed to powder in his mailed fist (2000/1000).

"Attack Noah directly with shining blade!" Seto commanded, pointing at his target.

Noah crossed his arms in front of himself as Seto's monster bore down on him. The knight swung its sword around in a half-circle, starting to the left of Noah's waist and ending on his right. Noah fell over in pain as his life points dipped.

**Noah: 7900**

**Seto: 5900**

Noah got back to his feet, brushing dust off the front of his coat. He looked at his life points with a shrug as he picked up the cards he had dropped.

"Now really, is that the best you can do?" Noah challenged.

"You haven't seen anything near my best." Seto smiled, "Believe me, you'll know my best when you see it. Go ahead Noah."

Noah drew his card and looked at it before taking another from his hand. He set it onto his disk, resulting in a stone bowl rising up in front of him.

"I'll start by summoning my Inaba White Rabbit (700/500) in attack mode." Noah began.

From the bowl emerged a stone pestle covered with strange runes. These runes began to glow, the light they gave off coalescing into the form of a white rabbit. The bunny grabbed hold of the pestle with its forepaws, twitching its nose in Kaiba's direction as it did.

"Thanks to his special ability, my monster is able to jump past yours and attack directly." Noah explained as he held up the card he had drawn, "But before I do that, I'll keep you guessing what else is in my hand with my Reload spell card!"

From nowhere appeared a strange looking pistol made of stone and wood. The pistol clicked once, causing Noah's cards to vanish from his hand and deck. The pistol clicked again and all of his cards reappeared in his disk. He swiftly picked up three cards as the gun vanished. Thinking for a minute, he slid one of the cards into his disk.

"I'll set this card facedown…" He said, the hidden card appearing behind his monster, "And now I'll have my Inaba White Rabbit attack directly with pestle pound!"

The rabbit tightened its grip on the pestle before it, as the stone protrusion began to pulse up and down on its own. The tool suddenly took off like a rocket, flying all across the field in a wild loop around Seto before the entire thing vanished from sight.

"What…?" Seto gasped.

He was cut off as the pestle and rabbit suddenly jumped up behind him. The granite pounding tool slammed into the small of Seto's back, sending him stumbling forward as he gritted his teeth together. Noting the change in life points, Shinato raised one hand and transfused the extra points to Noah.

"And that will end my turn, sending Inaba White Rabbit back to my hand." Noah declared.

The bunny vanished from the field along with his mixing instruments. The card appeared in Noah's hand and the boy's life points were restored by another soaking from the spring nearby.

**Noah: 9100**

**Seto: 5200**

Kaiba regained his composure, clearly not amused by what had just transpired.

"Okay Noah, you want to play rough?" Seto challenged as he slid the card he had retained from his previous turn into his disk.

Above his head appeared a guillotine blade, held in place by five ropes. Seto smiled as he drew five cards, tucking away the one from the start of his turn into them.

"Let's play rough. I start with Card of Demise, so now I have five turns worth of cards in my hand. Which is good because I'll be losing them all in five turns anyway." Seto said as he took one of the cards, "Of course, this weakens my Blade Knight…"

The knight's aura faded away, followed shortly by the knight itself as Seto removed his card from the duel disk.

"But that isn't going to matter in a moment. I tribute him to summon my Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!" Seto called out.

A massive roar shook the skeletons around the two. Roland took several steps back as a huge form appeared in the sky and slowly descended to the ground in front of Seto.

It was covered in silvery scales, with piercing cerulean eyes that gazed down at Noah. It spread its mighty wings behind it, opening up its jaws in a terrible roar at the prospect of its next meal. Noah trembled a bit as he stared up at one of the most destructive monsters in all of existence…

Blue-Eyes White Dragon stared right back down at him, growling in anticipation.

"And now my dragon…" Seto cried, "Attack his life points directly with white lightening!"

The dragon pulled back its head and opened its mouth, energy charging in between its jaws. Noah took a deep breath and crossed his arms in front of his body in preparation for the coming attack.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I Roland have decided it is far too dangerous for me to be standing here any longer so…" Roland announced.

He vanished in a pulse of light. The electric blast sprang from the jaws of the Blue-Eyes, plowing right toward Noah and completely obscuring any view of the boy…

The attack slowly tapered off, the lightening fading away. Noah uncrossed his arms, moaning as he struggled to remain on his feet after the devastating attack.

---------------------------------------------------------------

"Oooh…" Kevin winced after the last attack.

"How can he still be standing?" Espa asked, his eyes wide as saucers, "I'd be out like a light if I had to absorb a blow like that one!"

"Maybe all those life points he gained helped absorb some of the shock…" Celeste proposed, rubbing her chin with one hand, "He's only really lost about 2000 life points now…"

"I don't care how big a lead you have, 3000 points of direct damage _hurts!_" Kevin called out.

Ronaldo remained silent, watching as Noah managed to remain standing and smile at Seto's dragon…

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Roland reappeared on the arena floor, looking around to make sure it was safe. He let out a sigh of relief and resumed his position.

"And that direct attack has sent Noah's life points plummeting! Does he have a single monster able to bring down this behemoth?" Roland asked as the audience started to cheer once again.

**Noah: 6100**

**Seto: 5200**

"_Ouch…That attack hurt a lot more than it did the last time I remember…"_ Noah thought, retaining his smile so as not to worry the audience, _"I've taken direct attacks from all three of those dragons at the same time, and this attack hurt almost as much as those did…And I even had safeties turned on during my duel with Yugi in case he did get a direct attack in. Did the safeties get shut off again?"_

As Noah pondered this, Kaiba set two more cards into his disk. They appeared behind his dragon as he nodded to Noah.

"Alright Noah, I end my turn now." Kaiba declared.

Above him, the first of the ropes suspending the guillotine snapped. The blade dropped about an inch, hovering overhead on only four ropes now. Ignoring that, Noah slowly drew his card, wincing as his body protested with a stab of pain through his shoulder.

"_Calm down…A little healing effect should make this feel better…"_ Noah thought as he placed down a card, _"And I've got just the method too…"_

"I summon Inaba White Rabbit to the field again!" Noah called out, the white rabbit and his pestle rising up into play once again, "And since you're so fond of going right to the battle phase, why don't I take a leaf out of your book: Rabbit, attack with pestle pound!"

The pestle began to oscillate again, just before taking off like a rocket with the rabbit controlling the direction. Kaiba kept his eyes on the bunny until it vanished into thin air. He braced himself as it appeared behind him and started to dive down…

The audience winced as a loud crack could be heard as the attack came down on Kaiba's back, sending him sprawling to the floor. The little rabbit bunny-hopped his pestle back to Noah, who gave the critter an affectionate pat on the head as his step-brother got back up. Seto's deckmaster extended one hand, which the CEO ignored as he got to his feet on his own. Noah's deckmaster glowed with a familiar golden light, which bathed over Noah and soothed away some of the pain from the Blue-Eyes attack.

"I think I've had enough of that annoying rabbit…" Kaiba growled.

"Well I'm not finished yet." Noah said with a grin, pointing to his facedown card, "I activate my facedown trap card Spirit's Invitation. This causes a monster on your field to go back to your hand anytime a spirit monster comes back to mine, all for the low cost of 500 life points a turn."

Kaiba's eyes went wide at this as Noah looked over the rest of his cards. He shrugged as he set another card into his disk with a smile. It materialized next to his Spring of Rebirth in a flash of light.

"Okay Seto, I end my turn now." Noah said, pointing a thumb down.

Inaba White Rabbit twitched its nose as it transformed into a ball of white light. It flew forward and slammed into the chest of the mighty dragon in front of Seto, sending the creature reeling backwards. It vanished in a pulse of light along with the rabbit, and both cards appeared in the hands of their respective owners. Seeing this, the fairy sitting in the spring waved her scepter. Noah grinned as more of his pain faded away thanks to a double dose of spring water.

**Noah: 7800**

**Seto: 4500**

"Unbelievable! Noah has found a method to disarm Kaiba's dragon without resorting to a battle!" Roland shouted, "This could make or break the game folks!"

Kaiba drew his next card with unnecessary force from his disk. He held up the card he had drawn with a grin.

"Recognize this card?" Seto asked as another mirror appeared next to him.

"Another Fengsheng Mirror!" Noah gasped as his hand was reflected in it.

Kaiba looked at the cards and thought for a moment. The mirror showed Yamata Dragon, Inaba White Rabbit, Cost Down, and Graceful Charity.

"_He has a Graceful Charity and he didn't play it yet?"_ Kaiba wondered, looking at the spell, _"I suppose he didn't want to discard one of his spirits."  
_

"I choose to get rid of the rabbit." Kaiba declared, pointing at the card.

The mirror shone brightly, and within it appeared the rabbit. The tiny beast trembled in fear just before its glass prison shattered apart and took Noah's card with it.

"Next I'll summon my Slate Warrior (1900/400) in attack mode." Kaiba continued.

A trail of colorful cloth flowed up from behind Seto. It swirled around, forming into a human shaped figure with a chest made of metal. Its limbs were made of the cloth, while its head seemed to have been formed from blue gel.

"Now, attack Noah with slate slammer attack!" Kaiba ordered.

The colorful fiend charged forward, a trail of wind billowing out behind it. It slammed one cloth fist into Noah's stomach, causing the boy to double over in pain as he was hit with surprising force.

"_Ugh…It's like being hit by a tank! What's happening here?"_ Noah wondered, clutching his stomach, _"I can't try to call Mokuba or the others or else it would be considered interfering. I'll just have to grin and bear it…I'll fix things after this duel."_

**Noah: 5900**

**Seto: 4500**

Noah drew his card, the Spirit's Invitation on his field shimmering. Noah bit his lip before sighing and pointing to the card.

"Okay, I start by paying 500 life points to maintain my trap." He began.

The card drew a speck of light from Noah's body, and he looked to the other cards in his hand.

"Next, I activate my Pot of Greed." Noah announced, drawing two cads as the green jar appeared and immediately vanished.

Seeing one of the cards, the boy's eyes went wide.

"And now I activate my Giant Trunade!" He called out, "Great for handling pesky facedown cards without trashing your own plans. I don't know what you're trying to save those for, but they'll have to wait."

Seto grimaced as he looked at one of the cards that Noah was referring to.

"_If I chain this, I could get rid of most of his hand, but not of all of it. I've seen the devastation one card can cause…"_ Seto frowned.

A powerful storm spread over the field. The cards sitting in both player's spell and trap zones immediately were yanked into the air and vanished. Both duelists withdrew the cards from their disks, leaving Slate Warrior and the guillotine with three ropes hanging over Seto as the only things present on the field.

"Next, I'll activate my Graceful Charity." Noah declared as the angelic woman came down before him.

She slowly drew three cards from his deck and handed them to him before disappearing. Noah looked over the three additions to his hand with a grin.

"_Perfect! My combo is almost complete."_ He realized, dropping another copy of Spirit's Invitation and the Cost Down, _"My back up plan will keep me going until then."_

"Now, I'll reactivate my Spring of Rebirth." Noah began, the water once more gushing forth from the hole in the arena floor with the angel riding on top of it, "And then I'll transport this duel to a whole new arena…Welcome to the Mausoleum of the Emperor!"

Noah slammed a card into the field zone of his disk. The skull beneath them began to tremble as parts of it broke away leaving only a thin walkway of ivory-white hovering over a deep pit. At the bottom of the pit, thousands of terra-cotta statues of soldiers and horses dressed in Chinese armor stood as if awaiting orders. Braziers filled with burning wood appeared on either side of each duelist, and Roland let out a low whistle.

"Well, I'm no emperor but I wouldn't mind being buried here." He said as he looked down into the field of statues.

"Next, I'll lay these three cards facedown." Noah continued as three more cards appeared on his field, "And then I'll get to the effect of my field spell. Now we can both summon any monster we want with no sacrifices, so long as we pay 1000 life points for each sacrifice we normally need to summon that monster."

"Very clever, I think I can guess what you'll summon." Kaiba said, his eyes narrowing.

"Am _I _really that predictable?" Noah asked, shrugging off what he assumed was an insult, "Ah well, what works, works. I pay 2000 points to summon my Yamata Dragon (2600/3100)!"

Two of the statues below floated into the air and shattered into dust. Behind Noah appeared several twisting shadows which quickly formed into an all-together more horrifying creation. The audience gasped as what seemed to be eight-snakes that had been tangled together rose behind Noah, thrashing about and snapping at the air!

"What do you think of my dragon Seto?" Noah asked, "Quite a beauty, isn't he?"

Seot just glared at the monster, not saying a word.

"Ah well, that was the last card in my hand so I'll get right to the good part." Noah decided, "Attack his Slate Warrior with Orochi's curse!"

The eight pairs of eyes focused on Seto's lone monster, which stared up at them with a blank look. All eight jaws opened as one, and spat out eight streams of flame that closed in on and consume the Slate Warrior in an instant. As they did, a blue mist floated from where the monster had once stood, settling over Yamata Dragon and causing its scales to sizzle and smoke.

"Huh?" Noah gasped as his monster writhed in pain.

"Any monster that destroys Slate Warrior discovers they made a little mistake." Seto explained, "Because they immediately lose 500 attack points."

"Like it matters when he returns to my hand." Noah shrugged as his monster's stats fell to (2100/3100), "But before that, two effects go off right now. First, my deckmaster will give me some extra life points to work with…"

Shinato's golden light once more healed Noah, boosting his life points by 700 total.

"And then I draw until I hold five cards thanks to Yamata Dragon's effect." Noah declared, pulling five more cards from his disk and looking them over, "But I don't see much I want to play yet, so I'll end my turn and set off my Spring of Rebirth again."

Yamata Dragon lowered all eight heads and vanished into mist. The mists coalesced into a sixth card in Noah's hand, while a dousing of magic waters boosted his life points once again.

**Noah: 4600**

**Seto: 3800**

Kaiba drew his new card and looked at it. He slid the two cards from before back into his disk, allowing them to reappear in their old positions before him.

"Two facedown cards and then…" Seto stated, holding up a card, "I'll use the effect of your own field spell in a minute, but first I'll use my Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy the facedown card in the center of your lineup!"

Winds shot from the card Kaiba held, obliterating Noah's Sprit's Invitation. Noah winced as the card vanished, cursing inwardly as a piece of his strategy was blown off the field.

"Now then, onto this field spell. I'll only pay 1000 life points thanks to my deckmaster," Seto declared placing down his favorite card, "And I summon back my Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"

One statue rose out of the pit below, and turned into dust. A roar echoed from above as Kaiba's signature dragon returned to the field, the flame's light reflecting off its hide. Kaiba gave Noah's facedown cards a glance over and, obviously figuring they were no threat, nodded to his dragon.

"Blue-Eyes, decimate his life points with your white lightening!" He shouted.

The electric blast charged faster this time, and Kaiba's monster roared as it fired off a massive beam of ultimate doom. Noah hurriedly pressed a button on his disk, causing a silver shield to jump up in front of him.

"I use Draining Shield to stop your attack!" Noah shouted, the dragon's breath slamming into the shield, which reverberated with a gong-like sound.

Green light poured off the shield and covered Noah, who inhaled deeply as his points were restored and the last of the pain faded to nothing. Kaiba mentally slapped himself, resisting the urge to do so in front of the audience as he looked between his last two cards.

"_All that work and he's back where we started!"_ He growled to himself, _"But he doesn't have any monsters that beat my dragon. I have nothing to fear, he'll run out of defenses eventually."_

"I end my turn here." Kaiba stated as the third rope overhead snapped, "Good luck getting past Blue-Eyes."

**Noah: 7600**

**Seto: 2800**

"Before you end your turn, I'll activate another trap card." Noah declared, his facedown card lifting, "It's called Life Absorbing Machine, and it gives me back half of the life points I paid last turn for as long it's face up."

From the trap emerged a jellyfish like creature standing on insect-like legs. Its legs extended until it could safely position its main body over Noah. Noah drew his card, and looked up to the machine as green light poured down from it and was absorbed into his skin.

"Next, I'll summon a little fellow known as Maharaghi." Noah continued, playing another monster onto his disk.

From the field of statues below leapt a more roughly carved one. This one had eyes that were almost closed and it looked as though it were carved from a pillar of some kind. Its stone eyes opened as Noah took the top card off of his deck.

"With this monster, I can see the top card of my deck and decided whether to leave it on top or move it to the bottom." Noah explained as he looked at the card.

"_Hino-Kagu-Tsuchi, eh? I hardly need his special ability but if I can get rid of Seto's dragon he'd be the best chance for ending this duel."_ Noah reasoned, _"And it's not like summoning him is a problem."_

"I'll leave this card on top for now." Noah announced, putting the card back and taking another card from his hand, "I'll set another facedown card and call it a turn."

A hidden card appeared behind Maharaghi, which jumped back down among the other statues. The spring's waters flowed again over Noah, bolstering his score even further.

**Noah: 9350**

**Seto: 2800**

Seto drew his card and looked around at the field that had been set up.

"Maybe I should get one of these for myself." He considered as he placed a monster onto his disk, "It certainly is handy."

"With all of your high-level monsters, yeah it would be a big help." Noah nodded.

"But for now, all I need is my deckmaster. Since he made this monster only four stars, I don't need to pay anything to summon it…" Seto said, waving one arm, "Come forth my Kaiser Glider (2400/2200)."

From in between the braziers swooped a monster that resembled more a hawk or an eagle than a dragon. Its body was covered with solid gold and is claws shone in the light of the flames. It spread its wings and screeched at Noah, who seemed oddly unafraid of the monster.

"Now my dragons, attack him directly!" Seto called out.

"You fell for it!" Noah laughed, "I activate Chaos Barrier Field!"

A trap flew up on Noah's field, and the air around him began to warp and sway. The same warp appeared around Kaiba's field, causing the CEO to hold his head as a rather annoying migraine from the shifting colors set in.

"Ugh…Don't you have any normal traps?" Seto shouted.

"Technically this is a normal trap since it isn't a continuous effect or counter trap." Noah joked.

The audience moaned at the attempt at humor. Noah cleared his throat as Kaiser Glider appeared in front of him.

"Anyway, I'm not here to tell jokes. I'm here to kick your butt Seto, and this trap will help do it!" Noah smiled, "It stops all attack you try to make, and forces your weakest monster to battle your strongest! And since they're still under your control, you're the one that takes damage!"

The Blue-Eyes' white lightening attack was suddenly unleashed, vaporizing the poor Kiaser Glider in an instant. Kaiba let out a frustrated shout as a blast of gold energy shot across the field and struck his dragon, causing it to disappear once more.

"Oh, and since Kaiser Glider needs to send a monster back the hand when it's destroyed, and you were the only one with any monsters, you're wide open now!" Noah smiled as the spring once more jumped his score up a bit.

"Not quite…" Seto said as he slid another card into his disk, "I set this facedown and end my turn, Noah."

**Noah: 10450**

**Seto: 2200**

Overhead, the fourth rope snapped. The guillotine hung by a single rope now, and Kaiba gave it a look…

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Look's like Kaiba's had it." Joey observed, "I've faced that field spell Noah's using. It's a pain in the you-know-where."

"That's quite impressive though. I can think of several deck strategies that would benefit from it." John observed, his own deck in mind.

"But the high cost is kind of unnerving. It's a quarter of your life points for a double-sacrifice monster." Bakura pointed out.

"I wouldn't get to use it much myself, I use fusion monsters." Serenity nodded, "Hey Joey, you use a lot of high-level monsters…"

"Sorry Serenity." Joey said, shaking his head, "I ain't gonna try a card Kaiba thinks is good."

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"So now Kaiba is gonna lose?!" Tim shouted, holding his head, "Is the world turning upside down or something?"

Brian chuckled a bit as he idly shuffled his own cards.

"You beat Kaiba before…" He pointed out in a whisper.

"I was using an evil seal when I did." Tim responded, quietly so that no one else heard.

"If you ask me, it only fits into my idea that every duelist can be beat one way or another." Brian said.

"And you think that if Noah can't do it, you can?" Rex asked.

"I've been looking forward to this tournament so I could test that, yes." Brian confessed, "I think that with enough preparation, anyone can be beat."

"You don't get to beat Yugi before Zeffie does!" Zeffie shouted, wagging a finger at Brian.

"_I've seen Yugi duel. No thanks, no dark magic attack for me. It looks painful enough from the sidelines."_ Rex thought, _"This guy will learn soon enough that nothing beats Yugi…At all…Might be fun to see him try though. When he loses, I can laugh at him and say 'Told you so!'"_

Chuckling to himself, Rex settled in to watch the rest of the duel that was currently in progress.

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Noah drew another card, brining his hand to seven.

"Looks like it's time to end this duel…" Noah declared, slapping down a card, "I pay 2000 life points to call in the king of spirits…Rise Hino-Kagu-Tsuchi (2800/2900)!"

Two statues rose from below again, this time bursting into flames as they vanished! From the fire emerged a man that stood at least seven-feet tall with hair made of flames. He was well muscled, wearing only a kilt with a chain of beads around his waist holding it up. Tattoos covered his arms, and he glared toward his opponent with a malicious spark in his eye.

"Finish the duel!" Noah ordered, "Hellish flame fist!"

Hino-Kagu-Tsuchi raised one arm over head, igniting his entire hand with orange flames. As he prepared to charge, Kaiba tapped his disk.

"Stop right there. I activate Ring of Destruction!" Kaiba shouted.

From one of his cards leapt a familiar sight to any Kaiba fan: A metal collar with six grenades strapped to it. It latched around the waist of Noah's monster, causing the creature to look down in worry.

"So you blow him up and we each take his attack points as damage." Noah shrugged, "You'll still lose, in case you forgot."

"Oh will I? I activate Ring of Defense, negating the damage from my own Ring of Destruction." Kaiba ordered.

Another of his cards lifted, and out of it emerged a metal ring with four large shields. This spun in front of Kaiba as the first ring exploded and sent a wave of fire over the entire area! Roland and Noah both screamed as the flames covered everything but Seto himself. When they finally settled down, Roland got back to his feet.

"Oooh…I'm gonna feel that for a while." He confessed, clutching his side.

Noah was panting for breath while the audience cheered over the fireworks show. He showed no signs of being burned, but it still felt as though his body were covered in a massive sunburn at the moment.

**Noah: 5650**

**Seto: 2200**

"_Ugh…That was worse than Yugi's Life Equalizer!"_ Noah thought, straightening up, _"Something is definitely wrong with the system…I can hope that Roland realizes it too!"_

Roland was tapping his ear piece in the meantime, and shrugged as he realized that Rei and the others weren't picking up.

"_They must be on a coffee break or something…"_ Roland thought, _"I felt the pain from that explosion myself…but we never tested if I wouldn't…Mr. Kaiba would kill me if I called the duel off for any reason, I'll have to let it go on unless the technicians find there's something wrong."_

"Noah, are you able to continue?" Roland asked, looking to the boy.

Noah frowned, and nodded his head, "Yes, I can."

"Very well then, let's keep this duel rolling!" Roalnd ordered.

Noah looked at the other cards in his hand and winced.

"_Only one card I can use as a defense for when he brings back his…"_ He thought, _"Uh…I'll just have to hold him off…"_

"I set a one card facedown and end my turn." Noah said, frantically, the facedown card appearing.

Seto drew, the blade over his head glinting in the torch light.

"I pay another 1000 life points, calling for the third time my Blue Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500 still)!" He shouted.

One shattered statue later and a very ticked-off Blue-Eyes lorded over Seto's field. It glared at Noah with a threatening growl as the boy silently prayed for a miracle.

"Attack!" Seto shouted.

"Widespread Ruin!" Noah responded, slamming his disk to activate the trap.

**Noah: 5650**

**Seto: 1200**

The dragon got a chance to inhale, but that was it. It exploded into a burst of fiery shards that scattered its remains into the misty abyss below. Seto seemed unfazed as he slid his last card into his disk.

"I end my turn." Seto said, simply.

The final rope snapped, and the blade whistled down. Since Kaiba had no cards in his hand, however, the guillotine fell right past without touching him. Noah drew his card and breathed a sigh of relief.

"_Spiritual Energy Settle Machine."_ He thought, _"Even if he blocks Yamata Dragon somehow, I've got this match in the bag!"_

"I actvate my facedown card." Seto declared, pointing to a long-forgotten trap, "One that I set after you used Giant Trunade, the lethal Life Shaver! It now forces you to discard one card for each standby phase that it was facedown, and I've counted five."

The trap lifted and out of it flew a blade of broken glass. Noah screamed as it pierced into his cards and sliced five of them into pieces! The shreds of cardstock floated into his graveyard, where they reformed and settled. Noah bit the inside of his check, seeing only his Otohime in his hand. Above him, the Life Absorbing Machine glowed, restoring 1000 of the points he had spent to summon Hino-Kagu-Tsuchi last turn.

"I'll set this monster facedown and end my turn…" Noah sighed, sliding his lone card into his disk.

**Noah: 6650**

**Seto: 1200**

"What else can you do?" Seto taunted as he drew another card of his own, "Now come the end Noah, I activate my facedown Card of Sanctity, so we each draw until we have six cards."

The facedown spell lifted up, and golden light illuminated the mausoleum. Noah drew six cards with a confused look on his face, while Seto drew five. He smiled as he saw all of them…

"Now, I summon my Lord of Dragons (1200/1100)." Seto stated.

From the darkness emerged a man in brown robes, wearing a dragon skull over his head. He looked about the field with a disapproving gaze, and turned to Seto.

"Next, I'll activate my Flute of Summoning Dragons." Seto declared, a golden horn shaped like a roaring dragon appearing in the hands of his monster, "With Lord of Dragons on the field, this spell summons two dragons from my hand. Want to guess which ones?"

"No way…" Noah gasped.

The spellcaster lifted the horn to his lips and blew out a single note. Two roars sounded overhead, resulting in Roland flashing out of the arena again, and the roars were accompanied by two more of Kaiba's signature monster. A pair of Blue-Eyes White Dragons (3000/2500 X2) now stared down at Noah.

"Next, I use my Premature Burial to revive my final Blue-Eyes (3000/2500)!" Kaiba called out.

A circle of red light appeared in the air, and out of it leapt the dragon that had been bouncing from hand to field the entire game. It roared in anger, its scales now dingy with grave dirt, and nodded to its brothers. The other two dragons glared down at Noah together, sharing the rage of their brother. Lord of Dragons, as per his effect of preventing cards from targeting dragons, waved one hand and the grave dirt on the revived dragon was washed away.

"_Otohime will stop one attack, turn one dragon to defense mode, and then I can come up with something from there…_" Noah assured himself, _"I have six cards here…Not much of a deck left but I have six cards to work with once I calm down and think about my move…_"

"And don't think you're getting out of this Noah. I activate the last card in my hand…: Kaiba turned the card around to show a strange image.

The card was a spell, with three scorpions standing in a triangle pattern. Noah's eyes went wide, he recognized this card. His hand of six cards fluttered to the ground as he realized the duel was over.

"Delta Attacker..." He choked out, "Let's three normal monsters that have the same name attack directly for one turn…"

"And despite their massive power, all three of my dragons are normal monsters." Kaiba grinned, pointing to Noah as he played the spell, "I end the duel now: White lightening storm! Unleash your fury my dragons!"

The three giant dragons jumped to the sky and glared down at Noah. As one, the three monsters charged up energy in their jaws. Noah whimpered in fear, knowing that the increased pain would hurt much worse than the last time this had happened.

"Seto, you need to listen…" Noah began.

Too late. The three blast rocketed down and slammed into Noah. He didn't scream, he couldn't. The pain was too great to be expressed by a single boy and thankfully too much for him to remain conscious for more than a second. He blacked out immediately after the attack started.

**Noah: 0**

**Seto: 400**

Roland reappeared in the arena as the monster and field spell faded away. He cleared his throat as he pointed to his employer that stood tall and proud.

"The winner, with an attack that shatters all records in this arena, is Seto Kaiba!" Roland called out.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brian's eyes were wide as he witnessed the final attack.

"Not even my direct attack on Celeste topped that power!" He shouted.

"Still think you could take Kaiba?" Rex laughed.

"_That seemed like overkill, even by Kaiba's standards."_ Yugi thought.

"_Yes…And why hasn't Noah gotten up yet?"_ Yami asked, pointing to the boy, _"He didn't seem to take it so hard when we did the same to him…"_

"_The finals are a bit more realistic this time."_ Yugi thought toward his partner, _"I wouldn't be in a hurry to get up myself after an attack like that."_

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"Whoah…" Weevil gasped.

"Did you see that well enough?" Mako asked his neighbor.

For once, Mr. Richington was at a loss for words. Mako gave a smile at this as he stretched out his legs.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the real world, Sota, Jackson, and Rei returned from the coffee machine that had been set up out in the hall.

"Once I saw that Hino-Kagu-Tsuchi thing come in, I was thinking 'Kaiba's losing.'" Sota said as he sat down at his computer.

Rei flicked on her screen as she looked up to the big one.

"You might want to rethink things." She pointed out, noting Noah lying facedown on the ground.

Rei's screen suddenly began to flash with a red message. The technician looked at the message and gasped, quickly typing in several commands.

"Rei, is something wrong?" Sota asked.

"What's going on?" Mokuba demanded from his seat.

"Something messed in the dueling program! The safeties switched off during the duel!" Rei shouted as she typed in several commands, "Noah's mind has interpreted that it was just struck by three _real_ Blue-Eyes White Dragons and his system can't take it!"

"WHAT!" Mokuba shouted, "We tested this at least three-hundred times, how did the safeties turn off?"

"I'm not sure, but I think…Yes, I've managed to save him!" Rei cheered.

On the main screen, Noah vanished from the arena in a column of sparkling light. In the corner of the room, another machine lit up. It was a robot, about the same height as Mokuba, standing on a set of treaded feet. Its body was hinged at the waist, allowing it to take up a minimal amount of space in the corner, and its arms and hands were fully articulate. Its head hosted a screen like a television, on which appeared Noah's face. The robot's hands moved up to its head, and Noah's eyes opened up.

"Ugh…" He moaned, "So dizzy…"

"Noah!" Mokuba shouted, running over to the machine with a worried look on his face, "Are you okay? I didn't think the safeties were off, the alarm never sounded!"

"I'm fine…" Noah groaned, "Just need time to recover…"

Mokuba looked to the three technicians that had been on break during the last few turns of the duel. They all gulped as he pointed to them.

"I don't care how it happened, make sure it doesn't happen again!" He shouted, "If anything like this happens to Seto, it's on your heads, got it?"

"Yes sir!" All three of them shouted as they set to work.

_**What a match! What an ending! What a sad thing to happen!**_

_**But all's well that ends well, and once the safeties are back on you'll see just how things continue in this tournament.**_

_**Zeffie uses Wind monsters, Tim uses Fire. So if they were duel, what would happen?  
**_

_**Find out next time in**_

_**Firestorm**_

_**A not-to-be-missed match is coming up. So don't miss it!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Crush Card Virus

Trap

Image of a purple virus with a red kanji in the center

Tribute on DARK-attribute monster with less than 1000 attack points. Destroy all monsters on the opponent's side of the field and in their hand that have 1500 attack points or more. Any monsters your opponent draws over their next three turns with 1500 attack or more are immediately discarded.

_This is a real card in Japan. It was first used in the anime by Kaiba in the episode "Face-Off! (Part 2)" with different rules._

---

Chaos Barrier Field

Trap

Image of a man with a blue sphere to one side of him and a red sphere to the other.

You may only activate this trap when your opponent declares an attack and they have at least two monsters on the field. Your opponent's monster with the highest attack points must attack the one with the lowest that they control. They take all damage from the battle. No other monsters may attack this turn.

_This trap was first used by Noah in the anime episode "Noah's Final Threat (Part 2)." All credit for this card goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Life Shaver

Trap

Image of an hourglass that has been cut in half. All the sand is pouring out into an open hand.

When you activate this trap, your opponent must discard one card for each standby phase that it was facedown on the field.

_This card was first used by Seto, after taking it from Yugi, in the anime episode "Clash in the Coliseum (Part 3)." All credit goes to the writers of the episode. _


	33. Firestorm

_**What an amazing set of duels to start us off! And they'll get better from here folks…**_

_**It's now time for us to begin the quarter-finals, so tie yourselves into your seats and keep all limbs out of the arena…**_

_**Unless you want them torn off that is!**_

_**Our first match of quarter-finals will be explosive.**_

_**First up, Tim Hokage fresh from his victory over Mako Tsunami! Can his burning beasts blast their way into the winner's circle?**_

_**Then there's Zeffie Gale, who recently defeated Julius Gold! Will her feathered friends lift her on the winds of victory?**_

_**Only one way to find out! Let's start the match!**_

Firestorm

Mokuba was casting a stern gaze over the computer technicians as they furiously typed. After the failure of the safeties in the last duel, he wanted to be certain that there were no more screw-ups. Next to him stood Noah, or rather the robotic body that carried Noah's mind, a small camera on top of the screen looking from one side to another.

"You know Mokuba, I could repair the programs much faster than this entire room…" Noah offered.

"No Noah, I don't want to chance it." Mokuba protested, "Just wait a bit until you're sure that you fully recovered from the arena."

Noah smiled on the screen of his robotic face, and nodded.

"Okay then Mokuba. It's nice to know that you've accepted me…Even if Seto still has reservations." Noah said.

"Give him some time, I'm sure he'll see you as something than a side-project eventually." Mokuba smiled.

"It's not like I blame him for being cold to me, but he did design this body for me…" Noah said, "Probably just to keep me out of his computer but still…"

"Sir, the safeties have been fully reinstated." Rei announced.

"Great, give Roland the go ahead." Mokuba nodded.

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Kaiba returned to the VIP section, dusting off his jacket. He resumed his seat and crossed his arms, casting a gaze over his shoulder to the other finalists as if warning them about what would await them if they dueled him.

"Yikes…" Victor said, his eyes wide, "You don't think that was overkill maybe?"

"I do what it takes to win, nothing more nothing less." Kaiba stated, "Now then, let's get the next duel over with."

"Zeffie doesn't want to duel Mr. Kaiba…" Zeffie whispered.

"You're not alone there…" Rex muttered under his breath as the screen began to flash with the last eight duelists.

"I feel sorry for whoever goes up against him next." Mai said to Yugi.

"Same here." Yugi nodded.

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In the arena, the screen flashed overhead as Roland pointed to the audience.

"We've had eight amazing duels so far!" He shouted, "Are you all ready for the next four?"

The audience responded with raucous applause and cheering.

"I can't hear you!" Roland shouted.

The audience shouted even louder as the screens stopped overhead.

"You want it? You got it!" Roland called out, "Here's our next match: Tim Hokage vs. Zeffie Gale!"

The red-head and blond were pictured side-by-side on screen, and the audience roared its approval. The two-minute timer appeared under the pictures.

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"Oh boy…Hokage is in for it now." Gold said with a chuckle.

"How do you figure?" Ruby asked.

Gold just pointed up at the screen as he explained, "I've been babysitting Zeffie for how long now? I know what the girl can do in a duel. Trust me, Hokage has had it."

"Win or lose, the Timmy-boy will give us a good show." Pegasus smiled, "He seems to fancy himself a comedian."

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"What is it with them and pairing my friends up?" Celeste asked, holding her head.

"Rock-paper-scissors again?" Kevin offered, holding out a fist.

"Don't even start…" Espa warned.

Ronaldo just gave Celeste a pat on the hand.

"Calm yourself Celeste, it is all in good fun. The important thing will be to enjoy the duel." Ronaldo advised.

"Good point…At least they'll make it a good show." Celeste said, "I just hope Tim doesn't go too hard on Zeffie."

"We're talking about the girl that took out a living monument to defense you realize." Kevin pointed out, "I don't think 'going too hard on her' is an issue."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Say, wasn't Tim the one telling all of those jokes during his match?" Bakura asked.

"I'm hoping he'll keep 'em to himself this time." Joey sighed.

"I've met the guy remember so…Oooh…" Serenity winced, "And he's up against Zeffie who has always been energetic."

John sighed and looked at his feet.

"I'll begin to pray for aspirin." He offered.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh boy! The Joker vs. the Caffeine-Kid!" Weevil shouted with a sarcastic sneer, "This is a migraine waiting to happen."

"Are you kidding? I've hoping that Tim would wind up in a match like this." Mako grinned, "He'll get his butt kicked, and experience the same headache he put me through with those jokes!"

"Wonderful! I can't wait for the match to start." Richington stated, waving one hand, "Let the festivities begin."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the VIP seats, everyone but Tim and Zeffie was recovering from Zeffie's latest cry of joy.

"How did…" Rex started to ask as Tim looked over his cards.

"I know to cover my ears?" Tim finished, "to be honest, who didn't see it comming?"

"Yeahyeahyeahyeahyeahyeahyeah!" Zeffie chanted, bouncing in her seat as she looked over her own cards.

"I don't want to know what happens if she finally gets to duel me." Yugi whispered to Mai.

"She'll probably shatter the window." Mai guessed.

"No, this window is like bullet-proof glass. Nothing shatters it." Kaiba stated.

"We'll see." Mai smiled.

As those around her spoke, Zeffie removed the two Insurance traps that she had added for her duel with Gold. She then took back the Reckless Greed and Ordeal of a Traveler, placing them back into her deck. She thought for a moment as she looked over her remaining cards.

"_Zeffie doesn't think this is useful against Timmy…And last time Zeffie got to duel him he had a lot of fun with Ordeal of a Traveler!"_ She reasoned, _"But Zeffie doesn't like Reckless Greed that much…Oooh…Zeffie puts this in instead!"_

Zeffie removed the Reckless Greed and replaced it with a different trap card. Smiling, she also removed a Little Winguard that she had failed to even draw during the tournament and replaced it with another monster.

"_Perfect!"_ Zeffie cheered in her head.

Tim gave his cards a look and removed one UFO Turtle, one Blazing Inpachi, and one Flame Ruler from his deck. He then took three monsters from his side deck and slid them into place.

"That should do it." He smiled.

"Ready or not, here you come!" Roland's voice called out, "Get down here and duel you two!"

Tim and Zeffie were gone before anyone had time to blink.

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In the arena, a blast of hot-dry air caused the audience to begin looking for fans and cool beverages. Roland smiled as the air around him began to glow red, the arena shifting and flowing as it reshaped itself.

"Early on in the history of mankind, humans discovered how to use fire. They used it to warm their homes, cook their food, and eventually to craft great monuments and weapons." Roland declared, "But as humanity moved forward, we discovered other methods of powering our lives, leading us to this."

The arena snapped into focus, revealing that Roland now stood atop a skyscraper. To either side in front of him stood two more buildings, each one large enough to hold a duelist and their monsters on the rooftop. Below him stretched a city that didn't seem to be having the best day. A majority of the buildings below were consumed in fire, which was spreading toward the other two buildings nearby!

"Now, atop this windy skyscraper, it's time for fire and wind to meet!" Roland called out, "It's time to meet the duelists in the match I titled Firestorm!"

Rings of light fell, dropping Tim and Zeffie onto the opposing roofs. Zeffie ran over to the ledge and leaned over the side to get a look below her.

"Ooh…" Zeffie said, eyes wide at the fire.

A blast of hot air shot up, carrying embers and ash and forcing her away from the edge.

"You all know these two: Tim Hokage and Zeffie Gale!" Roland smiled, "Well now we're gonna see just which of them is the better duelist! Can Zeffie's wind blow out Tim like a candle? Or will she just fan the flames?"

"Zeffie isn't gonna lose!" Zeffie cheered, "Let's duel Timmy!"

"Shh…Watching fire burn." Tim smiled, leaning over the edge, "Pretty fire."

"That's enough of that." Roland said, a blast of ash catching Tim in the face and sending him sputtering to the center of the roof, "Focus here kids! I don't want to have to break out the Ritalin on you two!"

"What's Ritalin?" Zeffie asked.

"I knew she'd say that." Tim sighed, laughing a bit.

"Just pick your deckmasters already!" Roland ordered.

"Already done. Now that there's no more water around, I'll choose Great Angus!" Tim called out.

A section of the roof behind Tim burst apart, releasing the boar and causing Tim to fall to the ground with a shout of surprise. Angus landed on all fours, and moved onto his hind legs as he helped Tim up.

"No more surprises out of you." Tim scolded as his heart rate slowed again.

"Zeffie wants Garuda the Wind Spirit!" Zeffie cheered.

The crow-headed man swooped out of the sky and landed behind Zeffie. He smiled to the girl as she nodded to him and took her first five cards.

"Great, and the first move goes to…" Roland offered.

Great Angus flexed his legs and sprang into the air with a grunt. He soared upward roughly ten feet before coming down and cracking the concrete beneath him.

Garuda flew into the air, high above the arena until all sight of him was lost. He suddenly plummeted back down, landing with a crack on the roof…

A pained expression crossed his face as he stood up. Few cracks extended from where he had landed, but it sounded like a few bones had snapped judging by the way he held his backside.

"Well, I didn't think a concrete-cracking contest was an option but if that's the way it's done." Roland shrugged, "Tim, feel free to make the first move!"

Tim drew six cards, and the audience trilled in anticipation as he began to think over his move.

**Tim: 8000**

**Zeffie: 8000**

Tim pulled loose one of his cards and set it onto his disk.

"Okay, up first is one of my Great Angus…Anguses…Angi?" Tim looked to his deckmaster, "Hey, what's the plural for angus anyway?"

"It's just angus, like sheep or fish or deer..." The boar said, scratching his side.

"Okay then, Great Angus (1800/600)!" Tim called out.

Tim's deckmaster roared and plunged his fist into the roof. He pulled out an orb of glowing fire that he threw to the ground with a flash of orange and heat. From the flash emerged an identical twin of the monster that had thrown the orb, which looked back at his brother with a smile.

"Hey, who's that handsome devil?" Tim's deckmaster joked.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Dear God, even his monsters are doing it…" Brian muttered, slapping his forehead.

The other VIP's gave a little laugh at the joke, but others seemed quite exasperated with the humor.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tim looked over the rest of his hand before nodding to Zeffie.

"Okay Zeffie, you can go ahead." He offered.

Zeffie grinned from ear-to-ear as she drew a card. The grin faded as she looked over her hand. She had (for once) failed to draw one of her Rising Air Currents or Owls of Luck in her first hand.

"Um…Zeffie sets a monster…" Zeffie said, nervously sliding a monster card into her disk, "And one facedown card. Timmy's turn."

Tim drew his card and set another one onto his disk without hesitation.

"You didn't get one of your field spells huh?" Tim asked, "Fine with me. I summon Blazing Inpachi (1850/0)!"

From the ground below flew several chunks of burning wood. They landed with a clatter on Tim's field, and then assembled themselves into the fire golem. The creature pounded its fists together in anticipation. Tim looked across the expanse that separated him and Zeffie.

"Hmm…I'm not sure how this will work but…Inpachi, attack with blazing beat-down!" Tim ordered.

The flaming machination pulled back one fist and launched a punch. Flames shot from its extended arm and barreled down on Zeffie's monster. From the facedown card emerged a green insect with dragonfly wings, which screamed as the flames consumed it in an instant.

"Zeffie uses Flying Kamikiri #1's (1400/900) effect!" Zeffie called out as one of the bug's wings settled onto the roof before her, "Zeffie gets a Wind monster with 1500 attack or less. So Zeffie picks another Flying Kamikiri (1400/900)!"

A tornado extended over the wing, causing Zeffie's facedown card to flutter a bit as another of the insects descended from above. He crossed his arms in fear, knowing an attack was on its way.

"This one needs to be in attack mode though…" Tim smiled, "Great Angus, wild charge! Or whatever you can do from long distance, just attack."

The boar didn't need any details. It grabbed hold of the side bars that ran around the edge of the roof it stood on and tore one of them loose.

"Stop destroying the arena!" Roland scolded, "Put that down!"

The monster hurled its new-found weapon like a javelin, spearing right through Zeffie's monster! It screeched before shattering, one of its wings falling to the ground like before.

"Next time, I'll be more specific…" Roland muttered to himself.

"You set off Zeffie's trap!" Zeffie cheered, her facedown card lifting, "Begone Knave!"

Out of the card stepped a soldier carrying a spear. He glared at Tim's monster and quickly pulled a net from behind his back. Great Angus looked confused as the soldier hurled his net across the divide and snagged the beast in it with little effort! Great Angus struggled as the soldier gave a mighty heave and sent the creature flying all the way from Tim's roof into the face of Zeffie's trap where it promptly vanished.

"Now any monster that hurts someone goes back to its owner's hand, after it deals battle damage." Zeffie giggled as Tim's monster card jumped back into his hand, "Hey, is it getting warmer?"

"Ah yes, one thing I may not have mentioned. Seeing as these are the quarter-finals, we're gonna kick up the excitement a bit with little mini-events during the duel." Roland announced, "In this arena, as a player loses life points, the building they're standing on will begin to burn to the ground!"

"What!?" Zeffie squeaked, now realizing where the extra heat was coming from.

"And once a player hits zero, they get a personal trip down a fifty-story column of flames!" Roland announced, "How's that for a hot match?"

**Tim: 8000**

**Zeffie: 7600**

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"Is Kaiba trying to traumatize Zeffie or something?!" Gold shouted, jumping to his feet.

"Now calm down Julius, you said she was pretty tough." Ruby pointed out.

"Besides, regular duels can be pretty traumatizing." Mary said.

"I've heard from parents that won't let their kids duel because of the holograms." Pegasus nodded, "Thanks heavens for my wonderful public relations managers."

Gold took a deep breath as he sat back down.

"You're right…I got a little carried away…'Sides, Zeffie will be able to take down Hokage no problem." He said, taking deep breaths.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On Zeffie's field the mini-cyclone whipped up again, spawned from the wing of the dead insect. Zeffie slid a card from her deck and placed it onto the field.

"Zeffie summons in…Queen Bird (1200/2000)!" Zeffie decided.

From the winds jumped a large avian with yellow feathers and an elongated neck. It had a great, ugly beak that it snapped shut as it glared at Blazing Inpachi.

Tim looked to the rest of his cards before sliding one of them into place in his disk. It appeared in a flash of smoke and fire behind his Inpachi.

"I'll set one facedown and end my turn." He declared.

"Then Zeffie draws!" Zeffie cheered, pulling one of her cards into her hand, "And Queen Bird goes to defense mode!"

The bird sat on the roof and curled its neck so that its beak was tucked into its chest. Zeffie smiled at this as she placed another card onto her disk.

"And Zeffie sets a facedown monster too." She announced, "Go ahead Timmy!"

Tim drew his card, thinking for a moment about Zeffie's trap. A smile crossed his face as he realized something.

"_She said when a monster deals damage…Not when it attacks…Hmm…"_ Tim took one of the cards in his hand and placed it on his disk.

"I start this turn with Tenkabito Shien (1500/1000)!" Tim declared.

"Tenka-who-to-the-what-now?" Zeffie asked.

The whinny of a horse echoed from below as hooves could be heard clattering in the streets. Behind Tim rose up an elevator which opened with a chime. From the elevator emerged a man, dressed in the armor of a samurai or warlord of some kind, carrying a viciously curved blade while astride a horse that was as black as coal. He cast a smoldering gaze toward Zeffie as he hefted his weapon over one shoulder.

"Now we'll see if I'm right. Blazing Inpachi, attack her Queen Bird!" Tim ordered.

Inpachi looked over at Tim. If it were capable of expressing emotion, confusion would probably be its choice at the moment. Never the less, it turned toward Queen Bird and fired off another blast of flames from its wooden hand. Queen Bird responded by swinging its beak out in a wide arc, deflecting the flames in every direction, some of which splashed back onto Tim.

"Uh oh..." Zeffie gasped.

Seeing this act, the guard on Zeffie's field immediately grabbed the large bird from behind in a strangle-hold! The creature squawked in surprise as it was pulled back and roughly ejected into Zeffie's trap, its card flying back to Zeffie's hand.

"Oh yeah, since Queen Bird dealt me the damage, she's the one that goes back." Tim smiled, "Now Tenkabito Shien, since your name means 'conqueror of Heaven', attack her facedown monster with conquest of Heaven!"

The daimyo's blade was immediately wreathed in orange and red flames. He let out a battlecry as he pointed his weapon to Zeffie's card. Immediately, a column of fire blasted out of the sky and vaporized the brown card before it even had time to flip over! Zeffie shielded herself as the remains of her monster flew about her, a golden crown clattering to the roof and glowing for a second.

"Umm…Owl of Luck (300/500) is kind of crispy now but he still uses his effect." Zeffie said as she picked up her deck, "Zeffie takes a field-spell, and puts it on top of her deck."

Zeffie slid one of the spells out of her deck and gently grasped it between her lips as she shuffled up the rest of her cards. She then placed the card on top and slid her deck back into place.

Tim shrugged as he waved to Zeffie.

"Alright, your move." He offered.

**Tim: 7850**

**Zeffie: 7600**

Zeffie drew her card with a grin, knowing what it would be, and then set two cards into her disk. Before her appeared a facedown monster and a facedown card.

"That's all for Zeffie's turn!" Zeffie cheered.

Tim drew his card and looked at it. He had a few good options for monsters but one glance at the knight on Zeffie's building (who was currently cleaning his nails with his spear) dissuaded any ideas of summoning new monsters.

"I'll stick with what I've got. Blazing Inpachi, do what you do best and attack the facedown monster!" Tim shouted.

Blazing Inpachi pulled back and heaved another fistful of flame at the hidden card. Zeffie covered herself as the brown-feathered Takuhee (1450/1000) appeared on the card and was consequently reduced to a mass of ash and a few small bones which were blown away by a stiff breeze.

"_At least he won't attack directly…"_ Zeffie thought.

"Shien, go after her life points!" Tim ordered.

"Huh?" Zeffie gasped as the noble lifted his weapon once again.

Zeffie screamed as a column of fire fell over her this time! The flames died away and she stumbled forward a bit. Below her, the fire that was creeping up her building was increasing in intensity, now reaching almost a quarter of the way up. Tim's was still very low, barely scorching more than the first floor. Zeffie just giggled as she pointed to her soldier.

"You hurt Zeffie, so you get bounced!" Zeffie cheered, "Get him Mr. Soldier!"

The knight hurled forth his net…

Only for Shien to cut it into bits of rope with a single swipe of his blade. He gave the soldier a glare as if to say 'How dare you.' The knight gulped and hurriedly ducked behind the image of his trap card in fear!

"Why didn't it work?" Zeffie questioned.

"Tenkabito Shien here is immune to trap cards." Tim explained with a smile, "And that's all trap cards: Mirror Force, Solemn Judgment, Bottomless Traphole…Heck, I could bring him back with Call of the Haunted and he wouldn't die if it was destroyed!"

**Tim: 7850**

**Zeffie: 6100**

"No fair…" Zeffie pouted.

"No fai…You didn't need to duel Bandit Keith to get into the finals!" Tim exclaimed.

"You dueled Bandit Keith? Cool!" Zeffie cheered.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"He dueled Bandit Keith?" Celeste gasped.

"He dueled Keith?" Gold said, his jaw going slack.

"He dueled Keith and won…" Kaiba growled, "Well, better him than that cheater."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh yeah, that was a fun match." Mokuba said with a grin.

"I think you most enjoyed kicking Keith out." Sota guessed.

"So what if I did? Tell me you didn't want to." Mokuba offered.

Sota thought for a moment, then shrugged.

"Eh…Can't fight that logic." He said.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay Zeffie, I'm done with my turn." Tim said as he pointed at her, "Let me see what you've got!"

Zeffie giggled as she took another card from the top of her deck. She smiled as she slid it into play, causing a howling noise to begin.

"Zeffie activates Giant Trunade!" Zeffie called out.

The winds suddenly picked up around the field, causing the flames around both buildings to begin to dance and swirl uncontrollably. Tim watched as his facedown card, Zeffie's facedown card, and the knight were all picked up by the gust and thrown high into the air. As he vanished though, the knight pulled a roll of paper tied with a silver ribbon from his belt and tossed it down to Zeffie. The girl caught it with a grin and removed the ribbon.

"What's that?" Tim asked, pointing at the scroll as Zeffie unrolled it.

"This is Zeffie's facedown card, Treasure Map." Zeffie smiled as she looked over the scroll, "It was the card Zeffie set last turn. When it goes back to Zeffie's hand from the field, Zeffie draws two new cards…"

Two cards slid off of Zeffie's deck. She crumpled up the map and tossed it over her shoulder as she took the cards and added them to her hand.

"Then Zeffie needs to discard one card, so Zeffie gets rid of Treasure Map since she doesn't need it now." Zeffie explained as she opened her field zone, "Now for a field spell: Rising Air Currents!"

The winds picked up once more, the flames dancing higher as ash and soot blew up from below. Zeffie smiled as she swiftly slapped down a monster, while behind her, her deckmaster finally tilted back his head and let loose a loud screech…

The screech was answered by the sound of a gunshot, followed by a series of rapid quacks as a green duck snapped into place on Zeffie's field.

"It's Sonic Duck (1700/700) time!" Zeffie cheered as the mallard began to flap its wings and hover on the uplifting breezes.

The duck quacked happily as it soared higher, its attack points raised by the warm current of air (2200/300). Zeffie pointed at Shien with a smile on her face.

"Go Ducky, get his Tenka-whatsits with beak bomber!" Zeffie ordered.

The duck swooped higher and then tucked its wings in and began a deadly dive toward Tim's roof. It slammed into the chest of the conqueror, knocking from his steed which whinnied in fear. Shien struck the ground hard and shattered, his horse vanishing at the same time. Sonic Duck snapped back to position in front of Zeffie, holding up one wing across its forehead in salute.

Tim looked down as the fire began to blaze higher on his own building, the flames now making their way up to about half the height of Zeffie's.

**Tim: 7150**

**Zeffie: 6100**

Zeffie took one last card from her hand and set it into her disk. It appeared behind the duck, which then jumped back into the air and began to hover.

"Zeffie's turn ends with a facedown card." Zeffie declared, "Now it's Timmy's turn."

"Great, and I'm dueling a duck…" Tim sighed as he drew.

"A _Sonic _Duck!" Zeffie corrected him.

"Like I was saying, Industrial Illusions needs to get mandatory drug testing." The Fire duelist joked.

Tim looked at the cards in his hand and set two of them into his disk.

"Okay Zeffie, I'll set two facedown cards," Tim began, taking another one of his cards, "Then I'll set a monster facedown…"

The three brown-backed cards appeared on the field, and Tim turned the Blazing Inpachi on his disk. On the field, Inpachi fell to one knee, folding its arms across its body.

"And I move my Inpachi to defense mode." Tim nodded, "Your move."

Zeffie drew once more and swiftly put a card on her disk.

"Sonic Ducky lonely…Zeffie summons Skull Red Bird (1550/1200) to help!" Zeffie declared.

A skull suddenly flew up from below and landed on the field. From above flew a large raven, reddish-brown in color, with a spiky collar around its neck. It hovered over the skull, revealing the underside of its wings as it flapped them. They glittered as though made of metal…Or as though they were concealing metal (2050/800).

"Bye-bye Inpachi, Red Bird attacks with blade wing!" Zeffie called out.

The raven swooped higher into the air and spread forth its wings. From the undersides fell a rain of knives that embedded themselves into the kneeling woodman. It collapsed without a sound and shattered apart as it did so. Zeffie pointed to Tim's facedown monster with an even wider grin.

"Ducky, attack!" Zeffie shouted.

The duck went higher into the air, and began its dangerous descent.

"Sorry, no death-by-duck for me." Tim smirked as he pointed to his facedown card, "How about your monster chokes down my Sakuretsu Armor?"

The trap lifted, a spiky suit of black armor bursting from it and grabbing Sonic Duck out of mid-air! The mallard let out a fearful quack as it was dragged down to the flames burning below by its assailant.

"Poor Ducky…" Zeffie frowned, "Oh well, Zeffie has a lot more feathered friends! Timmy's turn!"

"You can just call me Tim you know." Tim said as he drew.

He thought for a moment, looked at Zeffie's facedown card, and then shrugged his shoulders.

"Eh, I'll throw caution to the wind…" Tim chuckled a bit at the statement, "And I'll tribute my facedown Great Angus…"

"Aww…" Tim's deckmaster moaned as his brother disappeared.

"…And I'll bring in the guy who helped me win my last match without ever hitting the field." Tim continued, "Let's see what sort of damage he'll do now. I summon Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch (2400/1000)!"

A small ball of fire jumped from below and landed on Tim's field. It suddenly burst into a column of fire, inside of which appeared a silhouette. The flames fell away, revealing a man, standing at least seven-feet tall, clad in iron armor and a matching face-mask. Flames extended from the tips of his fingers as he looked at Zeffie.

"Ooh…Neat!" Zeffie smiled.

"So is his effect." Tim declared, "When I tribute summon him, he'll burn a card out of your hand…"

One of Zeffie's cards suddenly burst into flame, causing her to yelp in surprise and drop it.

"And if it was a monster, you lose 100 life points for each star it had." Tim explained as six tiny fireballs appeared over Zeffie's head, "And it looks like your monster had six stars…Wait six stars?"

Zeffie covered her face and head with her disk as the little fireballs fell on her. Tim, smacked his forehead as the winds began to strengthen once again.

"Oh don't tell me…I got that Roc thing, didn't I?" Tim asked.

"Yep, yep, yep!" Zeffie cheered as her deck and the dropped card suddenly began and erratic flight path around the building even as the fire grew, "Now Roc goes back to Zeffie's deck!"

"You have a lot of luck with that monster don't you?" Tim smiled, "And, just out of curiosity, is your favorite movie 'The Land Before Time?'"

"Yep, yep, yep again!" Zeffie cheered as her deck was returned.

"I thought so." Tim smiled, "Thestalos, attack her last monster with imperial flames!"

Thestalos began to charge a fireball between his hands, but as he did Zeffie tapped her disk. The ground began to shake again as a familiar sight rose up behind Zeffie's building. It was the Great Sphinx of Giza, shiny and new, glaring down at Tim's monster with glowing eyes.

"Zeffie uses Ordeal of the Traveler!" Zeffie announced, "Now try to guess one of Zeffie's cards, but guess wrong and Thestalos goes back to your hand."

Tim looked at Zeffie's four cards as she held them up. Tim just smiled as he pointed to the far right one.

"Yeah, Zeffie…But I know two of the cards in your hand, remember? I'm guessing the right card is…A monster!" Tim declared.

The eyes of the sphinx glowed with yellow light, and Zeffie frowned as her Queen Bird turned around.

"Right…" She moaned, bracing herself.

Thestalos tossed the fireball he had been charging as though it were nothing more than a harmless beach ball. It might have been to him, but Skull Red Bird found it much more lethal as it plummeted out of sight as a burning mass of feathers. The flames beneath Zeffie crept higher, threatening to consume more of her platform if things kept up at this rate.

"I'd start getting scared if I were Zeffie! Things are just starting to heat up for her!" Roland declared as the audience sounded off with jeers and cheers.

**Tim: 7150**

**Zeffie: 5150**

Zeffie started to sweat as Tim smiled.

"Can't take the heat Zeffie? Then get out of the fifty story inferno!" Tim joked, "It's your move…"

Zeffie drew her new card with a flourish, and paused for a minute to wipe her brow. She frowned as she set one monster card onto her disk before her.

"One facedown monster…" Zeffie said, looking over her hand, "And…Oh that's all…"

Tim drew his own card and slapped down one of them with a smile.

"Feel the heat Zeffie, I summon Flame Ruler (1500/1600)!" Tim announced.

A burst of fire flew up next to Tim, forming into the Rastafarian Fire-monster. He smiled as his robes billowed out in the winds and heat, and moved himself into a position for battle, raising up one hand filled with red fire.

"Thestalos! Imperial flame attack!" Tim ordered.

The eyes of the sphinx behind Zeffie began to shimmer again as the girl held up her hand. Tim looked over the cards and thought for a moment.

"Okay…Second from the left is…A trap." Tim announced.

Zeffie frowned as she turned the card around to reveal Begone Knave! to her opponent. The sphinx's eyes flashed purple and went dim. Thestalos cupped his hands once more, forming an aura of fire between them. The flames quickly grew to the size of a volley ball, before Thestalos tossed them forward and nailed Zeffie's facedown monster.

From the card burst a colorful bird with bulging eyes. It let out a squawk right before it was consumed by a plume of flame. Tim smiled at this, pointing toward Zeffie…

Zeffie giggled as a card flew out of her deck, carried by the ghost of the dead bird.

"Not so fast Timmy!" Zeffie warned, "You attacked Ashnigrai, so Zeffie gets another one to come facedown right now!"

The card settled onto her disk, and the ghostly bird turned toward Tim. It swooped at him and began beating its wings into his face causing him to cry out.

"Agh…It's like a bad Hitchcock movie!" Tim shouted, "What's happening?"

"Oh yeah, Ashinigrai (500/500) makes you discard a card when it's flipped." Zeffie giggled.

Tim hurriedly took one of his cards (Salamandra) and tucked it into his grave slot. The ghost bird disappeared, and Tim looked at the facedown monster with a deep frown.

"I'd hate to go through that again but…" Tim reasoned, "Oh well, it won't burn by itself! Attack, Flame Ruler!"

Flame Ruler stepped to the edge of the roof, raising one hand over his head. The sphinx shimmered once more as Zeffie shuffled the cards in her hand around. Tim watched as she did, waiting for her to stop before pointing at the card on the far left.

"It's a…Monster!" Tim declared.

"Nope-nope-nope!" Zeffie called out, turning around a spell (Gust Fan), "Bye-bye Flame Ruler, you get bounced!"

The sphinx's eyes shimmered with green light. Beams of jade-colored energy shot from the eyes of the statue and slammed into the chest of the Flame Ruler. He let out a shout of pain as he vanished from sight, his card returning to Tim's hand. Tim frowned as he waved his hand.

"You know, 'You got bounced' would be a realy good catchphrase for you. Go ahead Zeffie." Tim offered.

"Turn around time!" Zeffie cheered as she drew another card and set two into her disk, "Zeffie sets one card facedown and another monster!"

A brief flash of light, and now two facedown monsters occupied Zeffie's field. Behind them sat a facedown card next to the face up Ordeal of a Traveler.

"Timmy's turn!" Zeffie smiled.

Tim pointed at Zeffie and mock-scolded her, "Ok, 'Turn around time' is pushing it!"

Tim drew now, and thought for a minute before setting down his card.

"Well, he's back again: Flame Ruler (1500/1600)!" Tim called out.

In a burst of fire, the Pyro-type monster was on the field next to Thestalos once more. Both of them cracked their knuckles, sparks and small flames rising from them as they prepared to attack.

"Thestalos, attack…" Tim started.

"Zeffie chains a trap!" Zeffie interrupted, "Windstorm of Etaqua!"

"Uh oh!" Tim gasped.

A strong wind blew from behind Zeffie, pushing at Tim's two monsters. They both shielded their eyes against the stinging wind, falling to their knees against the force of the gale. Tim shook his head, realizing that neither of his monsters could go back to attack mode for the moment.

"Well I tried to attack and you changed Thestalos…But he still declared an attack so he can't go back to attack mode." Tim sighed, "And I summoned Flame Ruler just now. Nice one Zeffie!"

"Thanks." Zeffie grinned as Tim laid another card into his disk.

"Guess I'll have to end with a facedown card." He said with an exaggerated sigh as it appeared behind his monsters.

Zeffie drew her own card and gave both of Tim's cards a glare.

"Zeffie doesn't like Timmy's facedowns." Zeffie said bluntly, "And Zeffie knows just how to get rid of them! Flip over Tornado Bird!"

Zeffie's newest facedown monster turned over, and from the card flew a giant bird covered in red feathers. It let out a musical cry as it flapped its wings and let loose a mighty gust of air that caused of both of Tim's facedown cards to ripple and vanish!

"Huh?" Tim gasped, "What happened to my cards, and why do I have the feeling that the word 'bounce' is involved in this?"

"Because Tornado Bird bounces two spells or traps once it's flipped." Zeffie grinned, "And now Zeffie makes sure you can't use those mean cards by playing Card Destruction!"

"Card Destruction! Oh boy..." Tim gasped as his six cards and Zeffie's three all vanished from sight.

"_Those were my Mirror Force and my Magic Cylinder she bounced!"_ Tim thought as he drew six cards, _"She got rid of my strongest traps…And my only defenses if she decides to attack now."_

Zeffie drew three cards of her own, smiling at the look on Tim's face, and then she looked over her own cards. She let out a squeal of delight as she held up one of them.

"Yay! It's Zeffie's strongest monster!" Zeffie cheered.

"Roc?" Tim guessed.

"Even better…But first Zeffie flips over Ashinigrai, so you discard another card." Zeffie grinned as she turned over the card on her disk.

From the second card emerged another of the bug-eyed parrots. It squawked and flew toward Tim, who swiftly discarded his Dimension Wall trap in order to avoid another hen-pecking.

"My apologies to Alfred Hitchcock, but I was never a big fan of that movie." Tim said.

"That's okay, Zeffie really needs the tributes though." Zeffie explained as she removed both of her monsters from the disk, "Zeffie tributes Tornado Bird and Ashnigrai…"

The two Winged-beasts nodded to one another and took off into the smoke filled sky. A glorious cry sounded from above, and the clouds of ash and soot slowly parted.

"And here comes Simorgh, the Bird of Divinity (2700/1000)!" Zeffie cheered.

From the break in the clouds descended the great creature, its feathers shimmering with an emerald hue and its golden tail fanning behind it in the magnificent breeze. It flapped its wings, stirring up more fire and ash from below and causing the particles to swirl about it, giving it the image that it definitely ruled over this area (3200/600).

"Okay Simorgh, attack Thestalos with divine hurricane!" Zeffie ordered.

The bird began to sing her melody again, and the winds picked up…Thestalos. The Firestorm Monarch howled in anguish as he was lifted into the air by a chilling breeze that slowly caused his armor to be covered in a layer of frost and ice! Soon he had been turned into an ice sculpture of his former self, which fell to the roof and shattered into bits.

"Good thing he was in defense mode!" Roland pointed out.

"And now Zeffie ends her turn, and Simorgh uses her effect." Zeffie grinned.

"Come again?" Tim asked.

"Simorgh takes 1000 life points from both of us, but for each spell and trap we have, we save 500." Zeffie explained, "Zeffie has two, Timmy has zero…"

"I don't like where this is going…" Tim said as Zeffie's monster began to sing again.

Electricity crackled over head as the enchanted winds blew in a fierce looking storm cloud. Two lightening bolts shot down from the menacing sky, one striking Tim on top of his head and causing him to scream and fall over! The second aimed at Zeffie, but was turned away by a shimmering barrier of light projected from the Sphinx behind Zeffie, while the strong winds of her field-spell scattered the rest of the bolt into the ether. Simorgh halted its song, as Tim slowly got up.

Below Tim, the fire began to burn more fiercely, threatening to catch up to Zeffie's own inferno.

**Tim: 6150**

**Zeffie: 5150**

"Lightening is new…Never been hit by lightening before…Ouch…" Tim said, very dazed, as he drew his card.

"Um…Zeffie should tell you that'll happen at the end of your turns too." Zeffie called out.

"Thanks for the warning, I'll tell my doctor" Tim said as he looked over his hand.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"That is some monster." Gold said with a low whistle.

"I quite agree." Pegasus nodded, "It's so refreshing to see one of my more beautiful creations being used in a professional tournament."

"And 1000 damage at the end of the turn? Ouch." Ruby winced, "Of course, my Skill Drain would stop that but still, 2700 points is nothing to sneeze at."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh come on! Tim beat me, he can't lose to a bunch of feathered freaks!" Kevin shouted.

"I knew Zeffie had it in her." Celeste smiled, "Maybe this'll make Tim ease up on the jokes…"

"You think?" Ronaldo asked.

"I doubt it, but I can always hope." Celeste said.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tim took one of the cards in his new hand, setting it carefully into his disk.

"I'll set one card facedown…" Tim began.

"_My only spell or trap card."_ Tim lamented in his head.

"And I'll summon Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)!" Tim called out.

A column of flames rose next to Flame Ruler, from which burst the first of Tim's three fire serpents. It reared back with a sizzling hiss as it glared at Zeffie.

"And now…(gulp)…I end my turn." Tim said, bracing himself.

Simorgh began to sing once more, this time calling in a powerful wind that picked up the flames from the building below. Tim tensed up as the fire struck his body, deflected partially by the presence of his facedown card, while the attack never came close to Zeffie, whose own barrier sent all the flames spiraling away.

"Simorgh's effect is pretty cool, huh?" Zeffie smiled.

"But my Solar Flare Dragon is hot, remember what he does?" Tim asked, "That's 500 damage to you, and he doesn't care about your spells or traps."

The dragon launched a fireball at Zeffie, who cried out as the flames struck the ground before her. The fire in both buildings rose a bit higher, coming ever closer to the two duelists.

**Tim: 5650**

**Zeffie: 4650**

Zeffie drew her card and swiftly placed the monster onto her disk.

"Go Faith Bird (1500/1100)!" Zeffie called out.

From the sky behind Simorgh came the blue eagle, flapping its wings in the uplifting breeze of Rising Air Currents. It trilled in delight as its attack score flew up to (2000/700) and it landed on the roof, taking a moment to bow to Simorgh.

"Faith Bird, attack Flame Ruler!" Zeffie ordered, "Rainbow breeze!"

Faith Bird brought back its wings in order to clap them together and generate the destructive wind…

"What's that Zeffie? Couldn't here you over Negate Attack." Tim smiled.

The colorful blast shot forward, only to be scattered in every direction by an invisible shield. Zeffie frowned as she looked at her two remaining cards, then shrugged her shoulders and grinned.

"Oh well, Zeffie ends her turn and Simorgh…" Zeffie trailed off.

Simorgh's song filled the arena once more, and chunks of hail flew from above. With no traps left on his field, Tim was pummeled mercilessly by the icy precipitation, while Zeffie watched as they shattered once again against her own barricade.

"Getting…A little…Sick of that…" Tim moaned as he clutched at his bruised ribs.

**Tim: 4650**

**Zeffie: 4650**

Tim drew his card as the pain swiftly faded. He smiled as he saw it, and quickly plugged it into his disk. Behind his monsters appeared a facedown card, which Flame Ruler took a moment to look at before he vanished into thin air.

"I set this facedown, and tribute Flame Ruler…" Tim stated.

A musical cry filled the air as golden flames wrapped around Tim's field…

"And I summon the Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys (2400/1600)!" Tim called out, "It's time for a battle of the birds!"

The golden fire burst away, leaving the magnificent creature hovering over Tim's field. It locked eyes with Simorgh, and both divine monsters seemed to narrow their gazes.

"Looks like Simorgh and Nephthys know each other…And I doubt they're on good terms." Roland announced.

"Now, my Phoenix will handle Faith Bird." Tim called out, "Phoenix wing wind blast…Sheesh that's a mouthful."

The golden bird flapped her wings, releasing a burst of flames that flew toward Zeffie's monster. Behind Zeffie, the Sphinx began to shimmer, and the girl held up her two cards.

"Time to make a guess." Zeffie said in a sing song voice.

Tim looked at the two cards and smiled.

"Well, I say the left one is…A monster." He declared.

Zeffie gasped, and turned the card around. It was indeed a monster, namely Storm Shooter. Faith Bird let out a pathetic note as it was consumed by the flames that closed in on it.

"Ouch…" Zeffie winced as she looked away, "Faith Bird…"

"Now I end my turn, and here we go again!" Tim said, covering his head.

A chilling breeze was called forth by Simorgh, covering Tim with a thin layer of snow and ice which swiftly melted under the heat of his monsters. The flames beneath him rose higher, reaching almost halfway up the building. Zeffie's building degraded to a similar condition, slightly worse than Tim's, as the Solar Flare Dragon shot another fire ball at her feet. In both cases, small fires were beginning to break out on the roof of each building, near the edges behind the duelists.

**Tim: 4150**

**Zeffie: 3750**

Zeffie drew her card and pointed at Tim's Phoenix. Simorgh began to sing again, and a cold wind began to blow

"Too bad for Timmy, Zeffie's birdie is stronger!" Zeffie called out, "Divine hurricane!"

The winds lashed out at the Phoenix, but Tim remained calm and tapped his disk with a smile.

"And now for a moment of reflection…" He said.

Immediately, a wall of glass burst up in front of Tim, reflecting Zeffie's own monster! Simorgh screeched as the winds pummeled its refection and shattered the glass, resulting in a series of cracks appearing over its own body (1600/600)!

"Mirror Wall!" Zeffie realized too late.

"Reflecting your monster's attack back at it." Tim smiled, "And speaking of monsters, weren't you attacking my Phoenix?"

Nephthys did not seem amused at its rival's attempt at destroying it. Nephthys swiftly spat an orb of golden flame from her mouth, consuming the weakened Simorgh in a flash of sacred flame. Zeffie cried out as the fire around her burned hotter, the flames almost three-quarters of the way to her.

**Tim: 4150**

**Zeffie: 2950**

Zeffie looked at the two cards in her hand, and slid one of them into her disk. Before her shimmered another facedown card, and Zeffie waved one hand to end her turn. She wiped some sweat out of her eyes as the oppressive heat around her continued to increase.

Tim drew his card with a grin. The Mirror Wall card next to him began to fade away, and he just shrugged at it. The trap shattered apart, followed by the crystal wall in front of him.

"Time for you to go down in flames, Zeffie!" Tim called out, "Phoenix, attack Zeffie directly!"

The Phoenix began to charge up her flame attack, the golden fire dancing across her wings, but Zeffie's sphinx began to glow again.

"Ordeal…You have to guess…" Zeffie panted, "Whew, Zeffie could use some water…"

"That can wait until we're done." Roland declared.

"We almost are. You only have one card in your hand, and you showed it to me already." Tim smiled, "It's a monster, Storm Shooter."

The sphinx's eyes glowed yellow for a moment, then went dim. The Phoenix brought back her wings to attack…

"It's all over folks!" Roland shouted.

"NOT YET!" Zeffie called out as her facedown card lifted, "Time for Zeffie's favorite trap…"

"Oh cra...!" Tim started to shout.

"…Compulsory Evacuation Device!" Zeffie finished as an odd looking cannon burst out of the building behind her. The Phoenix screeched in horror as she was sucked into the cannon by a powerful wind and launched through the smoke above. Her card vanished from Tim's disk and reappeared back in his hand.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi nodded his head at this move.

"Not bad…" He said, "Zeffie could have taken a chance and left that in her hand to try and use the Ordeal of a Traveler."

"_And instead, she set it facedown so she had a sure-fire way to take away Tim's strongest monster."_ Yami agreed, _"If you do go up against her, she'll probably be a challenge."_

"_So was Rebecca Hawkins."_ Yugi pointed out.

"_But you won't throw this match."_ Yami pointed out.

Yugi just chuckled a little and nodded.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tim looked to Zeffie who, in spite of the heat, was giggling at his misfortune. Tim pointed at her, his dragon growling in response.

"Hey Zeffie, I have another friend for you to play with…" Tim growled, "Solar flare scorcher!"

The dragon swooped forward and curled around Zeffie like a constrictor. She screamed as the fire on the beast flared up, consuming more of her life points and resulting in the flames on the roof drawing even closer to her. The dragon released Zeffie and flew back to Tim's field.

"And now I'll end my turn, so my dragon will blast you for 500 more points." Tim declared.

The dragon's fire sprayed forth once more, and Zeffie shielded herself as the flames grew higher. A curtain of fire covered Zeffie's field now, almost obscuring Tim's view of the girl.

"Zeffie's in trouble, but she's not out yet!" Roland shouted, "Will she pull of another amazing turn around?"

**Tim: 4150**

**Zeffie: 950**

Zeffie drew, pausing for a moment to wonder why her cards hadn't been burned away by the heat around her. She shrugged as she looked with hopeful eyes to the card she had drawn, and squealed with glee.

"Here's Whirlwind Prodigy (1500/1600)!" Zeffie called out.

Some of the flames around Zeffie were blown away, as before her appeared a child about her age. He was dressed in brown clothes, with the wind blowing around him like a small tornado carrying feathers and twigs that were miraculously unharmed by the heat. The strong winds of Zeffie's field, though uncomfortably hot and dry, still blew around the boy and boosted his attack (2000/1200).

"Attack Solar Flare Dragon!" Zeffie called out over the roar of the fire, "Burst breeze!"

The kid pointed right at Tim's monster, and smirked. He let out a shout, and a blast of wind fired away from him and sent the dragon flying into the clouds above! It vanished from sight, along with a piece of Tim's life points, as the flames grew higher.

"And that's all from Zeffie." Zeffie smiled.

Tim drew, looking over his six cards with a frown.

"_I know what's in Zeffie's hand, but it doesn't matter if I don't have something that beats her monster!"_ He thought.

"I'll set this monster facedown and end my turn." He said as a hidden monster formed before him.

**Tim: 3650**

**Zeffie: 950**

Zeffie drew her new card and giggled again as the winds around her picked up once more.

"Now Zeffie will tribute Whirlwind Prodigy, and since it's for a wind monster he counts as two." Zeffie grinned.

The boy folded his arms over his chest, and rose into the air on a massive tornado. A burst of yellow and purple feathers fell from above as a familiar birdman covered with the same colored plumage hovered down. A barrier of wind blew around him, repelling some of the fire and casting a cool breeze over Zeffie in the middle of the heat.

"Zeffie's Storm Shooter (2800/100) is here!" Zeffie cheered, "And your facedown monster is gone! Hurri-cannon!"

Storm Shooter raised his winged arms overhead, gathering an orb of air and feathers in them. He tossed it forward, and Tim's facedown monster rose up to reveal another Tenkabito Shien (1500/1000). The conqueror gasped as the feathers swirled around him and his mount, dicing them both into pixels that were lost to the virtual database.

"Go on Timmy!" Zeffie cheered in a sing-song voice.

"Please just call me…Oh forget it." Tim sighed as he drew, "I activate Graceful Charity."

The flames around Tim were temporarily overshadowed by a glorious light, as the robed angel floated from on high. She smiled as she brushed one hand over Tim's deck, and he drew his cards.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Does Zeffie always add an '-ie' to everyone's name?" Mary asked her father.

"Almost everyone, it doesn't always work out like that." Gold shrugged, "If that happens, she'll usually do the first sound twice. Thinks it's fun, I guess."

"I can't believe such a cute little girl can be such a skilled duelist." Ruby commented.

"You'd be surprised what children can do sometimes." Pegasus explained.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Tim thought for a moment, and looked at Zeffie's Storm Shooter. He smirked a bit as he took his Phoenix and a Hand of Nepthys from his hand and placed them into his graveyard.

"I'll set one card facedown…" Tim said, sliding a card into his disk.

It materialized in a spot just to the left of Storm Shooter's column. The birdman gave the card an angered glare as Tim put down another.

"…And I'll set this facedown. Your move Zef." Tim grinned as a facedown monster appeared in front of him.

"Draw!" Zeffie called out as she did so, "And Zeffie summons Blue Winged Crown (1600/1200)!"

The clouds of ash above Zeffie parted again as a bird covered in blue feathers landed on the field. It flapped its wings and gave a cry of welcome to both Storm Shooter and Garuda the Wind Spirit, who woke up from his nap. Garuda gave a welcoming wave to the crown as its attack soared along with its body (2100/800)

"_Zeffie could win if she summoned Garuda…"_ Zeffie thought, _"But if Timmy's facedown card destroys him, Zeffie loses…"_

Zeffie picked up Storm Shooter's card, and dropped it into another spot on her disk. Storm Shooter grinned as he spun to the side and now took up residence across from Tim's facedown card!

"Let me guess…That monster has another special ability." Tim sighed.

"Yep, yep, yep! Storm Shooter can either bounce a card across from him, or move to the spot next to him." Zeffie explained a smile, "That way, Zeffie can make sure she bounces everything. But first, Crown attacks with blue blur!"

The bird vanished in a burst of blue feathers, and reappeared behind Tim's facedown card. It flipped over to reveal another Great Angus (1800/600), which screamed before it shattered apart. Tim's deckmaster shook an angry fist as Zeffie's monster returned to her field.

"Storm Shooter, hurri-cannon!" Zeffie ordered.

Zeffie's monster began to charge up an attack, and Tim looked at his facedown card.

"_Decision time! I can activate this and save myself from a direct attack, but it will cost me a monster."_ He thought, _"Or, I could save it and pray that I find a way to save myself…I still have my deckmaster, and my deck is getting thinner."_

Tim moved his hand away from his disk.

"_Even if I just draw Mystical Space Typhoon, it would be more than enough."_ He thought.

The hurri-cannon fired without being interrupted. Tim screamed as the feathers and winds tore at his body, stripping away his life points even as the cuts healed instantaneously. The flames below Tim surged out of control, and Tim began sweating as a ring of fire surrounded him as well.

**Tim: 850**

**Zeffie: 950**

"Go Timmy." Zeffie invited with a smile.

Tim drew his card as Roland launched into another frenzied announcement.

"It's getting hot in here folks! The game is almost tied up!" Roland shouted, the audience screaming in approval and fear for the competitors, "Who will come out on top?"

Tim saw the card in his hand and gave it an interested look. He thought for a moment, then smiled as he looked at Zeffie's field. Setting two more cards on his disk, one monster in front of him and another facedown next to his first spell or trap, he then waved a hand at Zeffie to indicate her turn.

Zeffie drew her card, and smiled as she pointed to Storm Shooter.

"Zeffie bets Timmy wants to use those two facedown cards together." Zeffie grinned, "Storm Shooter, use your other ability and bounce the facedown card in front of you!"

Storm Shooter pointed at Tim's card, and a small tornado gathered around it…

"That will work too." Tim smiled, "I chain Call of the Haunted, to revive my Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys (2400/1600)!"

A burst of golden fire flew from the facedown card, and formed into Tim's glorious bird once more. Zeffie shook one finger as the facedown card was sent flying to Tim's hand, and his phoenix burst into flames again. With a dying cry, the monster transformed into a pile of ash on the sizzling surface of the roof top.

"Zeffie thought Timmy was better at chaining than that." Zeffie grinned, "With no Call of the Haunted, your phoenix is destroyed…"

"…By a card effect." Tim said with a smile and a nod, "Remember what happens after that?"

Zeffie's eyes went wide as she looked at Tim's other facedown card.

"Timmy won't make it to the next turn, then!" Zeffie called out as she pointed to his facedown monster, "Blue-Winged Crown, get his facedown!"

The bird prepared to dash again, when Tim's other facedown card lifted up. A pink and yellow spear flew from the card, aimed right at Zeffie's bird. The blue winged-beast swung a wing out and sent the weapon soaring back at Tim, only for a large water reservoir to suddenly rise up in front of him and intercept the attack.

"My Enchanted Javelin, haven't used this in a while." Tim smiled, "It gives me your monster's attack points in life points before the attack hits. That's 2100."

The reservoir burst open, and water gushed out. The flames around Tim began to go down as the water extinguished them, and Tim glowed with blue light as his life points were boosted.

"Storm Shooter attacks!" Zeffie shouted frantically.

The birdman raised his hands overhead once more, firing another burst of razor sharp feathers at Tim. He crossed his arms across his body as the plumes sliced open cuts that sealed themselves over in an instant. Zeffie let out a cheer as Tim's building was consumed in a blaze once again…

She stopped cheering as the fire left a small window open, through which she saw Tim hold up his disk.

**Tim: 150**

**Zeffie: 950**

"No…" Zeffie moaned as she saw this.

"Sorry Zeffie." Tim said with a shrug, "But you put up a great fight. My turn?"

"Yes." Zeffie sighed, pouting a bit, "Oh, Zeffie wanted to duel Yugi."

"I'll give him your regards." Tim said as he drew, the ashes on his field smoldering, 'Phoenix, that's enough being Kentucky-fried!"

The ashes burst into golden fire again, and from the flame rose the mighty Phoenix once more. She sang out with her melody as the Sphinx behind Zeffie crumbled under a barrage of golden fire and the winds from Zeffie's field spell finally died out. Storm Shooter (2300/500) and Blue-Winged Crown (1600/1200) both looked drained as they pumped their wings harder and stare in horror at the superior bird.

"And next, I'll summon another Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)." Tim said, another of the fire snakes bursting up next to him, "You already know what he does, so let's get right to the end. Phoenix, attack the Blue-Winged Crown!"

The sacred bird flapped her wings, sending a blast of golden fire at Zeffie' weaker monster. Zeffie let out a scream as the flames grew around her upon her monster's death. Tim turned a thumb down as he smiled at his other monster.

"And now, I'll end my turn and the duel with my Solar Flare Dragon's effect." Tim declared, "Good night everyone!"

Zeffie let out a feeble cry as the serpent launched a burst of fire at her. The flames roared out of control as Zeffie's life points reached nothing.

**Tim: 150**

**Zeffie: 0**

"Zeffie has nothing left!" Roland called out, "We all know what that means…"

The flames around Zeffie burned non-stop as the ground under her crumbled away.

"Been fun kid." Garuda said as he vanished.

Zeffie screamed as the fire-weakened roof finally gave way, and she plummeted througha column of heat and light.

The audience was cheering as the flames around Tim died out. The soot and ashes on his body faded away as he waved to the audience that was chanting his name. Roland pointed at him with a grin.

"And Tim Hokage, aka Mr. Molotov, comes out on top!" Roland shouted as Tim vanished, "But don't go anywhere, we've got more duels coming up!"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gold was staring in horror at the building Zeffie occupied, until a familiar scream sounded from above him. He grunted as a nostalgic weight thudded onto his shoulder, and looked up to see a trembling Zeffie sitting on said shoulder.

"Zeffie! You okay?" Gold asked frantically.

"THAT WAS COOL!" Zeffie cheered, resulting in Ruby, Mary, and Pegasus all falling to the ground in pain from the girl's sonic shriek, "Zeffie wants to go again!"

"Only you could have fun falling through a fifty story inferno." Gold said with a slight chuckle.

"Zeffie only counted forty-five." Zeffie said as she slid down off her baby-sitter's shoulder and now stood in front of Mary, "Hello!"

Mary, who was nursing her ears as they rang, smiled at Zeffie.

"Hi, nice to meet you Zeffie." She said, "I'm Mary, I hear you spend a lot of time with my dad…"

"Oh, you're Mary." Zeffie smiled, "Goldie's told Zeffie about you! Zeffie's glad she finally gets to meet you!"

"Same here." Mary said as the girls shook hands, "Can I ask a question?"

"Shoot." Zeffie offered.

"Why didn't you use your deckmaster in that duel?" Mary asked.

Zeffie thought for a bit, and the other three all nodded as they realized that Mary had raised a good point.

"Guess Zeffie just didn't have a good reason to." Zeffie shrugged.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey bro, you realize that you never used your deckmaster in that fight." Brian said, turning to Tim as he reappeared.

"Huh, oh yeah…" Tim realized as he slumped into his seat, "Guess I just didn't need to, I kept drawing what I needed."

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"They never used their deckmasters…At all?" Sota realized as he looked at the results.

"Told you it would happen at least once, you owe me 5000." Jackson said, nonchalantly.

"DAMN IT!" Sota shouted at the top of his lungs.

_**Whew! What a hot match, eh folks?  
**_

_**Okay, enough fire puns, it's time for our next duel!**_

_**In the dangerous jungles of our virtual arena, we'll settle the score between the beast of the air, and the beasts of the land.**_

**_Mai Valentine, whose monsters embody beauty and grace, faces off with Victor Greenstone and his ferocious creatures in the chapter_**

_**Killer Looks**_

_**See you next time! Same duel channel, same duel time!**_


	34. Killer Looks

A/N: Ugh…First exams of the semester are always a pain to prepare for…Sorry for the incredibly late update to all of our loyal readers (Any of you that are left that is.) We'll try to be a bit timelier from now on.

_**Attention duelists!**_

_**Seeing as we don't have any signs, I'd like to remind everyone not to feed the animals in the next duel.**_

_**They'll have enough once they chow down on one of our contestants!**_

_**First up is the blond bombshell with the knock-out figure, who'll knock you out if you're lucky, Mai Valentine!**_

_**And her opponent, the guy who draws a fine line between man and beast, Victor Greenstone!**_

_**It's monsters of the air versus the creatures of the ground. **_

_**Who will emerge triumphant?**_

_**Who will be sent packing?**_

_**Why am I asking you? Let's found out for ourselves!**_

Killer Looks

The VIP box seats lit up for a moment as Tim Hokage emerged victorious from his duel. He brushed some ashes from his hair and clothes, and smiled as he jumped back into his seat.

"Ah…No vomit, no urine, no other disgusting fluids...Yep, that was a good duel." Tim grinned.

"Poor Zeffie." Brian frowned, "Thinks she's okay?"

"If she's not, I'm sure I'll hear from Gold once the tournament is over." Tim pointed out.

Kaiba smiled as the screen began to flash again.

"Let's move on. With only seven of us left, things should get interesting…" He grinned.

Yugi nodded as the names and faces of the six remaining duelists flew by.

"I wonder who I'll duel next…" Yugi said, putting a hand on his chin.

The screen slowed to a halt, and he sighed.

"Guess I'll have to wait, huh?" He asked, turning to Mai.

"Looks like it, Yugi." Mai said, "Until then, let me show you how I handle finalists."

Mai's face was on the screen, positioned next to Victor's. Victor smiled as he opened up his deck options.

"I hope for a good match, Ms. Valentine." Victor said.

"You'll get one, but I can't say you'll enjoy it." Mai said as her own deck appeared.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

"It's Mai Valentine and Victor Greenstone in our next match folks!" Roland shouted, "Time to see who the real beast-master is!"

"Mai's up again!" Serenity cheered.

"And she's up against Victor." Bakura noticed, "Ooh…I hope she's careful."

"I hope Victor knows what he's gettin' in to." Joey said, "'Course, I got a feelin' Mai will come out on top."

John was silent, saying a quiet prayer in relief of the end of the last duel. Zeffie's shrill voice had taken a toll on his ear drums, and he had very little to say until they stopped ringing.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So this Mai Valentine is rather good I take it?" Richington asked as the audience members chattered amongst themselves.

"She's one of the best. I've been in tournaments with her before." Mako explained.

"So have I, and I'm better than she is." Weevil grumbled.

"Did you make it to the Battle City finals?" Mako challenged.

Weevil muttered something under his breath, something that didn't sound remotely like an answer.

"That's what I thought." Mako said with a smug grin, "I've dueled her before, and if she can take me down she'll have no trouble against some land-dweller like this Victor fellow."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mai had only one change to make to her deck before she was ready. She slid Harpie Lady 2 from its place and moved another Harpie in.

"_Pegasus had a lot of tricky monsters that didn't need to hit my monsters."_ Mai thought with a smirk, _"Victor uses a lot of powerful monsters, so if…no _when _worse comes to worse, I'll by myself some time."_

Mai's deck list vanished as she looked to her cards. She gently ran one hand over them and smiled. Swift Birdman Joe was still in her deck, and she felt relaxed knowing that she'd have him nearby…

"_Hmm…"_ Victor thought as he looked at the powerful monster in his side deck, _"No…I want to save this for a duel I can really brag about. Mai's a big name, but there are bigger ones here."_

Victor closed his deck up without making any changes.

"_Besides, the two monsters I sided in last round never even saw playtime. Gotta give everyone a fair chance."_ Victor smiled.

"And here's the thirty second countdown!" Roland shouted, "Thirty! Twenty-nine!"

Mai and Victor vanished in a blast of light, and Roland laughed out loud.

"Oops, I meant two-second countdown." He chuckled.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Roland stood amidst a whirlwind of green, red, brown, blue, and a plethora of other colors that were so strange that there seemed to be no way to identify them. They were slowly sorting themselves out, like the pieces of a puzzle falling into place.

"In the wild, beauty and danger go hand-in-hand." Roland announced, "Coral Snakes, Poison Dart Frogs, Monarch Butterflies, and other such lovely animals carry toxins within their bodies. And the savage Tiger, though feared by villagers and livestock, is admired as one of the most graceful creatures ever to stalk the planet."

The last few pieces fell into place, and it was now clear that this duel would be in a jungle. Trees rose high overhead along the perimeter of the arena with plenty of space between them so as not to block anyone's view. The ground was covered with shrubs and flowers growing in patches of light that filtered from the great trees, and the whole field was covered with a dense, muggy heat as though rain were coming.

Roland took several steps back as the center of the area collapsed, leaving nothing but a large hole, ten feet on each side. A giant flower opened over either side of the hole, and in a flash of light Victor and Mai each occupied one of them (Mai standing on a fuchsia bloom, Victor on a turquoise.) Both looked around at the plants about them, and then had there attention drawn to the hole beneath them.

Mainly duel to the fact that a terrible roar had sounded form it. The sort of sound one would hear from a large predator that had just sensed an impending meal. Roland chuckled a bit as he pointed to the two duelists.

"Allow me to introduce once again, on the fuchsia flower, Mai Valentine!" Roland called out over a hail of whistles, "The beauty with the monsters whose looks _can_ kill!"

Mai waved to audience, and cast a glare as someone let out a wolf-like howl from the stands.

"And on the turquoise plant, Victor Greenstone!" Roland continued, waving to the beast-duelist, "The guy with the monsters that look like they'll kill you!"

The audience cheered as Victor waved to them. He smiled as he loaded his deck and turned to Mai.

"Sounds like we're crowd favorites." He commented.

"After Yugi and Kaiba of course." Mai pointed out.

"Since both your monsters are deadly just by seeing them, I've elected to call this duel Killer Looks." Roland grinned, "And now that my ego has been entertained, let's take care of the audience! Select your deckmasters!"

"I've got your deckmaster right here!" Mai called out, "Harpie's Pet Dragon!"

With a ferocious roar, the red dragon burst out of the foliage and landed behind Mia at the very edge of the gap. It glowered at Victor, who had a hand on his chin as he thought.

"Well…I've had a bit of luck with deckmasters in the past just choosing at random." He admitted, "Why not go with Pitch-Black Warwolf this time?"

A howl sounded, and from the pit below burst the black-furred werewolf. He brandished his sword with a fierce fervor as he cast his gaze up to his controller.

"Your instinct guides you well this time Victor." The wolf called up, "My power is known as tracking ability, and when used it will reveal one of your opponent's facedown cards. Be wary, it can only be activated once per turn."

"Great." Victor said with a smile, "Let's get started, ladies first of course."

"Chivalry on your part doesn't mean mercy on mine." Mai said as she drew six cards, "I play to win."

"Ooh, sparks! I'd better stand back and let you two get acquainted." Roland offered, "Oh, and get going already!"

**Mai: 8000**

**Victor: 8000**

Mai looked over her opening hand and smiled as she chose her first card.

"Well lucky me, I drew one of my strongest harpies right off the bat." Mai said, laying down the card, "I summon Cyber Harpie Lady (1800/1300)."

The dragon roared, launching a fireball at the ceiling of leaves above it. The flames struck the combustible flora, causing it to burst into a cloud of ash and leave a hole in the canopy. From this hole descended a woman with long red hair, wearing a purple body suit and carrying a whip made of yellow energy. She wore a breastplate made of black metal, and her arms were adorned with green feathers that fanned out as she hovered over the hole before her master.

"And now, I'll lay this card facedown." Mai said, a giant leaf extending from under her flower with a facedown card perched on it.

Mai gave the leaf a look, and shrugged.

"Wow, when Kaiba shows off, he doesn't fool around." Mai commented.

"I get this feeling that when Kaiba does anything, he doesn't fool around." Victor said.

"Good point, it's your move by the way." Mai said.

Victor drew, and gave the facedown card on Mai's field a suspicious glance.

"Hmm…Warwolf, I'm using your deckmaster power right now." Victor declared, "Show me her facedown card."

Warwolf sniffed the air, his eyes flashing red. He howled in rage and hefted his blade.

"Deceiver!" He shouted, lunging into the air and coming down on top of Mai's card, driving his sword though it, "You'll not fool me with this…"

Mai shielded her eyes as the facedown card burst into shards. She scowled as she uncovered them, glaring at Victor.

"What gives? Your monster said that he revealed my facedown cards, not destroyed them!" She yelled.

"Warwolf, I want an explanation." Victor said as his monster flipped back into place.

"My power comes with a twist. If I reveal a trap card, I instantly destroy it." Warwolf explained.

"That would been nice to know before I set it…" Mai grumbled.

"Don't worry yourself, I can't use my power for two turns now since I destroyed that trap." Warwolf declared as he sat on the ground and sheathed his sword across his back.

"Next time, I'll be sure to ask for a full explanation before I choose my deckmaster." Victor sighed, "Ah well, might as well take advantage of this. I summon Berserk Gorilla (2000/1000)!"

A large hand burst up out of the hole beneath Victor, and his deckmaster grabbed hold of it. With one mighty heave, the werewolf pulled a snarling, ferocious gorilla with red fur out of the chasm, the beast growling as it glared at Mai's monster from the edge of the pit.

"Wow, I don't know what your Harpie did to piss of my gorilla, but I've never seen him that mad at another monster before." Victor said with a low whistle, "Berserk Gorilla…"

Victor didn't have a chance to finish his sentence. The primate suddenly launched itself toward Mai's Harpie with a powerful jump, pulling back one fist to unleash a powerful blow…

"I use my deckmaster now!" Mai called out, "Harpie's guardian!"

The dragon behind Mai roared, pulling its wing in front of Cyber Harpie Lady. The gorilla's punch struck the leathery membrane, causing a shockwave of red energy to burst from it and strike Mai. The blond gritted her teeth, but remained standing as her deckmaster returned to its starting position.

**Mai: 7600**

**Victor: 8000**

"Right, by doubling the damage you take when a Harpie would be destroyed, you can save it from battle." Victor nodded, setting another card, "I'll just set this facedown and end my turn here."

The facedown card extended from underneath Victor's flower, and Mai took her draw. She staggered a bit as the flower beneath her shifted. Looking down, she could see the petals of her platform were shriveling at the edge, and the color had drained a bit.

"Looks as though Mai has just found out about our mini-event." Roland grinned, "As a duelist lose life points here in the Amazon Forest, their platform plant will begin to shrivel and die. And we can all guess what happens once your life points hit zero!"

The beasts below began to growl louder as Mai adjusted her stance.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay, I knew it, Kaiba's officially nuts!" Joey shouted.

"How many going to say that?" Bakura asked.

"How many times till you believe it?" Joey responded.

"I believe you Joey, but there's nothing we can do about it right now." Bakura pointed out, "Besides, any damage to Mai is only virtual."

"It's hard to remember that sometimes." John pointed out, "This place is so realistic."

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Mai looked over her hand, and nodded as she selected a card.

"I'll equip Cyber Harpie Lady with my Arrow Nail card." Mai announced, holding out the spell.

A shimmering light appeared on the wrist of the Cyber Harpie, who curled up her whip and attached it to a loop of fabric near her waist. She held up the glowing wrist, which faded to reveal a razor-sharp arrow now extended past her hand.

"This special card can only equip to a Harpie Lady, and then it boosts her attack by 300 points." Mai explained, "That gives Cyber Harpie a total of 2100."

The Harpie grinned as she brandished her new weapon, pointing it at Berserk gorilla.

"But since I don't want to risk that facedown card, I'll end my turn here." Mai declared, "Go ahead."

Victor drew, wincing at his cards.

"_Drat, she didn't fall for my Sakuretsu Armor."_ He thought, _"And Berserk Gorilla will have to attack this turn, I have nothing to tribute it for."_

Victor took one of the cards from his hand and set it onto his disk. It appeared at the edge of the pit, next to Berserk Gorilla.

"I'll set one facedown monster and…" Victor gulped as he turned Berserk Gorilla's card as well, "…How this has happened twice in as many duels is beyond me, but I'm forced to save myself some life points by moving my monster to defense mode. That of course destroys Berserk Gorilla."

The gorilla didn't even attempt to move to defense. It let out an angry holler and began charging in a circle in anger. It finally slipped on a patch of slick grass, and went tumbling headlong back into the pit. A crack could be heard from the bottom, followed by the sound of something ripping flesh from bone…

"Yikes, I'm glad I can't see what's down there." Roland announced.

"It's your turn Mai." Victor said, looking down the hole to where his monster had fallen.

Mai drew her card, and turned it around. Victor gasped as a blast of wind shot from the card and struck his facedown.

"Mystical Space Typhoon will blow away your facedown card right now." Mai declared, the Sakuretsu Armor shattering, "And now I'll summon Harpie Lady 3 (1300/1400)."

A cry echoed from above, and out of the trees leapt another bird woman clad in purple. She stretched her green wings, her blue hair spiked-up 'Bride of Frankenstein' style. She spread her talons and shrieked with glee as she and her sister stood side-by-side.

"Cyber Harpie, attack his facedown monster with arrow slash!" Mai ordered.

The Harpie dashed forward, lifting her bladed wrist with a grin. She brought it down toward Victor's monster…

A blast of blue fire burst out of the card, forcing Cyber Harpie away. From the card emerged a tiger, composed completely of blue fire, which growled as it glared at Mai's field.

"Soul Tiger (0/2100) may not have any attack points, but its defense points are top-notch." Victor said with a smile, "Cyber Harpie Lady ties, so there's no damage, but if your other monster feels like attacking…"

"Pass." Mai interrupted, "I'll get past your little kitty soon enough. Till then, I'll set one more card facedown."

Another leaf extended from beneath Mai's flower, the facedown card riding on it. Victor drew and sighed with frustration at his hand.

"I'll set one monster facedown…" He stated, the facedown monster appearing next to Soul Tiger.

"I activate Shadow of Eyes!" Mai called out, her facedown card lifting, "An old-fashioned card, sure, but not without its uses. This will force the monster you just set to stand up in attack mode."

Cyber Harpie giggled as Victor's monster flipped over to reveal a centaur wearing steel armor on his human torso and carrying a ruby-tipped staff. She gave him a 'come-hither' gaze, and he blushed as he stood up with a look of longing on his face.

"Chiron the Mage (1800/1000)?" Mai asked, "His effect…"

"I didn't have any spells I wanted to discard." Victor explained, "I thought I'd use him for defense instead."

Mai grinned as she placed yet another monster onto her disk.

"Your loss. I summon Harpie Lady 1 (1300/1400) in attack mode!" Mai declared.

The canopy shook again as a third Harpie flew down. Identical to Harpie Lady 3, only with straight, pink hair rather than blue, she waved one arm and a gentle breeze flew though the arena. The winds carried a scent of flowers and fruit, and lifted all three harpies slightly higher as the effect kicked in (Cyber Harpie: 2400/1300, Harpies 1 and 3: 1600/1400)

"An extra 300 attack to all wind monsters on the field." Victor nodded.

"Right." Mai smiled, waving one hand, "And I'm not done yet. I equip Harpie Lady 1 with the spell card Cyber Shield."

A blaze of light flew from the trees and collided with the newest Harpie. She spun around as form-fitting black armor snapped into place on her body. She struck a pose with a fierce smile as her attack points jumped to (2100/1400).

"And now, Cyber Harpie, attack his Soul Tiger!" Mai ordered.

"And here comes the hurting folks!" Roland shouted.

Cyber Harpie Lady dashed forward again, swiping her arrow wrist through the incorporeal form of Soul Tiger. The creature groaned as it faded away into nothing, its flames lost to the winds that flowed over the field.

"Harpie Lady 1, attack Chiron with aerial-acrobat attack!" Mai continued.

The red-haired Harpie boosted herself into the air with a stiff flap of her wings. She grinned as she dove down upon Victor's centaur, the Beast-Warrior screaming in pain as the attack struck home and caused all four of his legs to buckle beneath him. He shattered apart, and Victor crossed his arms in preparation.

"Harpie Lady 3, claw kick! Attack him directly!" Mai shouted.

The third Harpie shrieked as she dashed straight forward, swinging her leg in a wide arc and slashing Victor across the chest with the sharp talons on her feet. Victor screamed as his flower began to wilt, the color turning pale and the petals withering as a trio of claw marks faded from his chest.

**Mai: 7600**

**Victor: 6100**

"Ouch, that had to hurt." Roland commented as Victor struggled to remain standing, "How's Victor going to get out of this? Mai has summoned all of her Harpies in record time!"

"I'll just end my turn here." Mai said with a smirk, "Let you think about what you'll say before you lose…"

Victor drew his card, brining his hand to five, and ceased clutching his chest as he set a monster onto his disk.

"I summon Trojan Horse (1600/1200)." He declared.

A snort and a whinny sounded from the jungle as out of the trees stampeded a horse completely made of wood. It stomped its hooves on the ground as it stared toward the harpies with its blank eyes. Warwolf gave it a pat on the head, calming it slightly.

"And next, I'll set one card facedown." Victor declared, his wilting flower sprouting forth a new leaf to support the card, "That ends my turn."

"That's all?" Mai asked as she drew, "I expected something more."

Mai looked at her two cards and shrugged. She pointed at the Trojan Horse with a well-manicured finger.

"Cyber Harpie Lady…Attack!" Mai called out.

The futuristic Harpie raised her clawed wrist again, dashing forward at super speed toward the frightened horse. Just before she made it, Victor tapped his disk, and a wall of energy sprang up before him. Cyber Harpie Lady ran into the wall at top speed, and somersaulted through the air back to her starting space.

"Negate Attack, never leave home without it." Victor said as he held up the trap.

Mai shrugged as she waved one hand.

"Fine then, it's your move." She said.

Victor drew his card, and removed the lone monster on his disk. Warwolf stepped back as Trojan Horse doubled in size until it stood at least twenty feet from shoulder to ground. It snorted once more before vanishing into brown sparks.

"I tribute Trojan Horse, which counts as two monsters for summoning a creature of earth, to summon Big Koala (2700/2000)!" Victor called out.

Several trees behind Victor bent aside, and from between them emerged the giant, blue koala. Its mouth was stuffed with eucalyptus from the tree it carried, and it gave the field a curious look as it stomped forward and settled itself next to the Warwolf.

--------------------------------------------------------------

"CUDDLY!" Zeffie shouted at the top of her lungs, catching Mary off guard and causing her to fall over.

"Oooh…." Mary moaned as she got back to her feet.

"Mary okay?" Zeffie asked.

"I'm fine, just keep your voice down." Mary said with a smile.

Zeffie nodded her head and giggled again as she jumped back to her seat (i.e. Gold's shoulder.)

----------------------------------------------------------------

"Anybody else think that having a giant koala in your deck is weird?" Kevin asked.

"Trust me, you don't know weird until you've dueled against a Shadow Ghoul." Espa said with a shudder, "Four legs, six eyes, and a nasty attitude…Yeah that sets the bar for weird in this game."

"Ms. Valentine is a…Highly skilled duelist." Ronaldo noted, "Who are you rooting for, Celeste?"

"Victor, he's from the same coast as me." Celeste smiled, "Besides, Mai already has a lot of fans. By the way, Kevin, you're drooling."

Kevin, whose attention had wandered after posing his question, quickly wiped his chin, then focused his eyes on the blond bombshell out on the field once more.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay, it's a large bear." Mai noted.

"Technically, koalas are marsupials." Victor pointed out, "They're also supposed to be herbivores…"

In response, the giant marsupial took a bite out from its tree, raining bark and leaves down on the head of Victor's deckmaster.

"…But I don't think this one would mind a little variety in its diet. Big Koala, attack Harpie Lady 3!" Victor ordered.

The koala obviously had no intention of eating the Harpie, it instead hefted its tree overhead and brought it down like a club toward the blue-haired Harpie.

"I use my deckmaster again!" Mai shouted.

Harpie's Pet Dragon lunged from its position behind Mai, and caught the tree in it talon-tipped wings. It thrashed its tail about as it struggled to force the blow back, knocking Mai on her behind as it did so.

**Mai: 5400**

**Victor: 6100**

Mai got to her feet again, the flower dying even more beneath her. One of the petals behind her fell off and the yellow center of the blossom began to turn black around the edges. The petals left on it were now a pale mauve, and curled up about halfway.

"Looks like I saved my monster." Mai smiled, "Yours however will find out the hard way what happens when you attack a Harpie!"

Harpie Lady 3 rose into the air as the dragon returned to its position. She was singing in her strange bird-language, a circle of glowing letters floating around her. She pointed her hands toward Victor's monster, and the same runes appeared around Big Koala, which let out a single cry…

Right before its body turned from flesh and blood into cold, gray stone.

"What!" Victor gasped.

"Don't worry, that's only temporary." Mai explained, "Any monster that attacks Harpie Lady 3 and lives to talk about has to wait before it can brag, because my Harpie will turn it to stone for two turns after the battle. Just so you know, that means it can't attack."

Victor frowned, and took another card from his hand.

"I'll set this facedown." He said, the card appearing on another leaf, "And that ends my turn."

Mai drew, her hand now at three cards. Victor pointed to his facedown card, and it lifted up.

"I won't give you the chance to take advantage of my paralyzed monster." Victor called out, "I activate Thunder of Ruler!"

Warwolf tilted back its head and let loose a terrifying howl. The noise echoed through the trees, amplified and warped by the foliage until it sounded like an entire pack of wolves was waiting in the wings to tear apart anything that moved. The three harpies huddled together in fear, trembling as Victor's deckmaster snickered a little.

"My trap means you don't get a battle phase this turn." Victor explained.

"Maybe not, but I can still get rid of your overstuffed teddy." Mai said as she put down another monster, "I summon Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon (1200/600)!"

With an adorable chirp, the smaller crimson dragon floated onto the field from behind its parent. The little dragon settled at the edge of the pit and let out a squeak of fear, the three harpies forgetting their own terror and flying down to comfort it.

"Remember how this one works?" Mai asked.

"If you have one Harpie, it becomes the only Harpie I can attack." Victor nodded, "If you have two, we double its original attack and defense score…"

"…And with three, like right now, I can destroy one card on your field each turn." Mai declared, "And the effects are cumulative, so that means…"

The dragon let out a growl ass it took wing and hovered in front of where the harpies had been but moments before. The three harpies gathered behind it as its effect combined with Harpie Lady 1 boosted its score to (2700/1200).

"Destroy his Big Koala!" Mai ordered.

Several audience members let out a disappointed sigh as the petrified marsupial was blasted into rubble by the little dragon's fire breath. It looked back to its masters, who all smiled and nodded approval.

"Your move Victor." Mai offered.

"I would not want to be in Victor's shoes right now." Roland said as Victor drew his card, "Things are looking bleak…"

"Wrong, things just started looking up." Victor said as he held up the spell he had drawn, "I activate Brain Control, letting me brainwash one of Mai's monsters at the cost of 800 life points."

Mai's eyes went wide as a withered brain floated down next to Victor. Misty arms extended from it as Victor pointed his target.

"NO!" Mai shouted as Harpie Lady 1 was snatched by the brain and dragged, kicking and screaming, to Victor's side of the field!

"Doesn't look like the brainwashing set in." Victor noted as the monster struggled against his spell, "Sorry Mai, but I'm gonna have to put this one down. I tribute your Harpie in order to summon my Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000)."

Mai gasped as a column of fire burst up from the pit below and her Harpie vanished in a screaming blaze. The other three monsters on Mai's field all let out worried cries as the winds around them halted, along with their stat boosting properties (Cyber Harpie: 2100/1300, Harpie Lady 3: 1300/1400, Pet Baby Dragon: 2400/1200).

From the hole next to Victor burst the ferocious, winged lion with the scorpion tail. It roared as it spread its wings wide, glaring up at the three remaining monsters with a look of hunger in its eyes.

"You…" Mai growled, attempting to reign in her temper at the death of her Harpie, "You…Can still only attack the baby dragon. It's stronger than your monster!"

"Let's see about that. I activate my Forest field-spell!" Victor called out.

A trill of bird calls sounded from the trees around the field, and the trees themselves began to gain flowers and fruit in their branches. Patches of colorful flowers burst up around the edge of the pit, and the shrubs and ferns on the forest floor grew taller. More light filtered down through the trees, and Manticore of Darkness (2500/1200) purred as it stretched out in a sunbeam. Warwolf let out a growl of pleasure as it knelt down and planted its sword in the ground next to it.

"Manticore, attack Harpie's Pet Dragon with hell breath of death!" Victor ordered.

The Manticore looked up, its eyes narrowing at its target. It roared ferociously, and blasted forth a gout of flames at the tiny dragon. Mai covered her face from the heat as the little monster was burnt to a cinder in an instant. The ashes fell into the pit below, the growling increasing as Mai's flower wilted a bit more.

**Mai: 5300**

**Victor: 6100**

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh boy…" Yugi moaned.

"What's wrong?" Brian asked.

"Victor just made a big mistake. You do _not _brainwash Mai's harpies and expect to get away with it." Yugi warned.

"She can't do much about it." Brian pointed out, looking to the field.

"Just wait, Mai hasn't fully brought her claws out yet." Kaiba grinned.

"_I could speak from experience on this one, that Victor chump is toast."_ Rex thought.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Seeing as I have no cards left, I'll end my turn here." Victor stated.

Mai drew, looking at her three cards in disbelief.

"_One turn and I go from in control to bottom rung!"_ She thought, _"And these cards don't help much. If I move my Harpies to defense, my life points are safe but he'll pick them off one by one eventually even with this trap."_

Mai sighed, and reached for her disk.

"_Forgive me girls…"_ She thought.

"I move both of my harpies to defense mode." She said.

The two harpies knelt down, and Mai inserted another card into her disk.

"And I'll set this card facedown." She stated, the hidden card appearing before her, "That ends my turn…"

Victor drew, noting Mai's defeated countenance. He looked down to his deckmaster and nodded.

"I'm using my deckmaster again." Victor declared, "Show me her facedown card."

Warwolf stood up and grasped the hilt of his sword. He sniffed the air cautiously, then growled and lunged into the air. He came down and impale the hidden card with his sword, shattering Harpie Lady Sparrow Formation in an instant. Mai cringed as she realized what was probably going to follow.

"Next, I'll summon a little fellow I put in last round that never got his chance to shine." Victor declared, "Rampaging Rhynos (1500/1500), come forth!"

Out of the forest trampled a new figure. This one resembled a rhinoceros standing on its hind legs and wearing cerulean. It carried an axe in its right hand, and was pawing at the ground in anger. The power of the forest still boosted its scores to (1700/1700), but it seemed not to care about its location.

"Now, Manticore, attack Cyber Harpie!" Victor called out.

The lion-raven-scorpion hybrid blasted out another mouthful of flame toward the advanced bird-woman. Seeing her impending doom coming right at her, Cyber Harpie Lady detached the Arrow Nail from her wrist and tossed it to Harpie Lady 3. The blue-haired harpy caught the gadget and reached out to her sister in vain as the fire struck and consumed her.

"Thanks to its ability, I can move the Arrow Nail to another Harpie if the one wearing it is about to be destroyed." Mai explained as Harpie Lady 3 (1600/1400) attached the arrow to her own wrist while blinking back tears.

"Not that it matters if she's in defense mode." Victor pointed out, "Rampaging Rhynos, see the monster across from you?"

The rhino looked to Harpie Lady 3, and growled in response, its attack score jumping to (2200/1700).

"Attack with charging tackle!" Victor shouted, "And when this monster goes in a straight line to its target, it gets 500 bonus attack points for the fight."

"Like it needs them." Roland called out.

Rhynos pushed itself into the air with a mighty jump. It flew down toward the edge of the pit behind Mai, slashing at the lone Harpie with its axe on the way. Harpie Lady 3 screamed as she shattered apart, the Arrow Nail falling into the pit below. Rhynos (1700/1700) landed on the far edge of the pit, and pushed again with its legs, back-flipping to its starting position.

As it landed, a strange rune appeared on the ground beneath it. Rhynos looked down just before the rune flashed and froze it as a stone statue.

"Harpie Lady 3's effect." Victor muttered, looking at his monster, "Almost forgot about that."

"Rhynos can't attack for two turns now." Mai said, sounding a bit saddened that all of her harpies were gone, "Is that your turn?"

"Yes, go ahead Mai." Victor nodded.

Mai drew, looking at her three card and frowning, deeply.

"I pass, there's nothing here that helps." She sighed, waving one arm.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Mai! What are you doing? Don't just give up!" Joey shouted.

"Joey, clam down." Serenity whispered gently as she pulled her brother back to his seat, "Maybe Mai just didn't draw what she needs…"

"Yes…That Hysteric Party card that used on Pegasus." John realized.

"Oh yeah, the one that brought all of her harpies back." Joey realized, "If she gets that, she'll win no sweat!"

"Possibly…Let's not forget about that Manticore's attack score." Bakura reminded him, "Plus, Mai seems a little out of it at the moment."

"That's just cause of her harpies." Joey said, "All three got wasted. Once she gets 'em back, she'll be back to her old self."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Victor drew, and thought over his card for a moment.

"Hmm…Tell you what Mai, I'll give both of us a hand." Victor declared, playing the card, "I activate Card of Sanctity, letting us each draw until we have six cards."

A golden flash lit up the forest, and Victor drew six cards from six cards from his deck. Mai pulled three loose, and smiled as she saw them.

"_Okay, not much that's useful right now."_ Victor thought, _"Judging by Mai's face, I'd guess she got something good."_

"I'll set one card facedown." Victor declared, another card on a leaf appearing before him, "And now my Manticore will attack directly: Hell breath of death!"

Mai raised her arms as a shield, but still cried out as the flames washed over her. She fell to her knees, the flower dying even more, all but a few of its petals falling out, and the center cracking and turning a solid black.

**Mai: 2800**

**Victor: 6100**

"Uh oh, things don't look too good for Mai!" Roland called out, "After a solid opening, she's seems to have lost all of her drive with the loss of her harpies!"

"_Not for long."_ Mai thought, _"Glad I put this in my deck."_

Victor looked at his remaining five cards, and frowned.

"_I don't want to summon anything else. I'll need a defense in case I get knocked to the bottom of the food chain again."_ He decided.

"I'll end my turn Mai, go on." Victor announced.

Mai drew her seventh card, and set two cards into her disk. Two leaves slithered from under flower, looking as weak and brittle as their parent, but still were able to hold up her two facedowns.

"That's all for my turn." Mai said, "Go ahead, make my day."

Victor drew his card, and as he did Mai raised a hand over her first facedown card.

"I activate Hysteric Party!" Mai called out, the sunlight dimming around them, "Now by discarding my Birdface, I'll retrieve all three of my harpies from the graveyard!"

Pumping techno music burst through the jungle around them! A series of rainbow-colored strobe lights illuminated the entire field as out of the hole leapt all three of Mai's monsters. The trio of harpies struck a pose as Harpie Lady 1's influence once more extended over the field in the form of a caressing breeze (Cyber Harpie Lady: 2100/1300, Harpie Lady 1 and 3: 1600/1400).

"You may have brought them back, but they won't stick around." Victor declared, "Manticore, attack Harpie Lady 1!"

The beast-warrior reared back to unleash another burst of fire, when Mai's second card flipped over. A trio of priestesses in blue robes suddenly rose from the pit, casting stern gazes at Victor's monster. The manticore whimpered and bowed its head in shame, while Warwolf growled.

"Too bad your deckmaster was still disabled due to his effect. Otherwise my Waboku couldn't have stopped your." Mai taunted as she held up the trap.

"Clever Mai, you worked around my deckmaster admirably." Victor nodded, "But how did you plan to defeat my monsters now that it's your turn?"

"I'll show you." Mai said as she drew a card, "I activate Harpy Lady Phoenix Formation!"

"Oh…" Victor said as the three harpies lunged into the air side-by-side.

A blue flame rose around them, forming into a massive bird that hovered overhead. The creature soared down in a dive-bomb, slamming into the ground below Victor. Both of his monsters were surrounded by blue flames, and began to scream.

"I chain with Emergency Provisions!" Victor called out, "And I'll sacrifice my Forest spell card to gain 1000 life points!"

A mouth burst from the flames and flew into the trees above. The sound of birds ceased, the flowers and fruits fading from the trees and ground and the sunlight fading as well. The mouth emerged from the trees and belched out a small cloud of feathers before it vanished.

On the ground below, Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000) and Rampaging Rhynos (1500/1500) were still surrounded by fire. The harpies burst out of the flames surrounding the two, and slashed at them with their talons and whip. Both monsters shattered, and the flames burst up higher and scorched Victor and his flower! Victor howled in pain as his life points slipped away, while his flower lived its own personal nightmare and degraded to the same condition as Mai's, though retaining some color and a few more petals.

"Nice shot..." Victor grunted as he tried to stay upright.

"I'm not done yet." Mai grinned.

"But that spell…" Victor began.

"Keeps my harpies from attacking, but any other monster is fair game." Mai reminded him, "I move my deckmaster to the field! Come forth, Harpie's Pet Dragon (2000/2500)!"

The audience gasped as the dragon flew into the air and hovered before its masters. Each of the harpies grinned as a golden chain appeared in her hand an attached itself to the dragon's collar.

"For every Harpie Lady on the field, my dragon gets 300 extra attack points, add that to Harpie Lady 1's effect, and you get…" Mai smiled.

The computers beat her to it. Harpie's Pet Dragon roared with stats of (3200/3400)!

---------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, she didn't make the same mistake as Mako." Tim smiled, "Of course, she did beat him…Twice…Badly..."

"So you're saying it makes sense that she made a smarter move?" Brian asked.

"Hmm?" Tim asked, "No, I was trying to imagine the look on fish boy's face after those duels."

---------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, she didn't make the same mistake as you." Weevil smiled.

"Oh shut up." Mako grumbled, "At least I didn't whine when I lost."

"The point is you both lost." Richington stated, "Now be quiet, I don't want to miss this."

"Oh you're one to talk, you didn't even get to the finals!" Weevil protested.

"_What is compelling me to stay here?"_ Mako wondered to himself as he looked at his neighbors.

Glancing around, he failed to see any other duelists he recognized sitting nearby.

"_Oh yeah, this is better than sitting alone."_ He thought.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the arena, Victor gulped as he stared at the dragon that was about to attack.

"Um…Wow…Nice move Ms. Valentine…" Victor managed to stammer out.

"Glad you think so, but flattery will get you no where." Mai smirked, "Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack directly with firestorm tornado!"

The dragon roared once again as it opened its jaws. Victor closed his eyes and crossed his arms in preparation…

Right in the nick of time. Mai's dragon unleashed a burst of flame so massive that Pitch-Black Warwolf was forced to jump to the side in order to avoid being caught by it. The grass and trees behind Victor burst into flames, which quickly began to spread over the jungle around the duelists! In a matter of moments the fire was ravaging the trees even as the dragon's attack died down, casting an eerie, orange glow and furious heat over the field.

Mai looked at the burning trees with a worried expression. Her dragon noticed them too, and quickly moved to tuck the harpies under one wing.

Victor, whose flower now looked like little more than a black platform hanging by a thread, lowered his arms as the burns on them healed and looked to Roland.

"Was this supposed to happen?" He asked.

"These arenas are created to be amazingly interactive." Roland said with a nod, "You can't set off a fire like that here without expecting _something_ to catch."

"Sorry about that." Mai apologized.

The audience was chattering nervously, some folks screaming at the sight of the fire.

"No reason to be alarmed folks! These flames look dangerous, but they'll never touch you or our duelists." Roland assured everyone, "That's a moot point anyway, because with an overwhelming attack, Mai Valentine…"

Victor cleared his throat and held up his duel disk.

"How many more times do you want to be wrong today?" He asked.

**Mai: 2800**

**Victor: 100**

"Oh…My mistake folks, Victor is still in this!" Roland called out.

The audience cheered enthusiastically. Mai and Victor returned to dueling stances as the flames burned around them.

"This fight isn't over yet." Victor warned.

"It might as well be." Mai grinned.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi looked up from his seat, and saw Tim staring at the fire with a slightly vacant expression on his face. He was smiling at the dancing fire, causing Yugi no small amount of worry.

"Um…Is he alright?" Yugi asked, pointing at Tim.

Brian noticed his brother's odd behavior, and snapped his fingers in front of Tim's face. This generated absolutely no response, which Brian seemed to accept as normal.

"He's fine, he's just enjoying the fire." Brian said.

"Pretty fire…Wait a minute…" Tim said, his dazed expression turning to concern, "Awww, damn it all! I lost the franchise!"

"Told you he was fine." Brian sighed.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

"I'm ending my turn now." Mai declared, looking at the other cards in her hand.

"As you do, I activate the effect of my Manticore of Darkness." Victor declared.

"What? I just destroyed that monster." Mai protested.

"Exactly." Victor said as he held up his second Manticore of Darkness from his hand, "When he's sent to the graveyard, I can revive him at the end of the turn by discarding or sacrificing one beast, beast-warrior, or winged-beast monster. So I'll discard my second Manticore and revive the first one in defense mode!"

Victor stuffed the card into the grave slot, his platform shaking a bit under his weight as the first Manticore was ejected. Victor placed it carefully onto his tray, and the snarling, winged lion jumped out of the hole under the two and landed at the edge. He crouched down, folding his wings and arms across his body in defense position. (2300/1000)

"And I'm not done yet. I'll discard my Nin-Ken Dog, a beast-warrior, to revive the Manticore that I just sent to my graveyard!" Victor declared, discarding another card.

With a roar, the identical twin of the first Manticore leapt from the hole and adopted a stance similar to his brother's. Pitch-Black Warwolf gave an approving nod at the sight of this, stepping back to his original position underneath Victor.

"So what? You summoned two monsters when I have four." Mai smirked, "And don't forget, I only need one to get through and win."

Victor ignored Mai's comment as he drew. He frowned, taking a card from his hand and setting it onto his disk.

"I'll set this monster in defense mode, and call it a turn." Victor declared, a facedown card appearing next to his crouching lions.

"I call it pathetic." Mai said as she drew her card, "Three monsters aren't much better than two right now. Harpies 1 and 3, attack his Manticores!"

The red-head and the blue haired harpies both screeched with joy as they launched themselves forward. Harpie Lady 1 turned a graceful flip in mid-air that ended with her slamming the first Manticore back down into the pit. It feel from sight, screaming all the way down.

The second of the attacks was much more brutal. Harpie Lady 3 slashed at the Manitcore's chest with her foot talons, causing the monster to fall over in pain and shatter.

"Cyber Harpie, attack his facedown monster with cyber whiplash!" Mai commanded.

The armored bird-lady cracked her whip toward her target. The card flipped over to reveal a dog, a rough collie, with shaggy white and brown fur. The dog seemed unafraid of the incoming whip, in fact, it opened its mouth and caught the whip in a clean snap! Cyber Harpie struggled to pull her weapon loosed, a look of frustration apparent on her face, but the dog refused to give in, eventually letting go and causing the Cyber Harpie to flip backwards in mid air and end up very dizzy as a result.

"What the…What gives?" Mai gasped, "My Harpie should have turned that dog into puppy chow."

"You should always be wary of facedown monsters." Victor declared, "Modeled after one of the greatest dogs ever to appear on television, this is my Dogged Defender (1000/1700)."

The dog lay down, resting its head on its forepaws and yawning. It seemed very relaxed given the way that Mai's dragon was eyeing it and licking its chops.

"Tell that dragon to settle down, Lassie's incarnation in the world of Duel Monsters is like a beast version of Obnoxious Celtic Guardian." Victor explained, holding up one hand, "She can't be destroyed in battle with a monster that has 1900 attack or more. Harpies 1 and 3 are too weak to break her defense, Cyber Harpie and Harpie's Pet dragon are too strong to beat her effect."

"Nice, I didn't know that Pegasus ever made a card after some T.V. character." Mai said, looking over her hand, "There's nothing else I can really do, so I'll end my turn here. But all I need is someway around your monster and you've had it."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You made a card after Lassie?" Gold asked, looking at Pegasus.

"Can you think of a good reason not to? She was everyone's favorite canine hero back in the day." Pegasus grinned, "Ah, the countless times she saved little Timmy from untold horrors…I just had to give her a tribute of my own."

"You do know that the dog that played Lassie was a boy, right?" Ruby asked.

"Why should that ruin the spirit of the card?" Pegasus asked.

Ruby and Gold both shrugged at this. The conversation was vastly ignored by Zeffie, who was cooing over the 'cute puppy' on the field at the time.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Victor looked at his hand, consisting of no monsters what so ever, and sighed as he drew his card.

"Guess Victor won't be bringing back his Manticores, he'd better hope for a good draw…" Roland declared.

"_I got a monster that could beat her dragon, but not by itself."_ Victor thought, _"I have three copies of the spell I need in my deck, and I haven't drawn one yet! Ugh…The duel has been intense, but not long enough to thin my deck as much as I'd like. And I don't have a way to make extra draws at the moment either._"

"I have to end my turn Mai, go on." Victor declared.

Mai drew her own card, looking at it as she did.

"_Hmm…Call of the Haunted? I could use this to revive my Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon on my turn, but his deckmaster would just destroy it…Unless."_ Mai thought as she looked at her Elegant Egotist card, _"The Harpie Lady Sisters are strong, but they won't win the duel this time. I'll use Elegant Egotist to bluff, and hope he hits it instead of my trap."_

Mai slid the two cards into her disk, the weakened flower extending its leaves to support the cards under her.

"That's all from me." She declared.

"_Now do what I want you to…"_ She prayed, silently.

Victor drew, his eyes going wide.

"Just what I needed." He smiled, "But first, I use my deckmaster one more time."

Warwolf stood up, unsheathing his sword from the ground and closing his red eyes. Dogged Defender gave him a look from its position on the ground.

"I say…Go for the card…On…My…Right!" Victor announced.

His deckmaster inhaled sharply…

"What will that wolf find this time?" Roland asked, "And if he does find a trap, will it even matter with Mai's other facedown card?"

Warwolf's eyes snapped open and he howled as he tossed his sword forward. It slashed through the leaf supporting Mai's card, revealing Call of the Haunted right before the trap shattered apart.

"No!" Mai shouted, realizing her plan was ruined.

"So, I guess the other facedown card can't help you, judging by that reaction." Victor smiled, "Trying to bluff me is not a good idea Ms. Valentine, I always uncover the truth one way or another."

"You don't have any monsters that are strong enough to stand up to my dragon." Mai reminded his, regaining her composure, "And that was just one plan. Next turn…"

"To borrow a line from your duel with Pegasus: You don't get a next turn. I'm ending the duel right here." Victor declared, "I summon Bazoo the Soul-Eater (1600/900)."

From the hole, with a hoot and a holler, burst a strange sight. It was a purple mandrill with small horns jutting from his forehead. The beast looked up to Victor, who slid his two Manticores and his Big Koala out of his graveyard.

"Sorry guys." Victor said as he held up the three cards, "I activate Bazoo's effect: By removing up to three monsters from my graveyard, he gains 300 attack points for each one."

Victor carefully tucked the cards into the pocket of his shirt, and three glowing orbs appeared in a small group next to Bazoo. The mandrill wasted no time in stuffing all three orbs into his mouth and greedily swallowing them down. The end result of its meal was the beast grew about a foot in height and its muscles bulged with new-found strength (2500/900).

"You're not even close to beating my deckmaster." Mai pointed out.

"Excuse, did I say I was done?" Victor asked, holding up the card he had just drawn, "Bazoo is a beast-type, so I can increase his strength with the power of my Wild Nature's Release spell card, adding his defense score to his attack score for this round!"

Bazoo's purple fur turned bright orange, and flames appeared in his eyes! The primate's attack skyrocketed to (3400/900), and it beat its chest wildly in a good imitation of Berserk Gorilla. Mai drew back, knowing what was about to happen.

"He's stronger than my deckmaster!" Mai realized, her shoulder slumping, "I've lost this match…"

She smiled a bit as she looked up at Victor.

"Not bad, you've really got a good deck there." Mai said, "But Yugi and Kaiba won't be as easy to beat."

"I hardly expect them to be…You were much tougher than Bakura, that's for sure Mai. Thanks for giving me another great duel today." Victor smiled, "Bazoo, end this match and attack her deckmaster with sacrifice feast!"

The mandrill didn't jump into the air, it _flew _with a single tap of its feet against the ground. It landed right on the chest of Harpie's Pet Dragon, and immediately sank its teeth into the monster's throat! The dragon let out a weak cry, the Harpies screaming in horror as their pet met an untimely end.

"I doubt that I'm wrong this time, Victor Greenstone is the winner!" Roland shouted as the dragon shattered to bits.

**Mai: DECKMASTER DESTROYED**

**Victor: 100**

"Good game Victor. Hope we duel again someday." Mai smiled as her monsters and Victors all vanished.

"I'll look forward to it." Victor nodded.

Mai closed her eyes. She didn't make a sound even as the flower under her crumbled away completely and sent her plummeting toward the dark abyss below, the roars of the beasts inside increasing all the way down…

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"MAI!" Joey shouted.

"Whoa…!" A voice shouted from above.

Joey looked up, and quickly reached out and caught Mai just as she fell toward the seat in front of him. He staggered for a second under the weight, but maintained his balance.

"Nice catch." Bakura commented.

"You're telling me." Mai commented as Joey gently set her down.

"Are you okay Mai?" Joey asked, frantically wringing Mai's hands in his own.

"Joey, I'm fine, really." Mai smiled, "Whatever monsters were supposed to be in that pit were all bark and no bite. And that Victor fellow wasn't a sore winner thankfully."

"I'm sorry you lost Mai." Serenity said.

"Eh, I had a good run today." Mai shrugged, "To be honest, I think I'll just enjoy the rest of the show with my friends."

Mai took a seat, John moving down a chair so she could sit next to Joey. As Joey sat down, he couldn't help but grin.

"_She actually called us friends for once."_ He thought with a smile.

_**Next time in our Virtual Tournament!**_

_**Brian Hokage specializes in creatures of darkness…**_

_**Likewise, Yugi Mutoh is highly skilled with all monsters, but lists several dark monsters among his favorites.**_

_**So it's time to see if Brain can prove his theory right! He has a special plan designed to cripple Yugi's deck with a single card.**_

_**And it's not a virus card. If you want to find out, you'll have to tune in next time for**_

_**Playing Favorites**_

---

Original Cards

---

Cyber Shield

Spell/equip

Image of black armor made from a futuristic material

This card may only be equipped to a 'Harpie Lady.' The equipped monster gains 500 attack points.

_This card was first used on the show by Mai Valentine in the episode "First Duel." All credit for this card goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Dogged Defender

Beast/effect

LIGHT

Four star

1000 attack

1700 defense

This monster can not be destroyed in battle by a monster with 1900 attack points or more.

_This card was inspired by Lassie. We don't own Lassie, but felt she deserved a tribute in someway. And Hikari is a fan._

---

Arrow Nail

Spell/equip

Image of an arrow attached to an armlet of some kind.

This card may only be equipped to a 'Harpie Lady.' The equipped monster gains 300 attack points. If the monster this card is equipped to is destroyed, you may equip this card to another, appropriate target.

_This card was first used by Mai Valentine in the episode "Fighting for a Friend (Part 4)." All credit for its goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Pitch-Black Warwolf

Beast-Warrior

DARK

Four star

1600 attack

800 defense

Tracking Ability: Once per turn, you may reveal one set spell or trap on your opponent's field and then return it to its original position. If the card revealed is a trap, destroy it (your opponent may not chain the card). If this effect destroys a trap card, it can not be used until two of your end phases are over.


	35. Playing Favorites

_**The shadows are lengthening on this day, as the sun sets on our little arena.**_

_**But now the swinging night-life of the dueling world can make itself known!**_

_**Creatures of darkness, it's time to play!**_

_**With the setting sun at his back, Brian Hokage is stepping up to try and take down his latest opponent.**_

**_With his gaze firm on the horizon, Yugi Mutoh is ready for his latest challenger!_**

_**So who will triumph in this match of shadows? Who truly reigns supreme in the kingdom of darkness?**_

_**It's time to find out!**_

Playing Favorites

The audience was screaming again at the sight of Yugi's face up on the screen. They didn't seem to mind that it was next to Brian's, Yugi's fans were obviously ecstatic to see him duel at all, even if his opponent wasn't well recognized.

Roland was clutching his ear, trying to hear the words coming from his earpiece. He nodded, and lifted his microphone.

"We'll just need a scant five minutes before this match is ready folks!" Roland called out, "So rest up your throats for a minute!"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Up in the box seats, Brian was smiling as he opened his deck structure and began shuffling cards around.

"_Perfect, now's my chance. I'll prove that no one is unbeatable…"_ Brian thought as he looked into his side deck.

"So, bro, you're dueling Yugi," Tim said as his brother removed Yami and Demonic Tribute, "Aren't you nervous at all?"

"Celeste and I had a little chat a couple weeks ago. We got to talking about her duels with Yugi, and she insisted that he can't lose." Brian replied nonchalantly as he swept a finger over his cards, "She even advised that I avoid dueling him in a tournament if possible. She was sure I'd be taken out…Well, I've got just the plan to prove her wrong."

"Uh huh…So what's it like in 'Brian World?'" Tim asked. "Are rainbows made of chocolate with gold at the end? Or…"

Brian whipped a hand back and assaulted his brother's cranium once again with a well placed smack. Tim rubbed his head, noticing two traps that Brian was sliding into his deck.

"Yeah, do coins pop out of my head when you do that or something?" Tim shouted, "And what in the name of all that is flammable are you…Oh…"

"See, I knew you'd understand the meaning behind these." Brian smiled as he removed his Pure Evil trap and put another back in, "I told Celeste it would be easy to beat Yugi with the right strategy. Just one more thing…"

Brian's finger wavered over his Vampire Lord card and he froze for a second.

"_Forgive me Vampire Lord, but I can't afford to stray from my deck theme at all if I want this to work…"_ Brian thought as he moved the zombie into his side deck and replaced it with another monster, _"I'll make it up to you, promise…"_

Brian closed his deck list and took a deep breath. He looked to Yugi, who was nodding as he closed his own deck up and turned to him. Yugi extended one hand with a smile.

"To a good match, Brian," he offered.

Brian accepted the handshake with a smile.

"To a good match indeed." Brian nodded.

"_Yeah, no rush on this one,"_ Rex thought nervously, _"The more time between me and my next match, the better."_

The dino-duelist's gaze fell on Seto Kaiba, who was stubbornly attempting to ignore him.

"_After all, there's only one guy I can be paired against…"_ Rex fretted, adjusting his hat with a sweaty hand.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the real world, Mokuba was looking down at Rei, Sota, and several other technicians who were (once again) in a heated argument.

The subject of debate could be predicted: Whose arena design was going to be used for Yugi's latest duel?

"Aren't you going to stop them?" Noah asked, turning to his step-brother.

"In a minute, there's something I want to know…" Mokuba promised.

A cry of pain sounded from the arguing crowd, and Sota fell over clutching a bruised jaw.

"Well, Sota does have glass jaw. Who knew?" Mokuba mused, holding up two fingers to his mouth.

He took a deep breath, stuck the fingers into his mouth, and released a shrill whistle that forced the crowd to cover their ears in pain. Sota was tormented the most; one hand was busy covering his jaw and incapable of protecting his ears.

"Okay, I've heard enough of this," Mokuba announced, reaching into a small drawer under his computer and producing a twenty-sided die, "I'm assigning you each a secret number, and rolling this. I'll let you know what comes up and who gets to choose."

Mokuba tossed the die onto his desk, where it clattered for a second before stopping on the seventeen. He pulled a small chart out of his desk, and looked it over.

"Rei, we'll use your idea," Mokuba declared, throwing the die again as Rei let out a triumphant yell, "And Sota, you'll get to pick the one for Yugi's next duel."

"Yes!" Sota cheered, his sore chin now forgotten.

"What about the finals sir?" Jackson asked.

"I'm making the decision for the finals," Mokuba explained. "Now then, is everything ready?"

"All set sir," Rei declared, typing in a command.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the arena, the lights were slowly fading away. Roland looked around at the inky darkness as a voice whispered in his ear the name of the field that had been chosen. He nodded, and held up his microphone.

"Before the creation of light and matter, there was darkness, a primordial nothingness which nothing could emerge or enter," Roland declared. "But it is said that when light came into being this darkness sealed itself away in another world. Today it waits for a chance to enter our world and swallow all shreds of light…"

Nothing was visible save for Roland. Despite the fact that the overwhelming darkness should have prevented anything from being seen, small shapes and forms could were visible for scant seconds before dissipating back into the miasma.

"This is our Realm of Darkness arena, and it casts its favor upon those who are talented with monsters of darkness." Roland explained, "And we happen to have two incoming!"

The rings of light descended, releasing Brian and Yugi, and were then immediately absorbed into the nothingness of the floor. Both duelists looked around and shuddered a bit at the lack of light. For some reason, they could still see one another and Roland quite clearly, which only served to enhance the unnatural feeling of the shadows around them.

"I give you the King of Games, Yugi Mutoh, a duelist who has gained mastery over some of the most powerful dark monsters in existence!" Roland called out.

The audience went nuts, Yugi waving to them as he raised his disk.

"And his challenger, Brian Hokage, a duelist with nothing but dark monsters in his deck! Can quantity outweigh quality?" Roland called out.

The audience was significantly less enthusiastic at Brian's intro, though a fair amount of cheers from those who remembered his duel with Celeste sounded out.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Is that not your friend dueling Yugi?" Ronaldo asked Celeste.

Celeste nodded, and sighed.

"Yes, and I kind of hope that he can prove me wrong," She said.

"About what?" Kevin asked.

"Long story short, I told him Yugi was unbeatable," Celeste said.

"You weren't wrong." Espa agreed.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, I was wrong before, but now I'm sure that this Hokage has had it," Gold said.

"Poor Bri-bri, Zeffie hopes he has fun," Zeffie smiled.

"Isn't that kid a friend of yours?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, but he's dueling Yugi," Gold pointed out.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, this won't be pretty," Richington commented.

"I'm not sure who I want to win." Weevil grinned, "Yugi never loses, but it would destroy his career if he lost to this Hokage guy."

"_Is sitting alone really that bad?"_ Mako asked himself.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay boys, this will be your standard duel amidst a vast ocean of nothing. No hitting below the belt, and no manipulating the powers of the darkness around you in anyway other than the use of your cards," Roland ordered. "Now let's see those deckmasters."

Brian and Yugi both nodded to one another, and each of them swung out one arm.

"I choose Dark Ruler Ha Des!" Brian called out.

Behind him, one of the shapes in the darkness moved closer. The shadows melted off of it, revealing the green-skinned demon monarch clutching a goblet of wine. He laughed wickedly as he swirled his glass.

"I pick Dark Magician Girl!" Yugi announced.

With a giggle and a flurry of hearts, the well endowed sorceress jumped out of the darkness behind Yugi and twirled her staff. A whistle echoed from the audience as Dark Magician Girl took a bow.

"Okay then, let's see who goes first," Roland declared.

Brian raised one hand, and pointed to Yugi. Both deckmasters looked at him, confused expressions on their faces.

"I say, champions first," Brian offered. "Yugi, you can have the first move."

"_Besides, with this strategy, I'd prefer the first attack to the first play."_ Brian said to himself.

Yugi nodded, and both deckmasters settled down behind their controllers.

"Okay then." Yugi said as he drew six cards to Brian's five, "I'm ready when you are Brian."

"By all means…" Brian smiled.

"LET'S DUEL!" They both shouted.

**Yugi: 8000**

**Brian: 8000**

Yugi plucked two cards from his hand, and set one onto his disk. The other one was slid into the slot behind it, and both cards appeared perpendicular to one another on the ground in front of him.

"One monster and one facedown for my first move." Yugi stated, "Your move Brian."

Brian drew his own card and, just as quickly as Yugi, set one onto his disk.

"They say the best defense is a strong offense." Brian smiled, "Or is that the other way around…Ah well. I summon Giant Orc (2200/0)!"

The shadow around the field passed in front of Brian for a moment as Ha Des waved one hand in front of him. The shadows cleared away, leaving the massive ogre hefting his club over one shoulder. The orc grinned stupidly at Yugi's two facedown cards.

"No time like the present. Orc, get his facedown monster with bone club beatdown!" Brian ordered.

The fiend dashed forward while lifting his club overhead, bringing it down on Yugi's facedown card. From the card emerged a young man with blond hair and green armor, parrying the attack with a longsword. With a mighty shove, the man pushed the Giant Orc away, sending it stumbling back to Brian side of the field.

"That one is Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (1400/1200), and he can't be destroyed in battle with an opponent that has more than 1900 points." Yugi explained.

Giant Orc fell onto his behind, gnawing on his bone club with an absent-minded expression on his face. Brian nodded and took another card from his hand, setting it into place.

"I guess I'll just one card facedown and end my turn then." Brian affirmed, the card appearing behind Giant Orc, "And since he attacked, my Orc moves to defense mode."

Yugi drew his own card, and nodded as he played it. Dark Magician Girl waved her staff, and out of the shadows burst a ball of orange fur with three eyes and spindly arms.

"I summon Sangan (1000/600) in attack mode." Yugi declared.

"_Never thought I'd hear myself say that."_ Yugi thought.

"_Yes, we mostly use Sangan for his searching ability."_ Yami agreed.

"Sangan, get his Orc with tooth and nail attack!" Yugi ordered.

The smaller fiend obeyed, lunging directly at Giant Orc and grasping the larger monster's arms with its scrawny hands. Orc struggled to break its grip, only for Sangan to pull itself closer and chomp down on its target's shoulder with a mouthful of sharp teeth. Giant Orc groaned and shattered apart, while Sangan returned to Yugi's field.

"Obnoxious Celtic Guardian, attack directly with silver blade slash!" Yugi commanded.

The elven warrior lunged forward and brought his weapon toward Brian with a powerful battle-cry. Brian stumbled away from the blade as it came down, and cried out as the shimmering sword diced an ample chunk of his life points loose.

**Yugi: 8000**

**Brian: 6600**

"Oooh, Yugi took a piece out of him with that one." Roland observed, "And now it's our turn."

Brian gasped as the shadows around him suddenly shifted over his right arm. He watched as they clouded over it from shoulder to wrist, and then settled.

Brian blinked, and cautiously reached with his left hand and tried to tap where his right elbow had been. His hand passed right between his right hand and shoulder uninterrupted. His right hand was now supporting itself with seemingly no help at all.

"What the…" Gasped the amazed teen.

"In this arena, as your life points go down, your body will slowly fade into the darkness." Roland announced, "The only thing that awaits the loser is an eternity in the shadows!"

Yugi seemed just as shocked at this 'game' as Brian, who was now testing to be sure that his hand wasn't going to float off on its own.

"I've never dealt with anything like this before." Brian commented, looking at where his arm should be, "Wonder who dreamed this up."

"I think I can guess. I just hope this won't be as unsettling as the last time." Yugi stated, "Are you going to be okay?"

"I'm fine, let's keep going." Brian smiled, "This is all virtual, right? So it's not like my arm is gone for good."

"Okay, before I end my turn I'll activate my facedown card." Yugi declared, his trap card lifting.

The shadows behind Yugi shifted about, and from them emerged a tall man made of gold, covered in a black cloak. He chuckled maliciously as he cast his gaze on Brian.

"That's Invader of Darkness!" Brian gasped.

"He's also the monster on my trap card, Penalty Game!" Yugi called out, "Since you have exactly four cards, I can activate one of two effects. I choose the one that makes you skip your next draw phase."

Invader of Darkness nodded, and pointed at Brian's disk.

"PENALTY GAME!" The demon roared, "LOST CHANCE!"

Brian gasped as his deck turned to solid gold, the cards fused into a lump of glittering metal.

"No way Brian is going draw anything from that." Roland commented.

"I end my turn here." Yugi declared.

"Fine then. I skip my draw phase…" Brian grumbled as the golden lump turned back into a deck of cards, "And I'll summon Melchid the Four-Faced Beast (1500/1200)!"

The shadows swirled again, spitting out four masks, two red and two yellow. The floated in the air, spinning around one another, before coming together back-to-back to form a cube of floating face covers.

"And now I'll have him strike down your elf. Blinding mask!" Brian ordered.

The quartet creature began to rotate faster and faster until it was nothing more than a blur of red and yellow. It stopped suddenly, a yellow face adorned with a smirking grin facing toward Yugi. Yellow flames shot from the eye holes and splashed against the chest of Yugi's warrior, causing him to shatter apart. Yugi held up one hand in front of his face, just in time to see his right thumb fade away.

**Yugi: 7900**

**Brian: 6600**

"Next, I'll set another facedown card." Brian declared, sliding the card into his disk, "Your move."

Yugi drew, stopping for a minute to note that he could still pick up cards with his right hand despite the lack of thumb, and looked over the rest of his cards.

"I'll move Sangan into defense mode," Yugi declared, turning the card on his disk, "And I'll set a monster facedown."

Sangan covered his head with his arms, closing his eyes in worry. Next to him appeared a facedown card and Yugi nodded.

"That's all for now." He declared.

Brian drew and smiled as he slapped down a new monster.

"I summon La Jinn, the Mystical Genie of the Lamp (1800/1000)!" Brian declared.

A cloud of green smoke billowed up next to the fiend duelist, and the top of the cloud formed into the upper torso of a man with a handlebar mustache. He chortled deeply as he crossed his arms in front of him.

"My wish is his command." Brian smiled, "And now I wish for him to attack your facedown monster with disastrous desires!"

The genie blinked and nodded his head, a pulse of dark energy shooting at the facedown card. It turned over to reveal a blocky figure carved from pink stone, with a magnet around its neck and a pair of wings behind it. The energy bolt struck the stone and bounced away harmlessly.

"Gamma the Magnet Warrior (1500/1800) ties with your genie, so neither one of us is hurt." Yugi declared.

"Not bad…Melchid, get his Sangan with sorrow mask!" Brian called out.

The creature spun again, this time stopping with a red mask contorted into a tragic frown facing Yugi. Water poured from its eyes at a seemingly impossible speed, washing toward Sangan who screamed as he was pulled away by the deluge of tears.

"When you destroy Sangan, I get to add a monster with 1500 attack or less to my hand." Yugi reminded his opponent as he reached for his deck, "I choose Queen's Knight."

A card jutted from Yugi's deck, and he smiled as he picked it up. Brian just smirked as he looked at his first facedown card.

"_Go ahead Yugi. I've got my plan ready to go, all I need is to wait for a few more monsters on your field…"_ Brian thought.

"My turn is over Yugi." Brian said with a wave.

Yugi drew another card, bringing his hand to six, and he slid one of the cards onto his disk.

"I summon Queen's Knight (1500/1600) in attack mode." Yugi declared.

"Attack mode?" Brian queried, confused.

A piercing light shot from the floor, and from the light emerged the blonde knightess in her ruby armor. She swung her blade dramatically, pointing it at Brian's fiends.

"But she's not strong enough to beat my monsters." Brian pointed out.

"True, but that's where Horn of the Unicorn comes in." Yugi smiled as he held up the spell card, "I really don't get to play this card often enough, but it will give Queen's Knight an extra 700 attack points."

The knight closed her eyes as her helmet began to spark with electricity. From the top of it emerged a silver horn, shimmering with light that passed down to her blade. (2300/1600)

"Attack Melchid with…" Yugi began.

"I know where this goes, so stop right there." Brian interrupted, "I activate Waboku, reducing any damage your monsters deal to nothing for this turn!"

Brian's second facedown card lifted, and a trio of robe women burst from the card. They stood before Yugi and his monsters, casting a disapproving gaze over them, before fading away.

"I'll end my turn there." Yugi declared, looking over his hand.

"_Go ahead and plan Yugi, I'm about to make about half your deck dead-weight."_ Brian thought as he drew his card.

"Eh…I'll set this monster facedown." Brian declared, a brown card appearing to his right, "And I'll move La Jinn and Melchid into defense mode."

La Jinn floated closer to the ground and lowered his head. Melchid also hovered low to the ground, and a barrier of black sparks began to hover around it.

"That's all I've got for now." Brian shrugged.

"_I get the feeling he's up to something."_ Yugi thought as he drew his own card.

"_That makes two of us."_ Yami conferred, _"Stay calm Yugi, I'm sure he's still trying to put his plan together…"_

Mentally, Yugi gave the Pharaoh a slightly exasperated gaze.

"_And I'm not supposed to be helping, right."_ Yami said sheepishly, _"Sorry."_

"_That's okay."_ Yugi thought as he looked at his card.

"I summon Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts (1500/1200)." Yugi announced.

Yet another shadow slid aside, to reveal a rather scrawny looking lion with brown fur. It slunk onto the field, showing off a long horn protruding from its forehead, and growled at Brian. The fiend duelist just smiled as he rubbed his chin.

"A beast, a warrior, and a rock; Quite a selection Yugi, I can see why most folks have trouble beating you." Brian commented, "Your monsters cover so many different types and strategies that it's next to impossible to pin down one without leaving another one for you fall back on."

"Interesting theory." Yugi said, looking confused, "But were you going to play something now, or was that just an observation?"

"Oh, I'm gonna play something." Brian grinned, "A simple trap that I've had on the field since my first turn, and a fairly common one at that. Plus it will destabilize most of the plans you're setting up…"

Brian waved a hand to his facedown card and it swung over to reveal a picture of two samurai on horseback charging toward one another.

"I activate Rivalry of Warlords!" Brian shouted, the trap shimmering, "Here's how it works: We each look at all the monsters we control. Then, we need to select one type of monster that we have on the field. I have two fiends, and I've already pointed out what you have."

As the trap shimmered, all three of Yugi's monsters turned around and faced him. The each fell to one knee, paw in Gazelle's case, and looked up expectantly.

"So I need to choose between one of the three types of monsters I control?" Yugi asked, "What happens then?"

"So glad you asked that. Any monsters that don't match the type you choose have to be sacrificed right then and there, and you can't summon a monster unless it matches the type you chose." Brian grinned, "So it's easy for me, I only have fiends, but you'll need to give up two of your monsters right now!"

Yugi gaped at Brian, then turned back to his three creatures. They still looked toward him, all three of them with slightly pleading looks.

"You get it Yugi? You have so many different types of monsters that this trap will prevent you from setting up any strategies while I work on the one you already have." Brian declared, "I won't need to worry about you pulling out tricks turn after turn, because most of your strategies need several cards on the field for set up!"

"_Uh oh…He's got a point…"_ Yugi fretted, _"And none of the monsters on my field are Spellcasters…He's stopped me from summoning any of my Dark Magician cards, and he'll also stop two of my three biggest hitters this way!"_

Yugi frowned as he reached out to his monsters.

"Forgive me guys…I choose warrior-type." Yugi announced, looking pained.

Queen's Knight stood up again, while Gazelle and Gamma both faded away, and as this happened, Brian's trap shimmered even brighter, and a startling change overcame both duelists.

Yugi watched as his clothes began to glow, shifting and stiffening out until they had turned into a suit of blue armor. His duel disk extended from the arm, much like Joey's had after donning Lord of the Red. A helmet settled over his spiky hair, leaving the King of Games to wipe a few stray strands out of his face.

Brian, in the meantime, was undergoing a more dramatic shift. His skin turned pitch black, and a pair of small goat horns extended from his forehead. He gasped as the nails on his fingers grew into claws, while his clothes were torn and tattered until they seemed to have aged about five years on his body.

Both of the players looked over the changes, Brian now resembling a true demon, while Yugi was decked out as a knight, complete with a sword sheathed on his waist.

"Well…This is new." Brian commented, noting his arm was still missing, "Is that supposed to happen?"

"I don't know, nobody ever used this trap on me before." Yugi remarked, looking over the armor, "Good idea about my deck by the way, let's see if you're right."

"You don't seem as worried as I'd like…" Brian frowned, "I've basically turned half the monsters in your deck into dead draws, and most of your spells and traps favor Spellcasters more than Warriors."

"Yeah, but I still have a few tricks ready." Yugi retorted, "And I've been in worse situations. You surprised with that trap, but let's see if you can keep it up, this will be fun."

"I hope so." Brian grinned, "Just don't be surprised when I win."

"Brian has come with an interesting idea, will it hold water though?" Roland called out.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So that was his idea…" Celeste muttered to herself, "Come on Brian, you came up with something good, but don't get overconfident."

"What are the chances that this will actually work?" Espa asked.

"Given this is Yugi we're talking about, probably zero." Kevin said, "You've got to admit, it's interesting. Rather than counter Yugi's plays, he's preventing them outright."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh please, like such a simple card would do Yugi in. If it were that easy someone else would have tried it already." Weevil grumbled.

"Maybe that's the problem. It was so easy that everyone overlooked it." Richington grinned.

"I highly doubt that. Please don't talk to me anymore." Weevil hissed.

"Your just sore that you never thought to try that, aren't you?" Mako asked.

Weevil grumbled under his breath, and whatever he said was indecipherable.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Does your brother honestly think that will work?" Kaiba asked, turning to Tim.

"He seemed pretty confident." Tim nodded, "And it will kill most of Yugi's draws."

Kaiba just humphed again and turned back to the screen. Victor had a hand on his chin with an interested look.

"Well I think it's a…Hmm…This strategy has quite a few holes actually, but I guess we'll see." Victor mentioned.

"Thank you voice of reason." Kaiba muttered.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Down on the field, Yugi was looking over Brian's three monsters with a thoughtful expression.

"Okay…I'll have Queen's Knight attack La Jinn with lightning saber!" Yugi commanded.

The warrior's sword crackled with lightning, and she lunged forward with a mighty slash that sliced right through the genie. He howled in pain as he faded into green fog that vanished into the darkness. Yugi looked over the other four cards in his hand with a frown.

"That's all I can do, go ahead." He offered.

Brian drew his card, being careful so that his new claws didn't pierce it, with a satisfied smirk on his face. He looked at the gruesome monster on it, and nodded as he placed it onto his disk.

"Okay Yugi, here I come." Brian declared, removing his facedown monster, "I tribute my facedown Skull Knight #2 (1000/1200) to summon Inferno Hammer (2400/0)!"

A demonic skeleton in gray armor appeared for a brief moment, only to fade away. As he did, he unsheathed a glowing red blade and threw it into the air. It stuck to a blob of shadows overhead, while from the darkness next to Brian emerged a more frightening creature.

This new monster was huge, easily as tall as Gold, but it lacked skin. Its shiny, red muscle structure was exposed, and a green jewel sat in the center of its torso. It carried a massive hammer in its hands, currently blocking any view of its face. It shouldered the hammer, eliciting a hail of screams: Its head was nothing but a skull.

"That's a new one." Yugi commented, his eyes wide.

"I had to replace my Vampire Lord with something in order for my plan to work." Brian confessed, looking slightly drained, "Maybe I should have just put Invader of Darkness back in…"

Yugi seemed surprised. He had been witness to the events one year ago in which Brian's favorite monster had encouraged him back to his feet, it didn't make sense to remove it from his deck.

"Well, I'll just make it up to him later…" Brian declared, "Before this goes any further, I use the effect of my Skull Knight #2: When I tribute for a Fiend-type monster, I can summon another from my deck. I bring it to the field in defense mode."

The dark blob that the sword was stuck in burst apart, and a second of the skeletal knights fell onto the field in a crouching position. He reached up and caught the sword as it fell, holding it across his lap as he moved to a kneeling posture.

"Next, I'll move Melchid back to attack mode." Brian went on.

The mask demon floated higher again, the sparks around it dispersing. An evil light glowed in its eyes as it stared at Yugi with the smiling mask.

"And now…" Brian continued, "Inferno Hammer, attack Queen's Knight with necro-crash!"

The demon swung out his weapon and slammed it to the ground before him. Queen's Knight screamed in terror as she was engulfed by an eruption of shadows and howling wind. Within the column, she slowly faded away until nothing was left but the Horn of the Unicorn, which turned into a card and floated back to the top of Yugi's deck.

"When Horn of the Unicorn would go to the graveyard, I put it on top of my deck instead." Yugi explained.

A shimmering light fell over Yugi, who gasped as his armor vanished and turned back into his regular clothes. Looking up, he saw Brian point to his Rivalry of Warlords trap.

"Well, you don't have any monsters now. Your new type will be whatever type of monster you summon next." Brian explained, "Of course, as long I don't need to deal with that armor…"

"Uh oh…" Yugi fretted.

"Melchid, attack with screaming mask!" Brian ordered, pointing a clawed finger at his target.

Melchid spun until a red mask with a mouth open in terror faced Yugi. A horrified scream echoed from the mask, and from its mouth shot a powerful wind which forced Yugi to his knees. The boy gasped for breath as the shadows closed around him, erasing his stomach and lower part of his chest from his body, giving Yugi the eerie appearance of being sliced in two.

**Yugi: 6300**

**Brian: 6600**

"Your move Yugi." Brian smiled, looking a bit more energetic.

Yugi drew his card, Horn of the Unicorn as expected, and took another card from his hand.

"I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior (1700/1600) turning my type to rock." Yugi declared, playing the card he had selected.

The shadows shifted again, and from them burst the yellow magnet monster, clashing its magnet hands together in anticipation. Yugi slid another card into his disk, and Beta began to shimmer with blue light. At the same time, Yugi glowed, his skin turning a granite gray and small pits and chips appearing in his hair and clothes. In just a moment, he had turned into a living statue of himself, his hair and clothes painted the proper colors.

"And now I'll equip Beta with Horn of the Unicorn, its mystical lightning boosting his score by 700 points." Yugi declared.

The silver horn burst from the top of the magnet's head, and Beta's score leapt to (2400/1600). Brian shook his head at the sight of this.

"Yugi, your monster only ties with my Inferno Hammer." Brian pointed out.

"It's not Inferno Hammer I'm aiming at." Yugi explained with a smile, "Or did you forget that Melchid is still in attack mode?"

Brian's jaw dropped as Yugi pointed at his enemy.

"Attack Melchid with electro-magnet pulse!" Yugi ordered.

Beta brought its hands together, and an orb of silver energy formed between them. It held the orb overhead, and a pulse of silver light flew from it and smashed into Melchid. The fiend screamed from its frightened face as all four masks were scattered in every direction by the blast. Brian didn't seem much better as he watched his left leg disappear from the knee down.

**Yugi: 6300**

**Brian: 5700**

Brian wobbled a bit before noticing that, despite the missing leg, he still had his sense of balance as though both legs were present.

"This arena is just weird." Brian noted, "And I guess my trap doesn't help much."

"It's okay, it's your move now." Yugi offered.

Brian drew his third card, frowning as he looked at Beta. The magnet beeped at him in a happy little tone, while Inferno Hammer looked ready to beat the rock into pebbles.

"I'll let this stand off go on for now." Brian said, waving one hand, "I pass my turn."

Yugi seemed surprised by this, but drew his card. He chuckled as he saw what it was.

"Maybe you should have destroyed Beta when you had the chance." Yugi said as he held up a spell card, "I activate Premature Burial, and pay 800 life points to bring back Gamma the Magnet Warrior (1500/1800)."

A circle of red light began to glow in the air next to Yugi as the yellow section of his hair faded away, and from it emerged the pink rock with wings. It was covered with chips and cracks, looking ready to fall apart, but at the same time the presence of Beta seemed to encourage the revived magnet.

"Looks like Inferno Hammer gets something to smash on my next turn." Brian smiled.

"Not quite." Yugi declared, holding up another card, "Now it's time to bring my magnets together…"

Brian's eyes went wide at this.

"You have to be _kidding_ me! This is part of the reason I included Rivalry of Warlords for this duel!" He cried out.

"Looks like it backfired this time. I offer Beta and Gamma from my field, and Alpha the Magnet Warrior from my hand." Yugi announced.

"This is gonna be good!" Roland celebrated as the audience cheered.

Between Gamma and Beta appeared a gray figure made of blocky parts. It carried a sword in one hand, and its head was adorned with a magnet that faced forward. The three monsters looked at one another and nodded, jumping into the air and shattering into several chunks of stone and metal.

"By doing so, I can summon Valkyrion the Manga Warrior (3500/3850)!" Yugi called out.

The parts collided together and assembled themselves into a new figure. This one stood a head over Inferno Hammer and was made of a silvery material. He carried Alpha's sword, Gamma's wings spread behind his back, while Beta's head, shaped more like a helmet than a ball now, sat upon his shoulders. Behind it, the light from the Premature Burial faded away, while Horn of the Unicorn floated back to the top of Yugi's deck once more.

"Oh…Shoot!" Brian shouted.

"Valkyrion, attack Inferno Hammer with magnet saber sweep!" Yugi ordered.

The magnetic monster pulled back its arm, and swung it in a wide arc. From its blade launched a wave of crackling energy that consumed Inferno Hammer in a burst of light and static. Brian screamed as the shadow closed over him more and what was left of his left leg along with a large portion of his right. His legs were almost completely gone now, leaving him hovering over the field like La Jinn had been.

**Yugi: 5500**

**Brian: 4600**

"Okay Brian, my turn is over." Yugi declared.

"And so is this duel from the looks of things." Roland observed, "I doubt Brian has a monster that strong in his entire deck!"

Brian was ignoring this as he drew his fourth card. He saw the monster on it, and set it onto his disk. A facedown monster appeared before him, next to his cowering Skull Knight.

"One monster facedown and a facedown card too." Brian said as he set a card next to his face up trap, "Over to you Yugi."

Yugi drew, and as he did Brian pressed a button on his disk. The facedown trap lifted, and a machine made of sparkling crystals emerged from the card.

"I activate Interdimensional Matter Transporter!" Brian declared, "With this card, I'll remove my Skull Knight from the game until the end of the turn."

The machine glowed and vanished into the shadows, Skull Knight wiping his brow as he faded with it. Yugi watched this, and thought for a moment.

"_I can think of two reasons he did that. He either wants to save Skull Knight, or he wants me to attack his facedown monster."_ Yugi thought, looking at the only monster left on Brian's field, _"With Skull Knight's effect, he could rebuild his forces, but that face down monster could be anything…"_

"_Be careful Yugi…"_ Yami advised, _"Brian's proven that he can be clever when he wants to be."_

Yugi mulled it over for another minute, and then nodded.

"Valkyrion, attack his facedown monster!" Yugi ordered.

Brian's face split into a grin as Valkyrion raised his sword. His facedown monster turned over, showing an emaciated orange creature covered in black straps.

"This one is my Newdoria, and when he's destroyed he drags another monster down with him." Brian declared, "Newdoria, take down Valkyrion!"

The fiend shrieked and lunged forward, wrapping his scrawny arms around the Magna Warrior's arm. He exploded into a blast of dark mist, which floated over Valkyrion and rusted the silver warrior. The Rock-type groaned as stress fractures appeared over its body, and it shattered into a cloud of grit that was blown away by a chilling breeze. At the same time, Yugi returned to normal once again, all of his monster zones emptied.

"Um…I set this monster facedown." Yugi declared, sliding a facedown monster (leaving one card in his hand) onto his disk, "That's all."

As he said this, Skull Knight #2 reappeared on the field. Brian's demonic features, which had begun to fade with Newdoria's death, returned to their full appearance as he drew his card.

"Okay, time to take control back." Brian beamed, "I tribute Skull Knight #2 again…"

The skeleton demon stuck his sword into the ground before vanishing into darkness. A familiar roar sounded from the shadows as they lifted from a red fiend with sickly yellow fur sprouting from cracks in its exoskeleton.

"…To summon my Great Maju Garzett (2000/0)!" Brian announced, taking a card from his deck, "And I'll summon my last Skull Knight #2 (1000/1200), this time in attack mode."

From behind Great Maju Garzett stepped the third of the bony fiends, picking up his forbearer's sword and taking a practice swing with it.

"Now, I equip Great Maju Garzett with my Dark Energy spell card." Brian declared, playing another card, "This one grants 300 attack points to any Fiend I attach it to."

An orb of green and blue energy floated out of Brian's disk, and hovered over Maju. It roared once more as the energy fed into its body, causing the skeletal armor to crack further and its yellow fur to turn blue (2300/300).

"And last, but not least, I invoke my deckmaster's power to change 500 of my life points into attack points for Skull Knight #2!" Brian called out, "Ha Des, activate your ability of demonic reinforcements!"

Ha Des stroked his chin with one hand, and nodded.

"Agreed…" He said with a grin as black fire surrounded Brian.

More of Brian's right arm faded, leaving his hand with nothing connecting it to the shoulder. At the same time, Skull Knight (1500/1200) grinned as his eyes glowed with black flames, his sword wreathed in what was once Brian's life force.

"Great Maju Garzett, attack his facedown monster with channeled darkness!" Brian ordered.

Maju opened its mouth, and shadows poured from it as it unleashed an unearthly roar. Yugi's facedown monster turned over to show a young woman in a green dress, who cringed prior to being eroded away by the darkness. Mystical Elf (800/2000) was powerless before Brian's monster.

"And now, attack directly Skull Knight!" Brian ordered, "Bone blade attack!"

The knight laughed wickedly and leapt forward, slicing his sword across Yugi's chest. As he did, the blade seemed to erase Yugi's body as it contacted it, the damage spreading out from the slice until Yugi's whole chest and both shoulders were missing. The audience was screaming in horror and cheering in blind fandom at the sight of this latest attack.

"It's getting hard to see either one of our competitors. This match might be coming to a close." Roland said, looking around, "And I've just noticed how hard it is to see around here in the sunglasses…"

**Yugi:4000**

**Brian: 4100**

Yugi drew his card, brining his hand to two. Dark Magician Girl was trembling behind him, and he looked to her.

"Don't worry Dark Magician Girl, we'll get through this." Yugi assured her, "Think you can use your deckmaster power for me?"

"You got it." Dark Magician Girl nodded, waving her staff as pink light surrounded Yugi, "Soul Circle!"

Images of Obnoxious Celtic Guardian, Sangan, Gazelle, Gamma, Beta, Alpha, Valkyrion, Queen's Knight, and Mystical Elf all appeared around him. Yugi's deck shimmered with pink light, and he swiftly picked up the top nine cards from it, swelling his hand to eleven.

"Okay…I summon my Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700)!" Yugi called out.

The shadows shifted aside once more to reveal a teenager in black robes. He twirled an iron staff in his hands, and smiled at Yugi. Yugi's clothes began to glow again, this time transforming into blue robes with a hood that lay against the back of his neck at the moment. Yugi looked over the robes with a smile, and then held up three more cards.

"Next, I'll set three cards facedown," Yugi continued, three cards appearing behind his magician, "And then I'll tribute one of them to my Emergency Provisions."

A hungry mouth appeared from the darkness, and swiftly bit through the facedown card on the far left. It smiled before vanishing, and the shadows pulled from Yugi's body allowing his shoulders and most of his chest to reform.

"That's all for my turn." Yugi declared.

Brian drew, looking suspiciously toward Yugi's facedown cards.

"_Ugh…He didn't attack, and he had a great opportunity to get rid of Skull Knight #2."_ He realized, _"Does he have a plan with those facedown cards? Uh…I can't risk it. He's got a Spellcaster on the field and it's only a matter of time before he gets the Dark Magician. If that happens, I'm sunk!"_

"Great Maju Garzett, attack his Skilled Dark Magician!" Brian ordered.

The demon began to open its maw, shadows building up within its mouth…

"I activate Magician's Selection!" Yugi called out, one of his facedown cards lifting.

"What? I've never heard of that card." Brian said, staring at the trap.

"It's complicated, so I'll explain. This trap goes off when you attack a Spellcaster on my side of the field." Yugi declared, "Then, the attacking monster changes targets to the weakest monster on the field, no matter whose side it's on."

"Weakest monster? But that's…Oh no!" Brian shouted as Great Maju glowed with purple energy and suddenly turned toward Skull Knight, "Great Maju, STOP!"

"Too late! Channeled darkness attack!" Yugi commanded.

A massive explosion of dark energy sent Brian flying backward as his left arm from shoulder to elbow was consumed. Great Maju shook his head, and seemed horrified as the remains of Skull Knight #2 faded from the field.

**Yugi: 5000**

**Brian: 3300**

Brian pushed himself back to his feet, groaning in pain.

"Ugh…How can I hurt this much when I barely have anything left to feel pain?" He asked, looking at Roland.

"I don't pretend to understand the physics of this arena. Are you able to continue?" Roland asked.

Brian nodded, taking one of his two cards from his hand. He slid it into his disk, and it appeared behind Great Maju, who looked at him with a worried growl.

"Of course I don't hold you responsible for that." Brian said to the fiend, waving a hand, "Yugi, make your move."

Yugi drew now, his hand at a massive seven cards. He smiled as he tapped a button on his disk, causing his facedown card to lift up.

"Okay, normally I'd use Skilled Dark Magician's effect at this point." Yugi commented, "But here's a faster way. I use Call of the Haunted…"

"Don't forget, you can only bring back a Spellcaster monster." Brian warned.

"Like Mystical Elf (800/2000)?" Yugi asked, the blue-skinned maiden materializing from the shadows before him, "She's as much a Spellcaster as my next monster. I tribute her and my Skilled Dark Magician…"

Both monsters faded away into the darkness. Dark Magician Girl shrieked in glee as from the shadows emerged the famous, purple-robed sorcerer carrying his green staff. Brian gulped nervously, his worst nightmare for this duel now realized.

Before him stood Yugi's signature monster, the Dark Magician (2500/2100), and it did not look happy to see him.

"Looks like this is the end of your nightmarish monsters. Dark magic attack!" Yugi commanded.

Dark Magician twirled his powerful staff, aiming it directly at Great Maju Garzett's chest. The demon screamed in fear as it turned photo-negative for a brief instant, then burst into colorful shards. The sphere of Dark Energy that had empowered it faded from the field, along with a small hole that formed in Brian's left hand.

With his field now clear, Brian's clothes and skin returned to normal, except for the vanished parts of course. He winced as his nails retracted back into his fingers, turning back to their normal length.

**Yugi: 5000**

**Brian: 3100**

"And Yugi's favorite monster hits the field, and Brian, hard!" Roland called out, "Guess the 'Master of Nightmares' is in for a scare of his own."

"It's your move Brian. Don't tell me you've run out of steam now." Yugi smiled, "You've been doing really well."

Brian drew his card with a smile.

"Coming from you, that means a lot. Thank you Yugi." Brian looked at the monster he now held, "Allow me to show you how much I respect you now…By unleashing my most powerful monster on you! I summon Grand Tiki Elder (1500/800)…"

The shadows were pushed aside once more, and from them slithered a man, wearing a colorful mask, with slimy green skin and a lower body that resembled a serpent. He began to chant in a strange language, waving his arms in circles in front of him.

"…Then I use Call of the Haunted to revive Melchid the Four-Faced Beast (1500/1200)…" Brian continued, his trap card lifting as his demonic features began to return.

The trap lifted and a cloud of purple smoke poured out. The smoke congealed into the four horrid masks, which began to float around one another again. Brian removed both of the cards from his tray, just before his claws returned, and slapped down the final card in his hand.

"…And I tribute them both in order to special summon Masked Beast Des Guardius (3300/2500)!" Brian called out, the horns sprouting from his forehead once again.

A roar echoed from the darkness behind Brian, and Ha Des laughed as both of the masked monsters before him vanished. In their place emerged the vicious demon, its body still hulking, its horrible faces (mercifully) still covered by the three masks. It growled toward Dark Magician, who now seemed a touch worried about the atrocious monster that stood before him.

"Des Guardius, destroy the Dark Magician with wrath of the masked!" Brian commanded.

Yugi stepped back as Des Guardius lunged forward and speared the Dark Magician upon his great claws. The master magic user gasped in pain, and cast a sad gaze to Dark Magician Girl as she burst into tears. In a burst of purple sparks, Yugi's favorite monster vanished along with the King of Games' left foot.

**Yugi: 4200**

**Brian: 3100**

Des Guardius roared in triumph as he leapt back to Brian's field. Brian crossed his arms and grinned at Yugi as his robes turned back into his regular outfit.

"That's all I can do Yugi." Brian smiled, "And seeing as I've already dealt with Valkyrion, I doubt you have a monster as powerful as Des Guardius in your entire deck."

Yugi drew, and took two cards from his hand.

"Power isn't everything. Sometimes little creatures can have a big impact." Yugi said as he placed two cards onto his disk, "I set a monster in defense mode, and a facedown card."

The two cards appeared before Yugi, and Dark Magician Girl dried her eyes and sniffled a bit.

"Your move Brian…" Yugi invited.

Brian drew, pausing to think over Yugi's words.

"_Little creatures…Does he mean one of his little tricky monsters?"_ Brian thought, _"I could win this right now if I used my deckmaster and summoned Ha Des to the field…Wait…"_

Brian looked at the card in his hand, and then to the two cards on Yugi's field.

"_I can think of hundreds of things those could be, and all of them would lead to Ha Des being destroyed if I summoned him."_ Brian thought, _"Can't chance that."_

"Des Guardius, attack his facedown monster now!" Brian commanded.

Des Guardius lunged forward, prepared to spear Yugi's monster on his claws, when Yugi tapped his disk.

"Of course, a bit of power can help when you use it right." Yugi declared as a shield of light flew over his field, "And Mirror Force is the most powerful trap I have!"

If Des Guardius's face had been visible…Well first the audience would have gone insane with fear, but after that one would have noticed that its eyes were bugging from their sockets. Just before the demon struck the holy barrier, Brian tossed a card into his disk.

"Forgive me Des Guardius, but if I'm gonna lose you it's better if it's on my terms!" Brian called out, "I chain Mystic Wok from my hand, sacrificing Des Guardius to gain its attack points in life points!"

Ha Des chortled from behind Brian and pointed directly at Des Guardius. The fiend vanished in a burst of black fire, which flew back toward Brian and swirled around him. Brian took a deep breath as his arms were restored, along with most of his right leg, the flames filling in the missing portions and then transforming into flesh once more. With the death of his lone monster, Brian transformed to human once again, but he was a much more whole human than he had been a minute ago.

**Yugi: 4200**

**Brian: 6400**

He did notice, with some annoyance, that his left hand still had a hole in it. Brian shrugged though, and waved his empty hands to Yugi.

"I got nothing left, make your move." Brian offered, a frown on his face as he noted his nearly empty field.

Yugi drew once more, and looked at Brian's Rivalry of Warlords trap.

"You know, that trap has a lot of ways around it." Yugi observed.

"So I've noticed…" Brian grumbled.

"For example, if I tribute the only monster on my field, like King's Knight (1600/1400)…" Yugi continued, removing his facedown monster.

For a brief instant, a knight in golden armor appeared on Yugi's field. He vanished into the abyss beneath him, and from it rose a column of shadowy energy.

"…Then I can summon any type of monster I choose." Yugi stated, playing another card, "So I'll change my type to Fiend, and summon my Archfiend of Gilfer (2200/2500)!"

The column burst apart, and from it blasted a winged demon with black flesh. It screeched like an overgrown bird as it settled on Yugi's field, casting a glare at his defenseless target…

Yugi, in the meantime, watched as his skin turned bright blue, a small pair of tusks curling out from his lower jaw as it did. His clothes turned to animal skin, probably tiger judging by the stripes, and like Brian he grew a small pair of horns.

"_Huh, I became a more Western/Catholic version of a demon, and Yugi turned into a Japanese ogre."_ Brian thought, _"Someone at Kaiba Corp. put way too much thought into this card."_

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Wow Rei, showing off enough?" Sota asked.

"Watch it Mr. 'I-spent-two-weeks-on-a-church.'" Rei warned, her hand going for her coffee mug.

Sota, wisely, shut his mouth. Jackson chuckled a bit, and made a sound like whip-crack from his mouth in between laughs. Several of their neighbors joined the laughter until Mokuba shot them all a warning glare.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi pointed directly at Brian, who gulped as he noticed that nothing but empty darkness stood between him and Yugi's monster.

"Attack with demon flames!" Yugi commanded, finding it slightly difficult to talk around his new tusks.

Archfiend of Gilfer spread its wings and flew into the air over Brian's head. It opened its maw, and blasted a gout of orange flames at Brian, who screamed as his arms began to dissolve into shadow again. The attack finally ended and Yugi's monster came back to the ground in front of him.

**Yugi: 4200**

**Brian: 4200**

"It's a tie game now folks!" Roland called out, the audience cheering, "Will Yugi come out on top? Or can Brian regain control?"

"Your turn." Yugi said, checking his other cards and seeing nothing he wished to play.

Brian drew, and glared at his lone card. He looked back at Ha Des, who turned his gaze upon the mortal.

"Looks like I don't have any other choice." Brian said.

"Keep in mind, human, if I go down, you go with me." Ha Des warned, looking stern.

"If I don't do anything, I go down anyway." Brian pointed out, "Time for our last resort move…I summon my deckmaster to the field. Come forth, Dark Ruler Ha Des (2450/1600)!"

The demon king smiled as he took four long strides and stepped between Brian and Yugi's monster. Archfiend of Gilfer growled, and glared at Ha Des with a sneer.

"Aren't you some kind of demon king?" Brian asked his monster, looking confused.

"I'm king of demons, true, but this is an Archfiend." Ha Des growled, "He's on a different political system."

"Demons deal with politics?" Roland asked.

"We invented politics." Ha Des declared, "Now are we going to make our move or what? I have more important things to do you know…"

"Sheesh, they gave you a royal attitude." Brian sighed, "Okay then Ha Des, I'll use your power…"

"Huh?" Yugi asked, watching as Brian's fiendish face re-grew, "What are you using it on?"

"Yugi, Ha Des can power up fiends…What type do you think he is?" Brian asked, pointing a clawed finger, "Trust me, I'm not growing claws because it's fun. Ha Des, I surrender…2000 life points to increase your strength by the same amount!"

"Oh sure, try to butter me up…" Ha Des sighed, "Well, your funeral…"

Brian gritted his teeth as both his leg and what was left of his arms, minus the hands, reduced themselves into black fire once more. The fire blasted over Ha Des, forming a powerful aura over the demon king. He laughed madly as the flames boosted his attack power to (4450/1600), and a chill of fear began to spread over the audience.

"I don't have much left after that…" Brian gasped out as he pointed at Yugi, "But Ha Des can overpower anything you have left…Attack with dark flames of Purgatory!"

"With pleasure!" Ha Des roared, the fiery aura blasting away from him.

Archfiend of Gilfer screamed in pain as the fires consumed him. Yugi grabbed his monster's card, and moved it toward his spell and trap zone.

"By destroying my Archfiend, you triggered his special ability…" Yugi warned.

"Oh yeah?" Brian asked.

Yugi gasped as the card in his hands suddenly burst into black flame. He dropped it, sucking his burnt fingers as his legs and arms vanished as well, and watched a Gilfer was reduced to a speck of dust. Ha Des took a sip from his wine glass, and his eyes glowed red.

"Ha Des commands the fire of Purgatory, hence the name of his attack. Those flames suppress the abilities of monsters that he attacks and destroys, and since Ha Des is a generous ruler he grants the same mastery to any loyal servants." Brian grinned, "In game terms, Ha Des negates the effect of any monster he destroys, and so do any Fiend-type monsters on my field! Archfiend of Gilfer is powerless."

Yugi gulped as his life points finished adjusting. Now he was slightly worried, after all, he had already used his Mirror Force. Yugi did notice that his body had returned to normal, something he was thankful for as the tusks made speaking unnecessarily difficult.

**Yugi: 1950**

**Brian: 2200**

"Amazing!" Roland shouted, "Brian's deal with the devil might put him on top!"

"I need to end my turn here." Brian admitted, "But next turn, you're finished."

"We'll see about that." Yugi said as he drew, "I activate Graceful Charity."

A shining light appeared in the field of shadows, driving the darkness back. Ha Des howled in pain and covered his eyes with the sleeve of his robe. Yugi bathed in the light as the angel appeared, his vanished body parts appearing transparent under her holy atmosphere. She brushed a hand over Yugi's deck, and he swiftly drew his three cards.

"And since I drew it with a card effect, I summon Watapon (200/300) in defense mode." Yugi declared, playing one of the cards quickly.

On Yugi's field appeared a small ball of white fluff, with long antennae and huge eyes. It squeaked happily in the light of the angel, While behind it Yugi watched as his skin turned pure white. His clothes turned to sliver and gold, while a pair of glittering wings, much like a moth's or butterfly's, emerged from his back.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Tim watched this change, and smiled. Kaiba sighed, holding his head and dreading what was about to follow.

"Okay, this will take while." Tim said, cracking his knuckles, "Get comfortable…"

"Is it too much for you to not say anything for one duel?" Kaiba asked.

"First amendment, you can't stop me. Now then…" Tim smiled, "Yugi is a fairy. Well I always suspected, let's see…No wonder he takes such great care of his hair…"

"Stop it…" Kaiba growled.

"I wondered if he and Joey were really 'just friends.'" Tim continued.

"This seems uncalled for." Victor pointed out.

"That Millennium Puzzle is simply _fabulous!_" Tim joked.

"Cram a sock in it!" Rex shouted, the tension of the duel, his upcoming match, and Tim's generally being annoying pushing him over the edge.

Tim stopped, and looked at Rex with a hurt expression.

"Well you don't have to be rude." He said, slumping in his seat.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back in more sane parts of the arena, Brian was laughing at Yugi's little monster. Yugi took two cards from his hand and placed them into the graveyard, the angel vanishing with a sigh and the darkness encroaching again.

"Your challenging my powerful demon with a cotton puff?" Brian asked, laughing even harder, "Oh wait, let me guess, I got it…That's supposed to be a tribute for something to take down Ha Des. What makes you think it will stay on the field that long?"

"Mainly because that's a special summon." Yugi pointed out, Brian looking worried now, "But I'm also setting one more monster facedown."

Next to Watapon appeared a facedown monster. The little fairy tapped the card with its antennae, and squeaked again. Several choruses of 'awes' sounded from the audience and Dark Magician Girl.

"Too cute!" Dark Magician Girl grinned.

"That ends my turn." Yugi said, ignoring his deckmaster's comment.

Brian drew, and smiled upon seeing the card.

"Perfect, time for one of those servants I mentioned." Brian said, playing a monster, "I summon Archfiend Soldier (1900/1500)!"

From behind Brian jumped the purple-skinned demon, brandishing his wicked sword. He stopped for a moment to look at his controller, and gave a nod of approval at the sight of Brian's skin and horns.

"Yeah, don't get used me being a demon." Brian warned, "For now, deal with his Watapon: Blade of demise!"

The soldier spun around fast and vanished in a blur. Watapon was cut off in mid-squeak as Archfiend Soldier's blade found a home right between its eyes. Several audience members moaned at the sight of this, watching as the cute fairy vanished along with Yugi's Fae appearance.

"Ha Des, it's your show now." Brian continued, "Do to his facedown monster what you did to Archfiend of Gilfer: Dark flames of Purgatory!"

Ha Des laughed once more, the fires around him bursting in all directions and consuming Yugi's facedown monster. A witch doctor in colorful robes appeared for a moment, screaming a curse at Ha Des only for his staff to burst into flames and consume him.

"That one was Old Vindictive Magician (450/600)." Yugi declared, putting the card in his grave, "I guess Ha Des stops flip effects too?"

"He'll stop the effect of anything he kills. Flip-effect, battle-effect, graveyard-effect, it doesn't matter to him." Brian smiled, "Anything else you want to try? It's your move."

Yugi drew, his hand now at five cards, and took another card from his hand.

"One monster facedown…" He said, sliding the card into place, "And that's all."

The hidden monster appeared, and Brian drew again. He frowned, and sighed.

"You got lucky Yugi, I don't have any other monsters to summon." Brian said, "Still…I can't be too reckless even with my deckmaster. Ha Des will attack your facedown monster…"

The demon king snapped his fingers, a burst of fire flipping over Yugi's facedown monster to reveal a girl in blue robes with a staff tipped with a crescent moon. She began to chant and wave her staff, but Ha Des snapped his fingers once more and she burst into flames and vanished.

"And I wasted a shot on Magician of Faith (300/400)." Brian realized, "Well, at least I can bring you down to fifty life points. Archfiend Soldier, attack!"

The demon warrior lifted his blade and dashed at Yugi. Before he got close, Yugi dropped a card from his hand and in front of him appeared a squeaking ball of brown fur. Archfiend Soldier swung his weapon and carved the Kuriboh into a two lumps of fur, which ceased squeaking and shattered apart.

"Kuriboh? Touché Yugi." Brian commented, looking impressed, "But you can't dodge around forever. Your move."

Yugi drew his card, and held it up with a look of determination.

"I activate Brain Control, giving up 800 points to brainwash your Archfiend Soldier!" Yugi announced.

Next to Yugi appeared the hideous mutant brain, which extended a pair of misty hands as what was left of Yugi's body began to turn transparent. The hands wrapped themselves around Archfiend Soldier's head, and dragged the demon over to Yugi with a dazed look on his mug.

"Next, I set two cards facedown…" Yugi continued, placing the cards into his disk, "And then I'll use my Card of Sanctity!"

A golden light filled the void, causing Brian to cover his eyes as he drew five cards. Yugi took his full six, not paying attention as his skin turn blue once again.

"Next…" Yugi said, trying once more to talk around his new tusks, "I activate Spell Reproduction, giving up Dedication through Light and Darkness and Polymerization to bring my Premature Burial back to my hand."

Before Yugi appeared a shimmering crystal ball. He held up the two spells he had named, and the orb glowed for a moment before vanishing along with the cards. From Yugi's graveyard emerged his Premature Burial, which he placed into his disk with out hesitation.

"Now I'll activate Premature Burial and bring back Kuriboh (300/200) in attack mode!" Yugi called out.

A red circle of light appeared next to Archfiend Soldier, and out of it popped Kuriboh, covered in clumps of dirt and worms. The tiny fiend squeaked angrily as it glared at Ha Des.

"What are you…" Brian started to ask.

"I'm not done yet." Yugi smiled, taking both monsters from his disk, "I tribute these two monsters in order to summon my Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!"

"Oh crud!" Brian shouted, looking worried.

A burst of mystical energy flooded Yugi's field, absorbing Kuriboh and Archfiend Soldier. In their place stood a lithe wizard in skintight blue clothes with a fancy headdress and a long stave which sparked with green energy. He pointed the weapon to Yugi's disk, which shuddered for a moment as Yugi held a hand next to it.

"Now that I summoned him, my Dark Magician of Chaos will bring a spell back from my graveyard." Yugi explained, closing his eyes, "And I choose Emergency Provisions."

The spell slid into Yugi's hand, and he placed another of his cards into his disk. It appeared next to the first two, facedown. At the same time, Yugi turned back to his human shape and skin tone, and what remained visible of his clothes returned to the form of wizard robes.

"Now I set this facedown, and feed it to Emergency Provisions for another 1000 life points." Yugi declared.

The mouth jumped out of nowhere again, and bit clean through the facedown Book of Secret Arts. Pages flew in every direction as the tome was gnashed and crunched upon, while Yugi's form grew more solid again. His arms began to grow back from the shoulders, but neither one made it more than halfway to his elbows again.

"And that will end my turn." Yugi declared.

"A long move for Yugi, but will it do anything?" Roland asked, looking confused, "Just what is he thinking?"

Brian drew, looking at his seven cards in disbelief.

"_I must have the worst luck ever!"_ He thought, _"Seven cards and none of them are Heavy Storm!"_

Brian checked his life points, and looked over to Yugi for confirmation on his score.

**Yugi: 1350**

**Brian: 2200**

"_I still have a chance…"_ Brian thought, _"I…I…I can't risk him powering up that monster! I don't have any other choice!"_

"Ha Des, roast his monster now!" Brian shouted.

Ha Des lifted one hand, flames gathering around it as he gestured toward Yugi's magician. Yugi waved a hand over his first facedown card.

"I activate Immortal Hero!" Yugi called out, the card lifting to show a superhero standing amongst fallen villains, "This makes one of my monsters indestructible for one turn."

Brian mentally checked the math, and grinned.

"It doesn't matter, your monster will survive but your life points won't!" Brian shouted.

The flames fired from Ha Des's palm and Yugi tapped his disk again. The audience screamed as the flames struck home, blasting through Yugi's monster and flying right at the King of Games.

"The king is dead ladies and gentlemen! Long live the new king!" Roland called out.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Celeste was staring open mouthed as Brian's attack lashed out.

"Holy crap, he proved me wrong!" Celeste gasped.

"Did you just swear?" Ronaldo asked, seeming shocked.

"I'm pretty close to swearing to." Kevin warned, "This is unprecedented!"

"Relax, Yugi will stop this…Somehow." Espa said, clutching the chain in front of him.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh my…" Pegasus said, eye going wide.

"Did that guy just beat Yugi?" Mary asked.

"No fair! Zeffie wanted to do it first!" Zeffie complained, looking positively livid at the thought, "Brian knew Zeffie wanted to do it first!"

"Hey, Zef." Gold smiled, "Why isn't Brian's disk turning off?"

Zeffie looked down, and smiled as she saw the Fiend-duelist's disk was indeed still functioning.

"Oh boy! Duel's not over!" Zeffie cheered.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brian looked worried as he noticed that, despite the cheers from the audience and Roland's proclamation, Yugi hadn't seemed worried as the attack closed in.

"I'm such a moron." Brian realized, looking at the ground in shame, "I shouldn't have rushed in like that…"

The audience fell silent as a barrage of black fire suddenly blasted out from behind Brian and slammed him to the ground! The teen screamed in pain as his body faded until he too was little more than a translucent set of hands, feet, and disembodied head. The audience was aghast as the smoke cleared from around Yugi, who smiled.

"Like I said, power can be good if you use it right." Yugi smiled, pointing to his second trap, "And unfortunately for you, my Dimension Wall trap took all that damage I should have taken and sent it to you instead."

"Nice move…" Brian complemented, standing back up and discarding a card from his hand, "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I can't do anything else even with seven cards in my hand. I discard Kuriboh and end my turn."

**Yugi: 1350**

**Brian: 550**

Yugi drew, and smiled as he saw the card he now held.

"You're going to finish the duel now, aren't you?" Brian asked.

"Sorry, you've played a great game though." Yugi said.

Brian sighed, and looked at his nearly gone body.

"I guess I need a bit more practice before I'm ready to take you on again…" He admitted, "Next time, we'll have an even closer match."

Brian looked up, and smiled as he clenched a fist. Yugi smiled back as he played his card.

"I'll look forward to it, but I think Zeffie has first dibs." He pointed out.

"That's right!" Zeffie's voice shouted from the audience, eliciting laughter from those who could hear it.

"Now then, I activate my Necromancy spell card." Yugi declared, holding up the first of his two cards.

Energy gathered around Brian's Duel Disk, and four cards emerged from his grave slot. They hovered before him before settling themselves sideways onto his tray.

"This spell randomly revives up to four monsters from your graveyard." Yugi explained, "But the cost is high, because for each one that's destroyed another monster on your field will lose 600 attack points."

Brian watched as Archfiend Soldier (1900/1500), La Jinn (1800/1700), Grand Tiki Elder (1500/800), and Melchid the Four-Faced Beast (1500/1200) appeared before him, all of them low to the ground in defense mode. Yugi held up his second card and Brian gulped.

"That's the one you used…Oh boy." Brian moaned.

"That's right, I give up 1000 life points to activate Diffusion Wave Motion!" Yugi called out, energy beginning to crackle from the tip of the staff his Magician of Chaos wielded, "Now my Dark Magician of Chaos can attack all of your monsters in any order I choose, so save Ha Des for last, and strike now! Diffusion chaos blast!"

The great spell-slinger waved his weapon in a wide arc, generating a scythe of energy that slashed through Archfiend Soldier. As the demon fell over in two pieces, Ha Des gasped in pain as a similar slash appeared across his chest.

The magician swung his staff again and again, generating more and more energy that ripped apart Melchid, Grand Tiki Elder, and La Jinn in a matter of seconds. Ha Des fell to his knees, his aura of fire fading away as gashes and cuts appeared all over his body, dripping a foul, green liquid (2050/1600).

Yugi's monster brought down his staff in a single, vertical slash. A final blade of energy flew forward and cleaved Ha Des into two symmetrical pieces from head to toe. He fell over in two directions, and both halves shattered apart.

**Yugi: 350**

**Brian: 0**

"And it's game over! Yugi wins again!" Roland called out as Brian faded away completely.

Yugi took a deep breath, his body restoring itself to normal as he did. Dark Magician Girl smiled as she vanished once more, and the audience roared in amazement over Yugi's latest victory.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

"So does that count as a loss by life points or deckmaster?" Jackson asked.

"I vote we say he died three-times over." Sota suggested, ticking off the numbers on his fingers, "One, deckmaster permanently removed from the game. Two, deckmaster destroyed. And three, life points hit zero. You can't really lose much worse than that."

"Technically, the damage happens before anything else though." Rei pointed out, "So I guess it's a life point loss."

"Whatever, I don't really care." Sota sighed, shaking his head, "Mr. Kaiba is up in the next duel, and I feel bad for his opponent."

"You're not alone on that." Mokuba assured him, "This is hardly a fair match."

Mokuba's gaze turned stern as he looked down at the technicians.

"But don't take this as an excuse to slack off. Like I said before, if anything else goes wrong today, it gets reported directly to Seto. Understand?" Mokuba asked.

"Yes sir!" All the techs responded.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

A blob of darkness appeared in the seat next to Celeste, and from it emerged Brian. He paused to look over his body, and sighed in relief upon seeing it was all their and no longer demonic.

"Not so easy, is it?" Celeste asked with a smug grin.

Brian just nodded to Celeste with a thoughtful look.

"Yeah, you were right." Brian admitted, "I still good though, right?"

"You brought Yugi down to under 500 life points. Not a lot of people can say they've done that." Espa pointed out, "I'd get ready for offers from the pro circuit if I were you."

Brian seemed surprised at this, but rubbed his chin for a moment and smiled.

_**You've seen the best take on his challenger…**_

_**Now prepare to see the best of the worst take on the second best!**_

_**There's only one possible pair left in this round: Seto Kaiba vs. Rex Raptor.**_

_**We're calling the next round**_

_**Fossilized**_

_**See ya there!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Magician's Selection

Trap

Image of Dark Magician standing before a pentagram.

When your opponent declares an attack against a Spellcaster-type monster you control, redirect the attack to the monster on the field with the lowest attack points. If the new target is controlled by your opponent, they take all the damage from the battle.

_This card was first used by Yugi in the anime saga "Clash in the Coliseum." All credit for this card goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

Immortal Hero

Trap

Image of a superhero standing amongst a crowd of fallen enemies.

Select one monster on your side of the field. Until the end of this turn, the selected monster can not be destroyed in battle.

_This card was first used by Jaden Yuki in the anime episode "A Lying Legend." All credit for this card goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Necromancy

Spell

Image of a wizard standing in a graveyard at night. Zombies are crawling from the ground all around him.

Special summon up to four monsters from your opponent's graveyard to their field in defense mode. Whenever a monster summoned by this card is destroyed, reduce the attack of another monster on the field by 600 points.

_This card was first used by Raphael (after taking it from Yugi) in the anime saga "Fate of the Pharaoh." All credit goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

All credit for the line "This Millennium Puzzle is simply fabulous!" Goes to LittleKuriboh of Keep up the good work!


	36. Fossilized

_**Ladies and gentlemen! Put in those earplugs because our next contenders are ready to roar!**_

**_We only have one pair of duelists left for the quarter-finals, and both of them are masters of tyrannical lizards!_**

_**Up first is everyone's favorite CEO/Professional Duelist: Seto Kaiba!**_

_**And his opponent? None other than Rex Raptor, the Dinosaur Duelist who proves natural selection wrong!**_

_**Let's see who will be moving on to the semi-finals…**_

_**Will Kaiba earn the chance to take on Yugi again?**_

_**Or will Rex pull out a victory against impossible odds?**_

Fossilized

"_I am so dead…"_ Rex thought to himself as he saw his picture appear next to Seto Kaiba's with a five-minute timer attached. _"Is this some sort of cruel joke?"_

"What a waste of time," Kaiba grumbled as he began to look through his cards. "I'm not even going to need five turns to take Raptor out…"

Rex clenched his fist, and watched as his own cards displayed themselves before him. He began to sift through them carefully, thinking over his strategies.

"_Kaiba…Talking about me like I'm not even here…"_ Rex growled in his mind, clenching his teeth. _"Compared to him, I might as well not be…NO! The days of walk-all-over-Rex Raptor are done! I may lose this fight, but I'll lose with the skills of the champion I used to be!!"_

Rex angrily began shifting cards between his deck and side deck, smiling as a few plans came to mind.

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The reason for the five-minute delay this time was not an argument. This time, Mokuba was marching along from one programmer to the next, glaring over their shoulders at their screen to ensure that everything was proceeding as it was supposed to.

"Good…Good…Turn down the pain level a bit, I don't it like it that high…" Mokuba commented as he moved from computer to computer.

He paused behind one worker who was gazing absent-mindedly at his screen as he played Solitaire. Mokuba cleared his throat, and the technician snapped out of his game-induce daze and closed the window with the card game in it.

"Uh…I can explain sir…" the technician stammered out.

"We're supposed to focus on my brother's game, not yours," Mokuba scolded, a stern glare cast at the shuddering tech. "Get back to work!"

The programmer began typing furiously, data flying across his screen at top speed. Noah was watching from the back of the room, a slight grin on his face as he observed Mokuba's progress.

"I have to say Mokuba, I'm impressed at how well you control the situation when Seto is busy," Noah said as his step-brother returned. "How do you do it?"

"Years of practice," Mokuba said as he sat in his chair at the main computer. "After Battle City, Seto started trusting me with bigger and bigger projects. I've handled everything from press conferences to…Well, to running this tournament."

Noah nodded his head, and looked back up at the screen.

"So, you think there'll be anything more to worry about?" he asked.

"There'd better not be," Mokuba said, his volume increasing a bit so all the techs could hear him.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, I'm down here and Tim is up there," Brian sighed, looking up to the box seats. "Who's going to stop my brother from pissing of Kaiba now?"

"Relax, I'm sure someone will hit him if he gets to annoying," Celeste assured him.

"In the meantime, we get to watch Seto Kaiba defeat a duelist who is has been almost unknown since Battle City," Ronaldo said, looking up to the jumbo screen overhead. "Huh…Somehow this match seems one sided."

"Gee, you think?" Kevin asked. "I calculate Rex's odds of winning to be…Less than .5 percent."

"They were zero against me," Espa pointed out with a grin.

"Yeah, but didn't I hear something about a radio transmitter?" Celeste asked him.

"Um…No comment," Espa said sheepishly.

"Well, Kaiba has enough fans," Celeste said. "Who wants to join me and cheer for Rex?"

The other four looked at each-other, shrugged, and nodded.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hmm…" Weevil mused, looking at the screen. "As much as I'd love for Kaiba to finally find out what it feels like to be knocked to the bottom, I'd have to say that I want Rex to lose this duel."

"Any particular reason?" Richington asked, shining his monocle.

Weevil opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off as Mako cleared his throat.

"Let's not forget that Rex beat Weevil in their last duel," Mako pointed out.

"Ah yes, of course," Richington nodded as he replaced his eye-wear. "Well I say, go Kaiba! Show everyone why the upper-class is truly the best class!"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Who are you going to cheer for, big brother?" Serenity asked as she turned to Joey.

Joey was looking up at the screen, his eyes crossing as he tried to make his decision. He finally shook his head and pulled at his hair.

"Argh! I don't want either of them to win!" Joey fretted as dropped his hands to his sides. "I'm not gonna have the chance to take 'em out afterwards!"

"You can't get everything in life," John sighed. "Why not give some thought to the Kingdom of Heaven…"

"I don't think this is the best time," Bakura cautioned the young preacher as Joey turned a glare toward him.

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"Yahoo! Go Rex!" Mary shouted, jumping up from her seat.

"Young lady, please sit down and calm yourself," Ruby said, placing a hand on her daughter's shoulder.

"Yeah dueling!" Zeffie called out, bouncing up and down on Gold's shoulder. "Funfunfunfunfun…"

Gold just chuckled a bit as Zeffie continued to bob in place. He settled back as far as he could go without knocking Zeffie from her perch, and prepared to enjoy the match.

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Out on the arena floor, Roland raised his hands overhead as the countdown hit zero. The ground beneath him began to shake and roll, sections of it pushing upward.

"It's time for our final fight of the quarter-finals!" Roland announced. "And what a fight we'll have! It's been said that dragons and dinosaurs may have evolved side-by-side. Though the dinosaurs died out long before the rise of mankind, dragons somehow managed to survive and become a part of cultures around the globe."

The sections of floor continued to rise and reveal stripes of different types of stone as they climbed higher. In each different layer was a collection of bones and sea-shells, all of them obviously from prehistoric creatures of one species or another. Two sections in particular were rising higher than the rest. The first one contained a perfectly preserved T-rex skeleton, towering almost twenty feet tall.

The second one, on the opposite side of the arena, held a massive skeleton of about the same height. This one sported a framework of wings extending from the back, plus a long neck and tail. In front of this draconian fossil fell a ring of silver light, and Roland raised one hand.

"And here today, to settle which one was truly the superior giant lizard, are our combatants!" Roland shouted. "Give it up for Seto Kaiba…"

The light vanished, but nothing else happened. No one stood where the light had been but a moment before, and Roland nervously tapped at his ear.

"Um…Rei? We have another issue…" Roland whispered.

"What now? The arena is there…" Rei responded.

"But the duelists aren't," Roland hissed.

Confused murmurs began to spread around the audience, and Roland hastily lifted one hand for silence.

"Don't worry folks, just a few moments and our duelists should…" Roland began.

Another ring of light fell in front of the dragon skeleton, and out of it stepped Seto Kaiba to a thundering wave of applause. He crossed his arms as he cast a glare at Roland, who hurriedly waved toward the young CEO.

"Right then! Presenting the master of the Blue-Eyes White Dragons: Seto Kaiba…" Roland called out, panting for a second to catch his breath.

A second ring fell to the ground in front of the T-rex skeleton, and from this one stepped Rex, adjusting his hat as he glared at Kaiba.

"…And his challenger, Rex Raptor!" Roland called out, pausing to take a deep breath before he continued. "Which one of these two duelists will win, and who's going to wind up fossilized? Let's find out, select your deckmasters!"

Kaiba held one hand out to his side with a grim look in his eyes.

"I want to get this over with fast, Raptor, so let's keep this simple," Kaiba warned. "There are duelists that are actually worth my time here! I choose Kaiser Sea Horse for my deckmaster."

In a pulse of light, the blue-skinned warrior jumped up next to Kaiba, brandishing his spear in anger. Rex just growled a bit as he reached for his own deck.

"You know Kaiba, Joey is my most hated duelist, and Weevil is second," Rex said as he pulled his cards loose and began to search through them. "But you're a close third!"

Rex snatched one of the cards before putting the rest back, and he held the card over his head.

"Let's see what this guy can do. I choose Gilasaurus for my deckmaster!" Rex announced.

A cloud of dust blazed three laps around Rex before coming to a halt on his right. The dust fell away to reveal the small predator, tapping its toe-claw against the ground as it turned to Rex.

Rex blinked in surprise as a voice sounded inside his head. He closed his eyes for a moment, and then smiled as he opened them again and turned to his deckmaster.

"Gilasaurus, you and me are going places." Rex assured his monster.

"The only place one of you is going is the audience once this duel is done!" Roland warned as he lifted into the air on one final patch of rising stone, "And now that our Fossil Canyon is ready, and I'm safely out of the way, let's begin!"

Kaiser Sea Horse and Gilasaurus both walked out to the area between their controllers. Gilasurus spun around and attempted to knock his foe down with a quick tail sweep, only for the Sea Horse to jump over the blow. As Kaiser Sea Horse landed, he swung the butt of his spear into the chest of the dinosaur before him and sent it sailing back to Rex's side, where it skittered to a stop on the ground.

"Guess we'll be letting Kaiba go first," Roland nodded as Kaiser Sea Horse returned to his master, "Now draw your cards and begin!"

Rex and Kaiba both pulled their opening hands from their decks and cast each other one last, stern gaze.

"LET'S DO THIS!" they both shouted.

**Kaiba: 8000**

**Rex: 8000**

As Kaiba reached to draw his first card of the game, Rex cleared his throat.

"What, you want to give up already?" Kaiba asked.

"Hardly," Rex grinned as his deckmaster shimmered with green light, "I just need to let you know that my deckmaster power activates right now."

Kaiba raised one eyebrow as Rex took the top card from his deck and faced it toward the ground.

"It's called rapid evolution, here's how it works…" Rex began. "My deckmaster…"

"Let's you take the top card from your deck right at the start of the duel after you draw your first five cards," Kaiba recited, closing his eyes as he did so. "If it's a spell, trap, or any monster other than a Dinosaur, it goes to the bottom of your deck. If it's a Dinosaur-type monster, it's removed from play for the rest of the game and all Dinosaurs in your deck, hand, and field have the removed monster's star-level taken out of their level."

Rex lowered the card he had drawn, and stared at Kaiba as the he opened his eyes with an un-amused gaze.

"I worked with the person who designed this system, I know almost every deckmaster available," Kaiba explained, "Now let's get this over with, what did you draw?"

Rex cleared his throat and looked at the card. A grin spread over his face as he turned the card around. On it was the image of a Pterodactyl with black scales and red eyes.

"I got Black Ptera, a three-star monster," Rex boasted, the card fading from his hand. "So that means I can summon monsters that would usually be up to level seven without a sacrifice!"

The green glow surrounding Rex's deckmaster moved over his deck. The sound of a distant roar echoed across the canyon, shaking loose several small rocks and bone fragments from the walls. Kaiba's deckmaster seemed a bit worried, raising his spear and jerking his head about to try and spot where the roar had come from, but Kaiba himself seemed unfazed.

"If you're done," Kaiba said as he drew his first card, "I'd like to get on with my turn. I summon X-Head Cannon (1800/1500) in attack mode."

Kaiser Sea Horse shakily raised his weapon and tapped the end of his spear on the ground. A spark of light floated from the spear's head and absorbed itself into one of the rock pillars that had lifted up. Several cracks appeared in the pillar, spreading out from the point where the light had absorbed, and then a large section of the stone exploded outward leaving a sizable hole.

From the hole emerged a blue robot balancing on a spiked orb. A pair of large cannons adorned its shoulders, and both of them were trained on Rex. Behind it appeared a brown card as Kaiba slid one of his cards into his disk.

"I'll also set this facedown, your move," Kaiba announced.

Rex drew, swiftly taking one of the cards from his hand and setting it onto his disk.

"_I can't afford to take an 1800 point hit this early in the duel,"_ Rex said to himself as a facedown monster appeared before him.

"One monster in defense mode, that's all," Rex affirmed.

"That's pathetic, but I didn't expect much better," Kaiba belittled as he drew another card. "Time to move along the alphabet a little, I summon Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600)."

A metallic screech sounded from above as Kaiba set the monster onto his disk. From the top of the rock behind him leapt a red machine with a glowing-blue visor. As it plummeted to the ground, it spread a pair of wings from its sides and fired a set of jets from its underside. It slowed to a halt, hovering about five feet from the ground.

"Now then, X-Head Cannon, attack his monster with fusion cannon!" Kaiba signaled with a pointed finger.

The cannons on the blue robot readjusted their aim, pointing themselves away from Rex and toward his facedown monster. Blue energy charged within the cannons, causing them to glow red-hot as the power built up. Finally, with a cataclysmic burst of noise, the energy tore loose from the weapons and slammed against Rex's monster, only for it to be dispersed in every conceivable direction (including back to Kaiba's chest, leaving a smoking spot of burnt fabric there.)

On Rex's field, his facedown monster turned itself over to reveal a white egg at least a foot taller than Rex himself. He smiled as he patted the shell of the monstrous egg, a resounding thud echoing from it.

"Sorry Kaiba, but to get at my life points you'll need to get through my Miracle Jurassic Egg (0/2000) first," Rex taunted. "And since neither of your monsters is strong enough to do that, I guess you're out of luck."

Kaiba opened his mouth for a comeback, but stopped as the sound of cracking stone drew his attention. He looked down to his feet and watched as his black shoes slowly turned to grey stone with a few small cracks running through them.

"Rex manages to draw first blood and reveal the fate of the loser of this match!" Roland barked. "As your life points drop in this duel, your body will begin to turn to solid stone, leaving the loser as a real-live fossil!"

**Kaiba: 7800**

**Rex: 8000**

Roland paused for a minute, and then smirked as he added, "Though maybe 'live' isn't the right word…"

"End turn…" Kaiba growled.

Rex drew his card with a wary grin on his face. He held up the spell he had drawn before putting it into his disk and a bright light appeared over his head.

"I'm activating Graceful Charity," Rex announced as a glorious angel floated down from above him.

The angel gently tapped Rex's disk, and three cards slid from the disk into Rex's hand. He looked them over, then took two of them and placed them into his grave slot. The angel smiled as she flew away, while Rex's egg began to tremble as though something inside was trying to emerge. On the side of the egg appeared four small holes, from which came the sound of something breathing.

"Now onto my egg's effect: It gains two counters for every Dinosaur that gets sent to my graveyard, and I just discarded my Uraby and Crawling Dragon #2," Rex went on, pointing at his monster, "That gives this little guy four counters total, so I can sacrifice it to summon a Dinosaur from deck with up to four stars."

"And what four star monsters do you have that can help?" Kaiba challenged, clenching a fist.

"Thanks to my deckmaster, plenty," Rex told him as he removed the card from his disk. "So I'll use its power to summon my Frostosaurus (2600/1700)!"

A cold wind began to blow from the holes in the egg, which swelled larger and larger until it was at least as tall as the fossil behind Rex. Ice began to cover it as the temperature in the arena plummeted, inviting snow to begin to fall over the rocks and bones. With a shuddering crash, the egg fell apart to reveal a giant reptile with a long neck, formed completely from solid ice. It let out a low moan, indicating that it was indeed a living creature and not a sculpture of one, and Rex laughed as he began to shiver in the presence of the monster.

"Most folks think dinosaurs died out during the Ice Age," Rex explained as he tried to make his teeth stop chattering. "But this one evolved to not just live in the cold, but to become it!"

Kaiba seemed unaffected by the temperature change. He had crossed his arms again, but he showed no signs of shivering or trembling. The cold air began to seep out over the audience, causing those in the front row to immediately need to deal with runny noses and uncontrollable shivers since most of them were dressed for summer.

"It's about to get a lot colder in here folks!" Rex warned as he pointed to Kaiba's monsters. "Attack the Y-Dragon Head with glacial rampage!"

The massive ice monster moaned again and began to stomp forward, lifting a massive foot to crush the robot in a single step. Kaiba responded by pointing to his facedown card.

"I activate Negate Attack, stopping your monster and ending your battle phase," Kaiba announced, a barrier of energy flying over his field.

Frostosaurus slammed its foot down on the barrier, with little success. The shell held firm even under the titanic monster's weight, and the creature stumbled back with a third moan. Rex, still shaking from the cold, took another card from between his trembling fingers and set it onto his disk.

"O-O-One monster f-f-facedown…" Rex said as his teeth continued to chatter. "That's it."

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"Check the safeties, Rex is feeling the cold pretty bad in their," Mokuba ordered.

Sota typed a few commands into his keyboard, a series of numbers and readings appearing on his screen.

"All safeties and realty programs are normal, sir," he reported. "Then again, Frostosarus was never really tested in the arena at this late stage, so perhaps it really that cold in there."

"Mr. Kaiba doesn't seem to have a problem," Rei pointed out.

"That's because he's always wearing that jacket of his," Sota pointed out. "Plus, he's not standing right next to that walking glacier like Rex is. No wonder he's shaking like a leaf."

"Just keep on eye on them, no coffee breaks until this duel is over," Mokuba cautioned.

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Kaiba drew his card, bringing his hand to five. He plucked one of the cards from his hand, setting it down next to the first two.

"Now then, let's complete the set," Kaiba declared. "I summon Z-Metal Tank (1500/1300)."

The ground behind Kaiba began to crumble and fall away, leaving a large hole in the earth from which burst a yellow machine with tank treads. Its lone eye focused on Frostosaurus, and the chilly winds given off by the monster began to form a thin layer of ice on it.

"Now then, before I go any further, I'll activate Soul Absorption," Kaiba announced, sliding a card into his disk. "This grants me 500 life points for every card that's removed the game from now on."

A glowing ball of rainbow colored flames appeared on Kaiba's field, hovering in front of his deckmaster. It shimmered, slowly melting the ice beneath it, as Kaiser Sea Horse shouldered his spear and warmed his hands in front of the fire.

"Now then, I remove all three of my monsters from the game…" Kaiba vocalized.

"Oh no…" Rex groaned as the three machines shot into the air.

Y-Dragon Head disengaged its wings, allowing them to fall to the ground and become buried under the snow. It landed on top of Z-Metal Tank, settling between the treads, and X-Head Cannon forced itself onto the back of the red mechanism. Bursts of steam flew from the points of contact between the three monsters, and the now unified creature floated down to the ground. At the same time, three small fires colored blue, red, and yellow broke off from the mass of flame on Kaiba's field and floated into his body.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey, it's the Power Rangers!" Tim joked as he saw Kaiba's monster. "Go Go…"

"Please don't sing any more of that theme song," Victor begged, looking a bit drained. "Everyone I know does the same thing when they see that monster…"

Tim frowned, and looked at his feet.

"Another franchise I can't use down the tubes," Tim grumbled.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"…By removing those three, I summon my XYZ Dragon Cannon (2800/2600)!" Kaiba affirmed, brandishing two cards from his hand. "Now for each card I discard, I can destroy one card on your field. So I'll discard two of them to get rid of Frostosaurus and your facedown monster."

The XYZ machine charged energy within the cannons mounted on the part that was once X-Head Cannon. From each gun fired a burst of energy, the first of which ripped apart Rex's facedown monster. It appeared for a brief moment as a green stegosaurus with red plates on its back, which roared in pain as it burst apart.

In the meantime, a series of cracks spread across Frostosaurus's body from where the blast had struck it. It moaned for one final time before toppling over and shattering into a cloud of ice crystals which were blown away by a strong breeze. The temperature in the canyon began to return to normal, and Rex stopped shivering as the snow that was gathering on his body started to melt.

"Okay, Frostosaurus wasn't a good idea," Rex muttered under his breath.

"Now then, let me help warm you up a little," Kaiba offered as he pointed at Rex. "Attack with de-fission lasers! Maximum power!"

A searing blast of blue, red, and yellow plasma fired simultaneously from the guns mounted on the shoulders and inside the mouth and eye of the mighty machine. Rex screamed as the light energy converged on his body in a blinding flash of heat and pain. When it cleared away, no visible damage was left on his body.

"Oh that wasn't so…" Rex trailed off as his legs tightened up against his will.

He looked down and bit his lip to keep from screaming as his legs from roughly mid-thigh down turned hard and gray like the fossils around him. Watching his legs as they turned to rock only made the sensation more unpleasant, forcing Rex to turn his gaze back up to Kaiba.

"_It's all virtual, it's not real, don't panic…"_ Rex coached himself.

**Kaiba: 9300**

**Rex: 5200**

"And Rex takes a massive hit that costs him more than a quarter of his life points!" Roland shouted, clutching at his glasses in the wake of the attack.

The audience, now recovered from their brush with the Ice Age, began to cheer again, several members chanting Kaiba's name as he nodded to Rex.

"That ends my move." He decided.

Rex picked up a card from his deck and began to look over his options. He tapped his disk, opening up the field zone on the end of the tray, and slid a card into it.

"Okay Kaiba, I'll start by taking us even further back with my field spell," Rex announced as slow, dramatic music began to swell around the players, "I activate Jurassic World!"

The walls and columns of rock and fossils began to shift and sink back down into the floor. The music played louder, causing trees and ferns to sprout up from the ground along with a carpet of thick, green grass. The air became hot and muggy, and beautiful flowers unlike any seen by man sprouted from the ground around the arena. The massive fossils behind Rex and Kaiba vanished into the ground with their fellows, each of them replaced with a massive tree.

"I'm waiting to be impressed," Kaiba yawned.

"Well don't worry, I've got just the thing!" Rex shouted as he placed a card onto his tray. "Thanks to my deckmaster, this monster went from seven stars to four, so here's my Black Tyranno (2600/1800)!"

Gilasaurus tilted back its head and unleashed a strange cry that sounded much like a screech with several short yelps. The call was answered by heavy footsteps that caused the ground to shake. Several trees of to the side of the arena were bent aside as a Tyrannosaurus Rex covered in black scales and red scars smashed its way through. It stopped in front of Rex and began to take in its surroundings.

"And let's not forget that my field spell gives all dinos a boost of 300 attack and defense points," Rex pointed out.

Black Tyranno (2900/2100) roared triumphantly as it glared down at Kaiba's machine with a hungry look in its eyes…

"Black Tyrrano, it's lunch time!" Rex bellowed. "Tear open his tin can with Jurassic bite!"

The Dinosaur charged forward and brought its head down low. Several members of the audience let out calls of approval as Rex's monster proceeded to bite the top half from Kaiba's machine, scattering wires, sparks, and circuits in every direction. Kaiba didn't even flinch as what remained of the XYZ Dragon Cannon exploded right in front of him, searing him with hot air and leaving a smoking crater on the ground.

**Kaiba: 9200**

**Rex: 5200**

"Okay, that's all I want for this turn," Rex said, pointing to Kaiba. "Go ahead."

Kaiba drew his card and then held up the one that had remained in his hand after his last turn.

"I activate Card of Demise, letting me draw five cards now on the condition that I discard them all in five turns," Kaiba announced.

As he drew five cards, a whistling sound came from over Kaiba's head. He looked up just in time to see a boulder at least half his height stop about five feet over his head as it became entangled in the vines that hung from the trees around the field. He took another card from his hand and set it into his disk with a half-concerned, half-amused look at the boulder.

"I'll admit, the boulder is new, but that's important now," Kaiba observed. "I activate Emergency Provisions, letting me destroy my useless Soul Absorption to gain 1000 life points right now."

A small dinosaur, roughly the size of a chicken, covered in green scales poked its head out from behind a bush. It sprinted forward toward the ball of fire on Kaiba's field, and let out a curious chirp. The fire faded, leaving a large chunk of roasted meat which fell to the ground in front of the dino. It chirped happily, and immediately began to chow down on the gift, swallowing chunks that were almost the size of its head. In roughly thirty seconds it had eaten the entire thing, and it ran off back into the forest, leaving a cloud of sparkling dust which floated over Kaiba.

"Well, that's new too," Kaiba commented. "Note to self: give a large bonus to whoever programmed this field spell."

"Are you going to finish your move or admire your holograms all day?" Rex asked, stretching his arms. "I'm getting stiff over here you know."

Ignoring Rex, Kaiba took another card from his hand and set it onto his disk. In front of him appeared a facedown monster, and he sighed as he waved one hand.

"That's all, your move," Kaiba declared.

Above his hand, one of the vines holding the boulder snapped. Only four were left, causing the rock to shift down a bit in its containment.

**Kaiba: 10200**

**Rex: 5200**

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"Has Kaiba flipped?" Brian asked, staring at the field. "Doesn't he know what that Black Tyranno does?"

"I don't know what it does," Kevin said, looking confused. "What does it do?"

"There's an old saying around that monster," Espa explained as he pointed at it. "It goes 'When offense monsters you be lacking, Black Tyranno comes attacking...'"

"That doesn't sound so…" Kevin began.

"…Directly," Espa finished.

"Oh…" Kevin realized.

"Maybe Kaiba has lost it," Ronaldo nodded. "Or perhaps he has a strategy in mind. Maybe he desires to protect that facedown monster for some reason."

"Tribute bait," Celeste blurted out. "He doesn't want it destroyed, he wants to tribute it for something."

"Guess we'll find out soon enough," Brian said, his eyes on Rex as he drew.

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Rex was laughing as he drew his card, and he pointed directly at Kaiba with a twisted grin on his face.

"Do you have any idea how dumb that was?" he questioned. "Or didn't you know that when you only have defense position monsters on the field, my Black Tyranno can make a direct attack?"

Kaiba didn't answer. He just gave both Rex and his monster a cold glare. Rex's laughter caught in his throat, and he gritted his teeth together as he pointed at his opponent.

"I don't like that look Kaiba, you should look more scared," Rex warned.

"I never get scared," Kaiba said simply. "Why, are you afraid that you can't beat me? You're right you know…"

"Shut up!" Rex shouted.

"You were lucky to get this far…" Kaiba began.

"Black Tyranno, make him shut up!" Rex shouted, pointing at Kaiba. "Jurassic bite!"

Black Tyranno roared and began to charge forward, forcing Roland (Who had lowered to the ground with his column) to his knees as the ground beneath him shook.

"If Kaiba was trying to psyche Rex out, I'd say it backfired big time!" Roland shouted, bracing himself against the ground. "For once, I'm glad that I'm not Kaiba!"

Kaiba took a step back, a grimace on his face as the giant dinosaur brought its jaws down on him and picked him up in its huge maw! Rex let out a roar of his own as his monster picked Kaiba up, still hanging half out of his mouth, and shook its head back and forth a few times before spitting the young CEO back down to the forest floor. Kaiba landed in a crumpled heap, covered with dino-slobber with a thoroughly angered look on his face as he got back up.

Just as he found his footing again, Kaiba winced as he felt his feet and ankles turn to solid rock as his life points fell below eight-thousand once again

**Kaiba: 7300**

**Rex: 5200**

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

"Whoa, that was awesome!" Joey cheered, laughing as he watched Kaiba hit the ground. "Do it again Raptor!"

"Joey, calm down," Serenity pleaded as she uncovered her own eyes. "I don't I think I wanted see that at all, let alone again."

Joey blushed a bit and nodded to his sister.

"Yeah, sorry about that Serenity," Joey apologized.

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"Alright! That was a great shot Rex!" Mary cheered from the audience.

"So, Mary…Uh…You dueled Rex today, right?" Gold asked.

"Yeah," Mary responded, nodding to her father.

"That's all, right. He didn't…" Gold began.

"Dad!" Mary shouted, looking scandalized.

"Don't forget Julius, I'm the one with custody," Ruby reminded her ex-husband. "But seriously Mary, all you two did was duel, right?"

"Mom, not you too!" Mary gasped, a shocked look painting her expression.

Zeffie, watching all this, tilted her head in a confused manner.

"_Grown ups are weird,"_ she thought.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Rex was laughing triumphantly as his monster returned to him, still licking its chops after biting down on Kaiba.

"Still think I'm afraid?" Rex challenged. "Nothing scares me!"

"We'll see about that, are you done?" Kaiba queried.

Rex just nodded his head, and Kaiba drew his card.

"Now then, I'll tribute my facedown Saggi the Dark Clown (600/1500)," Kaiba intoned.

Kaiba's facedown card transformed into a clown in loud clothing with white make-up spread across its face. It laughed insanely as it faded away, and Kaiba's deckmaster began to pulse with yellow light.

"Now, thanks to my deckmaster, I can summon any creatures of light I choose for one less sacrifice than I usually need," Kaiba explained, slapping down another card. "So come forth my Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"

"WHAT!" Rex shouted, his eyes going wide.

A roar echoed through the jungle, and from behind the tree that Kaiba stood before burst the glorious, silver dragon. It landed before Kaiba, growling at the opposing monster with a glare of hatred in its cobalt eyes.

"You wanted me to attack directly!" Rex realized.

"Oh, did you figure that out yourself?" Kaiba taunted. "Let me remind you that you aren't worth my time. I'm finishing this duel as fast as possible. Blue-Eyes, white lightning attack!"

The dragon reared back its head, charging energy between its massive jaws. Rex and his monster both took a step backwards, fear showing in their eyes. The head of the dragon snapped forward, unleashing its payload of surging power which struck Black Tyranno right in the chest. The dino roared in pain as it was blasted into fragments of scale and bone in an instant, all of which faded from the field along with a bit more feeling from Rex's legs as the stone curse worked its way up his body.

**Kaiba: 7300**

**Rex: 5100**

"It's your turn…" Kaiba grinned as another of the vines above him snapped, leaving three to support the boulder.

Rex felt his whole body tremble as he drew, almost dropping his cards in the process.

"One monster facedown…" Rex stammered out, sliding a card onto his tray. "That's all I can do."

In front of Rex appeared the hidden monster, and Kaiba drew his card. Blue-Eyes cast its gaze on the hidden monster, looking almost insulted at the idea of it standing in its way.

"Blue-Eyes, decimate his pathetic monster with white lightning!" Kaiba commanded.

The dragon didn't hesitate for a second. It charged up its breath weapon and fired it off within the span of fifteen seconds, revealing a small dinosaur covered with blue scales and green stripes. The terrified dino huddled down with its tail between its legs just before the blast of energy struck home and wiped away any sign of its existence.

"Trakodon (1600/1100)? If that's the best you can do then your monsters won't last long enough to become fossils," Kaiba teased. "But go ahead and make your move…"

The third of the vines snapped away, causing the boulder to drop that much closer to Kaiba's head. He didn't pay any attention to the giant rock though, he only watched with an amused look as Rex drew his newest card.

"I'm not out of this yet, but your dragon has had it!" Rex called out, holding up the card he had just drawn. "I activate Smashing Ground, destroying the monster on your field that has the highest defense!"

Kaiba's eyes went wide as the ground began to tremble. Blue-Eyes roared as the clouds overhead parted, and from them burst a massive meteorite which crashed into the creature. It roared in pain as the heat of the falling stone began to scorch its scales, and the dragon shattered to pieces.

"And Rex takes out one of Kaiba's strongest monsters! Unbelievable!" Roland gasped, the audience calling out their approvals and detractions in response.

"I'm not done. I summon Sabersaurus (1900/500)," Rex announced, holding up another card.

The ground shook once more, and several of the trees gyrated as a red triceratops with steel horns, sharpened into blades, trampled its way to Rex's side. It stopped where it was, and knelt down to munch on the grass that had grown from the ground, looking very pleased with the battle arena (2200/800).

"Attack Kaiba's life points directly with saber charge!" Rex roared.

The dinosaur let out a bellow of rage, dropping its mouthful of grass, and charged straight ahead, lowering its head as it did so. Kaiba gasped as he was lifted up on the horns of the monster, the protrusions piercing through his skin and clothes before the creature shook its head and tossed him back to the floor. Kaiba got back to his feet with a grimace as he felt more of his body transform into rock.

**Kaiba: 5100**

**Rex: 5100**

"Take your turn Kaiba, you won't beat me that easily!" Rex laughed.

Kaiba drew, not paying attention to Rex's taunt, and slid a card onto his disk. A monster appeared facedown in front of him.

"One facedown monster, and I'll lay three cards facedown," Kaiba decided as three more cards appeared behind his first one. "That's it."

Above him, the boulder sank even further, now held by only a single vine. Rex smiled as it swayed dangerously close to his opponent's head.

"Feeling the pressure Kaiba? I'm about to press it down even harder," Rex threatened. "I summon Hyper Hammerhead (1500/1200)!"

The ground split apart, and from the crack burst a yellow dinosaur with a long tail. It spun around showing off its head which, as the name suggested, was shaped much like a hammer. The dino let out a strange barking noise as it took in its surroundings (1800/1500).

"Now then, down to business. You probably just want to save those facedown cards so you won't lose them to your Card of Demise," Rex reasoned, jabbing a finger toward Kaiba's facedown monster. "I bet they'll never stop my attack. Sabersaurus, go!"

The red dino stomped its feet on the ground, preparing to charge, when Kaiba's facedown monster turned itself over. A golden oil lamp on four thin legs rose up from the card, shimmering with a strange light.

"Allow me to present my Ancient Lamp (900/1400)," Kaiba introduced. "It takes the attack of your monster and redirects it to any other target I choose…Even if it's one of your cards. Sabersaurus, obey my commands and attack Hyper Hammerhead!"

Sabersaurus growled and spun ninety-degrees toward the monster next to it. Hyper Hammerhead gave a cry of surprise as his former comrade suddenly charged right at him and speared him upon the horn protruding from his nose. Hyper Hammerhead gave a weak cry and shattered to bits, Rex sneering as he saw this.

"Fine, my monster's effect only bounces enemies so Sabersaurus stays put," Rex declared, his monster shaking its head and looking around with a confused expression. "I'll lay this card facedown and that'll end my turn."

Kaiba drew, the vine overhead giving a warning creak as he looked over his hand.

"I tribute my Ancient Lamp now, to summon Luster Dragon #2 (2400/1400)," Kaiba spoke out as he switched the card on his disk for one from his hand.

The lamp faded away, replaced by a massive sharp of pure emerald. The crystal cracked, and then shattered to bits releasing a dragon that stood almost as tall as the Blue-Eyes had. This one was covered with glittering green scales and chunks of emerald adhered to its legs.

"Now my dragon, attack his monster with emerald flames!" Kaiba barked.

The dragon obeyed, opening its mouth and releasing a torrent of green fire. The flames washed over Sabersaurus, which roared in anguish as it vanished into smoke and ash. Rex pointed to his facedown card, and it flipped over to reveal the image of a jungle in the midst of a massive earthquake.

"Nice move, by destroying my monster you set off my Seismic Shockwave trap card," Rex grinned.

The ground began to shake once more, rolling violently underneath the feet of the duelists. Roland struggled to stay upright as trees around them began to buckle and fall under the stress. Two large holes opened up on Kaiba's field, one on either side of his facedown cards, while next to Rex a crack appeared in the ground and began to grow wider.

"This trap is a little complicated, so let me explain," Rex offered, "It activates when you destroy a Dinosaur of mine. Then it renders up to three of your spell and trap zones unusable for three turns. After that, you get your spell and trap zones back, and I get a Dinosaur from my graveyard to come back to my hand."

"Like I care," Kaiba responded, waving one arm. "I end my turn…"

"And thanks to your spell, you lose your hand!" Rex cheered.

The final vine snapped, releasing its payload. Kaiba let out a shout of pain and surprise as the boulder slammed down on him and sent his last three cards scattering in every direction. Rex watched in interest as Kaiba's Gadget Soldier, his second Blue-Eyes, and Flute of Summoning Dragons floated away into their master's grave. The rock faded away, and Kaiba picked himself up, dusting off his jacket as he did so.

Rex just smirked as he drew his card. Next to him, the hole widened a bit as the ground trembled with an aftershock from the first quake.

"Let's see…Well this works," he said with a condescending tone. "I summon my Dark Driceratops (2400/1500)!"

A screech rang out, and from above fell the massive bird-dinosaur hybrid. It flapped its feathery wings and clicked its beak in an angered manner as the jungle around it boosted its strength to (2700/1800).

"Now my fine feathered friend, attack his dragon with…" Rex began.

"I hate to interrupt, but no," Kaiba argued, tapping his disk. "I activate Zero Gravity, forcing all monsters on the field to change their battle positions right now!"

The trap lifted, and a pulse of green energy flew outward. Both monsters on the field were flung into the air with roars of surprise. They attempted to right themselves using their wings, and just managed to get themselves upright as the natural laws of physics reinstated themselves and both monsters landed in defense mode with a pair of heavy crashes.

"Shoot…I set one card facedown and end my turn," Rex grumbled, another card appearing before him.

"Very well," Kaiba said as he drew. "I'll start this turn with my facedown Pot of Greed."

The second of Kaiba's cards flipped over, revealing the giggling pottery. It smashed into pieces as Kaiba took his extra draws, bringing his hand to three cards.

"Now I summon my Luster Dragon (1900/1600) in attack mode," Kaiba went on, a blue shard of rock bursting from the jungle floor.

The rock fell away, leaving behind a dragon much smaller than Luster Dragon #2. It looked toward its older counterpart and let out a friendly growl as Kaiba turned a card on his duel tray.

"Next I'll move Luster Dragon #2 back to attack mode," Kaiba continued as the green dragon rose back to his full height and spread his wings. "And then I activate my final facedown card: Dragon's Rage!"

The last of the cards Kaiba had placed down lifted up, and the eyes of both his dragons began to glow red. The Luster Dragon pair let out angered roars toward Rex, who braced himself against a wave of noise and dragon breath.

"This trap grants all Dragon monsters the power to damage your life points even if they battle a monster that's in defense mode," Kaiba explained. "And that's what's about to happen! Luster Dragon #2, emerald flame attack!"

The larger of the two dragons released a monstrous gout of green fire from its maw. Dark Driceratops screeched in pain as the flames struck it and it vanished into a burst of digital input. Rex cried out as the remainder of the flames splashed over him, turning more of his body to solid granite.

"Luster Dragon, sapphire fire burst!" Kaiba ordered with a grin.

The smaller dragon opened its mouth to fire off its blue flames…

"Guess again shrimp! I activate Fossil Excavation!" Rex shouted at the dragon, his own facedown card turning over for a change.

From the trap emerged four clay dolls, each one a different color (green, yellow, red, and blue). Each one wore a helmet and carried a pick axe which they hefted over their shoulders. The red doll looked over to Rex, who took the last card from his hand and moved it into his graveyard. The red figure then waved one hand forward, and all four began to dig into the ground, vanishing into a large hole in only minutes.

"With this trap, I need to give up one card from my hand," Rex instructed. "But it's worth it to bring back a Dinosaur from my graveyard…"

A roar echoed from down in the hole, followed by a series of loud crunching noises.

"Rise again my Black Tyranno (2600/1800)!" Rex called out.

The ground trembled, forcing Luster Dragon to back away as from the hole burst the pitch-black carnivore. It let out a terrible growl, bits of red, yellow, green, and blue clay raining from between its teeth as the magic of Jurassic World came over it (2900/2100).

"Black Tyranno is back folks!" Roland announced, taking a step away from the still hungry dino. "I would not want to be in his way!"

"That's all for my turn…" Kaiba grimaced.

**Kaiba: 5100**

**Rex: 4500**

Rex picked up his card, the hole growing wider as he did so. A muffled snarl could be heard from the hole, and Rex looked to it with a satisfied smirk.

"Just one more turn, till then it's dino-feeding time!" Rex shouted. "Black Tyranno, eat up his Luster Dragon!"

The massive meat-eater charged forward and scooped up the blue-scaled dragon in its jaws. It brought its teeth together with a loud crunch, and Luster Dragon vanished in an instant. Kaiba winced as he watched what remained of his legs turn to stone, stopping just below his waist.

"That's all from me, go on," Rex commanded, pointing at Kaiba.

**Kaiba: 4100**

**Rex: 4500**

Kaiba scowled at his bossy opponent, but drew his card. He gave a grumble of frustration before turning the monster on his disk once again. Luster Dragon #2 crouched low to the ground, bringing its wings in closer to its body.

"I move my dragon to defense mode, and set one more monster facedown," Kaiba declared, a brown card appearing alongside the dragon. "That's all I can do."

"Great, then here comes my dino!" Rex shouted in jubilation.

The hole next to Rex grew wider still as he drew his card. From the hole emerged another card which floated into the duelist's hand. He smiled as he immediately slapped the card onto his disk, and Dark Driceratops (2400/1500) burst forth from the hole. The opening slammed itself shut, as did the holes in Kaiba's spell and trap zone. Dark Driceratops and Black Tyranno looked at one another and nodded as the former adjusted its attack score (2700/1800).

"Time to go prehistoric on your life points," Rex announced. "Black Tyranno, get his dragon with Jurassic bite!"

The carnivore roared once more and charged forward, grabbing the emerald dragon's neck between its jaws. The audience screamed as the dino brought its teeth together, separating the poor beast's head from its body before both parts vanished.

"And I shouldn't need to remind you that Dark Driceratops can do the same thing your dragons do when Dragon's Rage is on the field," Rex taunted. "Attack his facedown monster with opteryx assault!"

The winged giant leapt into the air and hovered on its feathery limbs until it was directly over the facedown monster. From under the card peeked a clown in bright clothes and a feathered hat, which let out a nervous gulp as two tons of Triassic terror plunged down on top of it. The dino landed right on top of the unfortunate clown, which laughed weakly as its hat flew into the air as it burst apart.

"When Peten the Dark Clown (500/1200) goes to the graveyard, I can remove him from play to summon another to the field," Kaiba elucidated, taking the card and putting it into his pocket.

From the hat that had been blown aside sprouted the clown again, laughing as he landed on the field in a crouching position. Dark Driceratops lumbered back to his controller, and Rex smiled as he watched more of Kaiba's body turn to stone.

"You're just giving me more targets, Kaiba," Rex pointed out. "Just be glad that Fossil Excavation erases the effects of my Black Tyanno, or I could have just blown away your Dragon's Rage and gone in directly."

**Kaiba: 2600**

**Rex: 4500**

"Go on," Rex challenged.

Kaiba added his third card to his hand. A victorious look appeared in his eyes as he placed the card into his disk.

"I activate Soul Exchange, letting me tribute one of your monsters in place of one of mine!" He called out. "And thanks to my deckmaster one is all I need. I summon none other than my final Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500) by using your Black Tyranno!"

Rex gasped and stumbled back as a vortex of silver light flew around his monster. Kaiser Sea Horse tapped his spear on the ground, and Black Tyranno gave one last roar before disappearing. On Kaiba's field, the silver light gathered and intensified into the form of his giant dragon, roaring its victory cry to the heavens.

"Fortunately for you, I can't attack this turn due to my spell," Kaiba smiled. "You have one turn before my dragon tramples all over you. Use it wisely…"

"_Oh crud…"_ Rex fretted to himself as he drew his card.

"I…Shift my Dark Driceratops to defense mode…" Rex stammered out, his feathery monster falling closer to the ground and folding its wings. "That's all from me…"

Kaiba chuckled as he drew his card, a look of malice in his eyes now.

"You panicked Raptor. You forgot all about the card I have on the field," Kaiba taunted.

"What are you…" Rex started to ask, before noticing the trap in front of Kaiba. "Oh no…Your Dragon's Rage!"

"That's right, it's still in play," Kaiba shouted. "Now to shut you down! I summon La Jinn, the Mystical Genie of the Lamp (1800/1000)!"

A cloud of green smoke rose up next to Kaiba, transforming into the evil genie floating on his cloudy legs. He chortled as he turned his gaze upon Rex, who stumbled back in fear.

"And next, I'll switch Peten the Dark Clown to attack mode," Kaiba went on, the clown standing up and taking a dramatic bow to the cheering audience. "Now my Blue-Eyes, destroy his dinosaur with white lightning!"

The dragon opened up its mouth, releasing its devastating beam of energy which plowed clean through Dark Driceratops and into Rex! The young man screamed as the pain splashed over his body, deadening greatly as more of his form turned to solid rock.

"_At least turning into a fossil means I don't feel the blows as hard…"_ Rex realized as Kaiba's other monster moved in.

"La Jinn, attack with disastrous desires!" Kaiba went on.

The genie nodded and pointed at Rex, a spark of energy flying from his finger tip. Rex stumbled back, the stone curse affecting the area up to his chest now, rubbing at his stomach as though he'd been struck by a bullet.

"Peten, macabre humor!" Kaiba finished.

The clown spun around with a laugh, vanishing into thin air. He reappeared behind Rex, clutching a dagger in his hand, and smiled as he drove the blade into his target's back. Much to Peten and Rex's surprise though, the blade snapped in half and clattered the ground. Curious, Rex ran a hand across the small of his back and shuddered as he felt nothing but cold stone. He shuddered even more as he felt his shoulders begin to stiffen up.

"That's all that I'll do for now," Kaiba broadcasted. "Next turn, it's over."

**Kaiba: 2600**

**Rex: 1000**

Rex drew his card, grunting as he struggled with his rocky joints. He managed to slide the card into his disk, and breathed a sigh of relief as it appeared facedown.

"One facedown card, that's all," Rex said decisively.

"Looks like it's all over for Rex," Roland observed, pointing toward Kaiba. "He's completely at Kaiba's mercy!"

Many members of the audience simultaneously thought, _"He's doomed."_

Kaiba drew his card with a maniacal grin. He looked at the spell in his hand, then toward Rex's facedown card.

"Hmm…While I doubt an amateur like you could have a card in his hand that could threaten me, I'd rather not take chances," Kaiba said. "I activate Confiscation, paying 1000 life points to look at your hand and make you discard one card."

Next to Rex appeared a soldier in full battle armor. He roughly grabbed Rex by the wrist and turned his hand so that Kaiba could see the cards. They were Raise Body Heat, Ultra Evolution Pill, A second Jurassic World, and Ultimate Tyranno.

"Well this is an obvious choice," Kaiba shrugged. "Drop your Ultimate Tyranno, now."

The soldier grabbed the card from Rex's hand and shoved it into his graveyard. He then released the duelist and faded away as Kaiba's life points took a short dip.

"Now my Blue-Eyes, finish him!" Kaiba commanded.

The dragon unleashed its roar again and leaned back, snapping its neck forward to release its devastating payload. The audience gasped as the attack closed in…

Rex smirked, tapping his disk and moving his hand next to his graveyard…

The energy blast struck Rex full-on, and the sound of his life point counter adjusting could barely be heard over the roar of the audience.

"And this duel is done!" Roland shouted.

"Wrong again Roland!" Rex's voice called out as the energy from the dragon faded.

Rex was still standing, smiling as he shoved a thin stack of cards into his pocket. His body had actually become less statue-like, and his life point counter displayed **LP 2400**. On his field had risen a trap card with the image of several dinosaurs taking shelter as fire rained from above.

"I set off my Survival Instinct trap card, which lets me remove as many Dinosaurs from my graveyard as I want and gain 400 life points for each one," Rex explained to the open-mouth Kaiba. "And thanks to your Confiscation card, that's eleven. So I removed them all for 4400 extra points."

"And a lucky turn of events keeps Rex Raptor in the game!" Roland gasped. "Will his luck holdout long enough for a victory?"

Kaiba gritted his teeth together and pointed at Rex.

"Peten! La Jinn! Attack!" he barked.

The genie and the clown both waved their hands, sending a wave of dark energy toward Rex. He stumbled back as the shadowy blast washed over him, and his body petrified further than it had before. Soon he was only capable of moving his arms and face, and with quite a bit of difficulty at that. Still, he summoned the strength to smirk at Kaiba.

**Kaiba: 1600**

**Rex: 100**

Kaiba cleared his throat and slid his last card into his disk, attempting to recover his composure.

"End turn," he stated simply.

Rex drew with much more groaning than last time, but a smile stayed stuck to his lips as he saw his new card.

"Okay, now I'm gonna smash you with a monster that's even stronger than your dragon," Rex threatened.

"Oh, I'm shaking. Bring it if you can Raptor," Kaiba challenged.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," Rex growled as he managed to drop the monster into place on his tray. "I summon Tyranno Infinity (?/0)!"

The ground rocked violently as from the trees burst yet another T-Rex. This one sported horns on the top of its head for some reason, along with scales that shimmered with an iridescent hue. Several blue fireballs floated up around it, slowly fading into its body as it leered down at Kaiba's monsters.

"Now then, for every Dinosaur-type monster that I've removed from the game, this bad boy gets 1000 attack points," Rex declared. "And in addition to the eleven I just removed, I lost one at the start of the game thanks to my deckmaster. That's twelve in all, plus my field spell…"

Up in the audience, Kevin choked as he gulped in fear. Kaiba's eyes went wide as Tyranno Infinity released a powerful bellow that blew the tree behind Kaiba into a pile of splinters! (12300/300)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

"What is that thing's attack score?" Victor shouted, staring at the screen.

"It's over TWELVE-THOUSAND!" Tim shouted, clenching a fist.

"Didn't you already use that joke?" Yugi asked.

"Yeah, but I'm running out of material," Tim admitted.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ronaldo was thumping Kevin on the back as he coughed, while the other three stared at rex's monster.

"That thing…Is almost twice as strong as my Great Maju Garzett was when I beat you, Celeste," Brian choked out.

"Yeah…Rex just smashed your record," Celeste nodded.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"No way can Kaiba get out of that," Joey said, shaking his head. "That thing could beat an Egyptian God Monster!"

"Looks like it won't have to," John pointed out.

"Well, I didn't see this coming," Bakura stated.

"_That makes two of us…"_ the ring spirit chimed in.

"_Weren't you asleep?"_ Bakura wondered, turning his thoughts towards his mind's unwelcome guest.

"_Could you sleep through this racket?"_ challenged the dark soul. _"Besides, this is getting interesting."_

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back on the field, Rex was breathing hard due to sheer excitement and the fact that it was tiring holding up his rocky body.

"Tyranno Infinity…Attack his dragon with unending rage!" Rex managed to cry out.

The dinosaur unleashed another bellow, this one filled with the anger of its fallen comrades. The onslaught of prehistoric power rippled the air as it sailed toward Kaiba's monster, only to be stopped cold by an invisible barrier that flew up around Kaiba's field.

"If one Negate Attack helps, then why shouldn't two?" Kaiba asked as he held up the trap. "That's one attack that won't finish me."

"End turn…" Rex wheezed out.

Kaiba drew, now beginning to feel the pull of his own stiffened body, and he reluctantly shifted all three of the monsters on his disk. La Jinn crossed his arms in front of himself, as did Peten. Blue-Eyes fell to all fours and brought down its wings with a low snarl.

"I move all my monsters to defense mode. End turn," Kaiba grimaced.

Rex drew once again, and placed the card onto his disk.

"I summon Two-Headed King Rex (1600/1200)," Rex stated, placing the card down.

Next to his Tyranno Infinity rose the giant purple dinosaur, with two heads and a pair of leathery wings. Both heads nodded to the stronger dino on the field, even as the power of Jurassic World coursed through its veins (1900/1500).

"Tyranno Infinity, get the Blue-Eyes…" Rex gasped. "King Rex, destroy La Jinn!"

The horned rex unleashed its roar again, the waves of sound from its voice ripping Kaiba's favorite dragon to pieces and scattering them across the field. Two-Headed King Rex lunged forward grabbing La Jinn in one of its mouths and swallowing the genie whole.

"That's all…" Rex said, stopping to catch his breath again.

Kaiba drew his card, and set it into his disk with a half-hearted smirk.

"This card facedown, and that's all," he announced. "Come and get me."

As Rex drew, he looked at the facedown card with an angered glare.

"_Must be his Crush Card Virus. It's the only thing that could save him now,"_ Rex thought to himself. _"And if he thinks that I'm dumb enough to attack then he has another thing…"_

"I activate Crush Card Virus!" Kaiba shouted, jamming his finger on the disk's button and turning the facedown card over to reveal a filthy red spore on it.

"What!" Rex shouted, breathlessly. "But how…I didn't attack!"

"You didn't need to Rex. In the last few months, Pegasus released a new version of the Crush Card, one that let's me sacrifice a monster to use it instead of waiting for you to attack," Kaiba smiled. "The good news is, it only affects monsters on the field and in your hand, and your next three draws, so your deck is safe. The bad news is that all monsters on your field are vulnerable to it right now, so I use Peten as the carrier!"

Peten nodded and took a deep breath. He blew into his thumb, and his body slowly began to inflate like a balloon. He bloated up bigger and bigger, until he finally burst into a cloud of red particles which spread across the field. Both of Rex's dinosaurs fell over within seconds, gasping as they succumbed to the vicious plague and shattering to pixels as they did. Kaiba removed the Peten he had just lost from his graveyard, and the third Peten rose fell from above and landed in a perfect handstand before moving down into a defensive crouch (500/1200).

At the same time, the cloud of viruses floated over Rex's hand, reducing the Granadora he had just drawn into a puddle of slime that slithered into his graveyard. The audience was going nuts as Rex stared blankly at the useless spells that made up his hand.

"Mr. Raptor, it's still your turn…" Roland called out over the audience's cheers.

Rex remained silent, and Roland nodded.

"I'm taking his silence as a sign that he passes the remainder of his turn, so feel free to make your move Mr. Kaiba," Roland judged.

Rex looked up weakly as Kaiba drew his card and gave it a smirk.

"Well, I could just move Peten to attack mode and finish you, but I have a better idea," Kaiba decided, holding up the spell he had drawn. "You seemed to think it would be fun to finish me with a high powered monster, so I'll let you lose to one. I activate Dragon's Mirror!"

A shiny mirror with a framework that looked like a curled up dragon appeared next to Kaiba, who removed three cards from his graveyard.

"Using this spell, I can summon any Dragon-type fusion monster by removing the components from my graveyard," Kaiba explained, turning the cards around. "Guess what I'm summoning…"

Rex let out a frightened squeak as he saw Kaiba's three Blue-Eyes White Dragon vanish into the mirror. The reflective surface began to crack as a silver portal opened overhead. The mirror shattered apart, and from the portal burst a massive dragon, covered in silver scales, with three terrible heads, all of which had their gaze on Rex.

"Behold my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500/3800)!" Kaiba shouted. "Now you disappear! Neutron blast!"

All three heads of the massive beast released a burst of pure power. Rex's shoulders slumped in defeat as he turned his gaze down and away from his inevitable loss.

The attack washed over Rex, much to the delight of the spectators. The trees and grass of Jurassic World were burnt away, leaving a statue of Rex standing in the midst of a scorched wasteland.

"Guess we know how the dinos went extinct now! Seto Kaiba wins!" Roland shouted as his employer's body reverted to normal.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rei's computer screen suddenly began to flash with another red warning light, and her fingers flew over the keyboard.

"No…Not again…" She moaned, struggling to find what had gone wrong.

"What's wrong now?" Mokuba shouted.

"It's the safety mechanism again…It shut down just as the duel was ending and the alarms didn't catch it until just now!" Rei called back frantically. "This worse than Noah's…Rex is going into shock, we need to eject him _now!"_

Striking a series of keystrokes, Rei crossed her fingers as the Rex statue faded away. She got to her feet, along with Mokuba who had his gaze on her.

"For your own sake, and Rex's, he'd better be okay…" Mokuba warned as they ran from the control room.

Watching them leave, Sota turned to his own computer as Kaiba vanished from the big screen.

"What is up with the system, it shouldn't malfunction like this," he wondered. "We ran at least a thousand tests without one glitch, and now everything seems to go to Hell in a hand basket?"

"It's weird…I wonder though..." Jackson said, rubbing his chin. "Both times this happened; it was during one of Mr. Kaiba's duels…"

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In the chamber within the Domino City Kaiba Dome in Kaibaland, Rei and Mokuba entered to find an employee tending to Rex who was on the floor next to the virtual pod as he coughed and gasped for breath.

"Ugh…What…" Rex moaned weakly.

"Don't try to talk," the employee warned. "Help is on the way, just take deep breaths…"

Mokuba glared at Rei, who was shaking with fear for, not only Rex, but her career.

"I swear sir, this will not happen to your brother…" she started.

"Rei, it's normally Kaiba Corp policy to have no tolerance for mistakes," Mokuba warned. "But all the warnings so far seemed to go off too late for anything to be done. I'm going to give you one last chance: For the rest of the finals, you yourself are to watch for _any_ sign that the system is anything less than one-hundred percent safe."

"Yes…Yes sir," Rei stammered as two emergency medical technicians ran into the room with a stretcher.

Both Mokuba and Rei watched as Rex was loaded onto the stretcher and carried out of the room.

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In the Virtual Arena, Mary looked around with a slightly disappointed sigh.

"_I was kind of hoping Rex would land here…"_ she thought.

_**The quarter-finals are finally over!**_

_**Now onto the semi-finals!**_

_**Only four duelists remain, and only one will come out on top!**_

_**And next time, it's a battle of family honor as Tim takes on Yugi.**_

_**Will he succeed where his brother failed?**_

_**Find out in**_

_**Overheat**_

_**Be there, or else!**_

---

Original Deckmaster

---

Gilasaurus

Dinosaur

EARTH

Three star

1400 attack

400 defense

Rapid Evolution: At the start of the duel, look at the top of card of your deck. If it is a spell, trap, or any monster other than a Dinosaur-type, place it on the bottom of your deck. If it is a Dinosaur-type monster, remove it from the game. For the remainder of the duel, all Dinosaur-type monsters in your deck, hand, and on your field have their star level lowered by an amount equal to the star level of the removed monster (To a minimum of 1).


	37. Overheat

A/N: Hope you can forgive us for updating so late everyone! Things got a little busy between college finals, work, and a minor computer issue with our beta reader so that's why this chapter is so late. Well, like the old saying goes, good things come to those who wait, so for all of you that have stuck around to read our story, enjoy! We'll try to get the next chapter up in a more timely manner.

_**The quarter finals have reached their conclusion folks…**_

_**But this tournament is still on! We're down to our final four, and the hits will just keep on coming!**_

_**In our upcoming match, Yugi Mutoh will be fighting once again to defend his right to be called King of Games…**_

_**Against an opponent who witnessed his brother fall at Yugi's hands: Tim Hokage!**_

_**Can Yugi stand the heat? Better question, can he stand all the bad jokes?  
**_

_**Let's light this candle and find out!**_

Overheat

Weevil Underwood had a confused look on his face as his eyes wandered the arena's audience.

"Now just where did that Jurassic jerk land? I want to give him a piece of my mind for humiliating me like that," Weevil wondered out loud.

Mako Tsunami sighed in frustration. Sitting near Weevil was beginning to wear on his nerves, and even watching the impressive matches for the quarter finals hadn't helped to ease the tension any.

"It's a big stadium, he's probably too far away for us to spot him," Mako said, hoping to quiet Weevil down. "For all we know, he could be clear on the other side of the audience."

Coincidentally, the other side of the arena was currently occupied by another duelist who was curious as to where Rex was.

"I don't see him anywhere…" Mary said, stretching up on her toes as she tried to get a better look around.

"Oh don't worry Mary-girl, I'm sure that Mr. Raptor is just resting off that last attack," Pegasus chimed in. "Being hit by 4500 points worth of damage can sting quite a bit."

"You're telling me…" Ruby muttered, looking toward Mr. Gold.

"Oh yeah…Heh, heh…Sorry about that," Gold apologized.

On the arena floor, Roland was receiving the report on what had happened to Rex and Noah. He nodded his head, and carefully tapped the earpiece…

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Up the VIP booth, Kaiba tilted his head as a voice sounded in his mind.

"_Mr. Kaiba, this is Roland,"_ The commentator's voice intoned, _"We have an issue. It seems that Noah and Rex were severely injured after dueling you and had to be logged out…"_

"_Is that a fact? Well I can't say that I blame them with the level of realism the finals were given,"_ Kaiba responded in his head.

"_This is serious sir. Noah won't raise a fuss, but what about Rex?"_ Roland asked.

"_If he tries to make a case out of it, we'll just offer to pay the medical expenses and…"_ Kaiba began.

"_Buy his silence sir? I've no complaints about that but if the finalists are being injured perhaps we should…"_ Roland interrupted.

"_If you're about to suggest we stop the tournament, reconsider,"_ Kaiba warned. _"I presume that measures are being taken to ensure against any more incidents."_

"…_Yes sir, they are,"_ Roland admitted. _"Well, you're the boss. We'll continue as scheduled."_

"_Good,"_ Kaiba thought with a smirk.

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Back on the arena floor, spotlights began to dance around and fireworks exploded up near the ceiling. The audience cheered as Roland held four fingers up to the sky.

"Only four duelists remain everyone! That means its time for us to move on to the semi-finals!" Roland shouted, the audience's volume increasing. "So who will step up in our next match?"

On the big screen above Roland appeared four pictures, one of each of the remaining finalists. Each picture took up one-quarter of the screen, and they began to rotate around the display, trading corners at lightning speed.

"Seeing as we're down to our top four, the semi-final duelists will be paired-off simultaneously," Roland explained as the pictures whizzed overhead. "The two duelists on the top half of the screen will face-off first, and the pictures will stop as soon as you all shout for it! Let us hear it!"

"STOP!" The audience roared as one, the pictures slowing down.

With a buzz, they came to a halt. On the top of the screen sat Yugi's picture right next to the photo of Tim Hokage. The audience began to cheer again as the five-minute timer appeared on the screen.

"Then here it is! Yugi Mutoh vs. Tim Hokage!" Roland shouted. "You two get five minutes, then you're coming down here to beat the snot out of each other!"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Aw crap…" Tim grumbled. "Why can't I duel Kaiba again? I have a fighting chance against him…"

Kaiba shot Tim an icy glare, and the fire duelist shivered as his deck menu opened up.

"Uh…Never mind," He shuddered, looking over his cards. "Yugi is good too."

Yugi scanned across his options, stopping occasionally to muse over a card or two.

"_What are the odds? First Brian, then Tim,"_ Yugi thought.

"_At least Tim doesn't seem angered over his brother's defeat,"_ Yami observed, looking over to the teen as he shifted a few cards around.

"_I didn't think he would be. I heard him and Brian talking before about me. I get the feeling he expected Brian to lose,"_ Yugi thought.

"So, do you have some plan like Brian did?" Victor asked Tim.

"Is 'Do as much damage as humanly possible' a plan?" Tim responded. "Because if it isn't, I've got nothing."

"You're dueling Yugi without a plan?" Victor sounded amazed, his eyebrows arching.

"It's not like having a plan helped Brian any," Tim pointed out as he closed his deck list. "I mean, he's Yugi Mutoh. How do I beat someone like that?"

"Let's get it on!" Roland shouted as Tim and Yugi both vanished before Victor could come up with an answer.

"I guess we're about to find out," Kaiba smirked.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Down in the arena, Roland was lifted upward as a metal platform burst out of the ground. Below him, the floor fell away to reveal two cauldrons filled with boiling, green liquid, each with noxious vapors spewing from the surface. The walls of the arena transformed to cold granite and the lights dimmed so the whole place had the feel of a cold dungeon.

"Double, double, toil and trouble…" Roland chanted, raising his arms. "I always wanted to say that. Welcome to our Deadly Dungeon arena, where the torture devices are always ready and waiting! And today, our competitors will be dealing with our special brew down there, and it's no sports drink."

From the ceiling lowered two grates, each one suspended by four chains. Tim was riding on one of the grates, while Yugi occupied the other. The audience began cheering again as the two of them took in their surroundings.

"I'll get right to the punch-line for this area. As the duelists lose life points, they'll be lowered toward our magical potion down below," Roland announced, drawing Tim and Yugi's attention to the boiling liquid. "Just what that mixture is supposed to do, I'll leave to your imaginations. Suffice it to say you won't enjoy it."

"Who makes these places?" Tim asked, staring at the cauldron. "And why do I smell Brian's cooking?"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay, that was low even for Tim," Brian frowned, his gaze locked on his brother. "I wonder how long he'll last…"

"We'd better just hope Yugi wins this. If Tim beats him, we'll never be able to live it down," Celeste realized.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, nothing more needs to be said other than: You two are semi-finalists, so you'd better duel like it!" Roland barked. "Now choose your deckmasters!"

Yugi nodded as he pointed to the empty section of grate next to him.

"Okay, I'll select Dark Magician Girl once again!" Yugi announced.

"YES!" A chorus of male voices shouted from the audience.

With a giggle and a flurry of pink sparks, the audience let out a cheer as Yugi's busty blond bombshell of a sorceress appeared next to him. She blew the audience a kiss and took a bow.

"You picked her again, huh Yugi?" Tim asked, pointing at the girl.

As he did so, his finger brushed the image of a card as his deckmaster options appeared in front of him.

"Crap…" Tim gasped as the cards vanished.

A small orb of golden light hovered onto Tim's field, and grew in size until it was slightly shorter than him. The light formed into a young woman wearing a golden mask resembling a bird, and red robes.

"Apparently my deckmaster will be the Hand of Nephthys," Tim observed, looking distraught. "I can't believe this happened twice."

"Fear not Tim, my deckmaster ability is quite useful," The young priestess assured him, leaning close to his ear. "Listen carefully…"

Tim's eyes went wide as he heard his monster's words, and he smiled.

"I take back what I said to Great Angus, you're the best mistake I ever made," Tim grinned.

"Thank you…I guess," The confused deckmaster nodded.

"Let the duel commence!" Roland ordered. "And going first will be…"

A golden coin fell from above and landed in Roland's hand. He looked at it, and held it up to show a letter 'T' displayed on the top.

"T, for Tim Hokage," Roland delegated. "Get to it!"

**Tim: 8000**

**Yugi: 8000**

Tim drew six cards, and set one of them onto his disk. The green mist rising from the surface of the cauldron formed into a facedown monster.

"A bit early to start joking yet, so I'll start with one monster facedown," Tim announced. "That's all from me."

Yugi took his draw, smiling as he saw the monster that he held. He placed it onto his disk, Dark Magician Girl waving her scepter, which caused a cloud of the green smoke rising from the cauldron below to gather into a solid looking platform. From the surface of this perch rose a young wizard in pure white robes, fastened by three disks on his shoulders and collar.

"I'll open the duel with my Skilled White Magician (1700/1900) in attack mode," Yugi stated. "Now, attack his facedown monster with light magic burst!"

The white robed monster spun his staff, and fired a pulse of light at Tim's facedown card. It flipped over to reveal a strange looking turtle with a metal shell, which was blasted into a pile of gears and circuits. Tim just smirked as the broken metal started to glow red-hot, and a circle of fire drew itself into the mist around the duelists.

"That was my UFO Turtle (1400/1200) and he leaves a bit more than crop circles," Tim explained. "Now I get to summon a fire monster with 1500 attack or less. So here's my favorite little spitfire: Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)!"

From the blazing circle flew one of Tim's burning snakes. It hovered amongst the cauldron's fumes, growling at Yugi and his monster. Yugi looked over his hand, clenching his teeth as he saw nothing he could do, remembering just what Tim's dragon was capable of.

"I'll need to end my turn here," Yugi admitted, allowing Tim to draw his card. "I'm guessing you're about to summon another Pyro-type monster, aren't you?"

"That's usually how this works, but I'm gonna do a bit more and double my fun," Tim taunted as he selected a card from his hand. "I'm summoning a second Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)."

Tim's deckmaster waved one hand, the smoke swirling about and forming a serpent like shape. The serpentine cloud turned red and then burst into flames which faded to reveal another of the fiery snakes. It hissed, spitting sparks at Yugi as it began to coil in midair alongside its brother. The two twisted and turned about one another, making it difficult to distinguish where one ended and the other began.

"Gotta love the solar flare lock," Tim sighed. "Well, I gotta anyway, I don't think you'll enjoy it."

"Oh boy…" Yugi gasped, taking a step back as Tim pointed at him.

"I end my turn now, activating my dragons' effect: each of them now takes off 500 of your life points." Tim ordered. "So is it hot in here or is it just you?"

The twisting snakes split away from each other for a moment, flying directly at Yugi and spraying the King of Games with twin blasts of fire. Yugi covered his head in an unsuccessful attempt to block the flame. His life points began to drop, and as they did, so did the platform that Yugi was standing on. Yugi tried to keep his balance with the sudden shift in equilibrium, and Roland spoke up as he did so.

"Tim Hokage draws first blood in our match, and what a way to do it!" Roland announced. "Yugi gets a closer look at our magic brew, but first blood doesn't always mean much in this game."

**Tim: 8000**

**Yugi: 7000**

Yugi drew his card, still feeling the burn from Tim's assault. He noticed two of the cards in his hand, and reached to take one of them before stopping.

"_If I used this spell, I could get rid of those dragons right now,"_ Yugi reasoned to himself. _"But maybe if I wait a bit, I can do something better."_

"I choose to end my turn without making any moves," Yugi declared, the audience gasping at this.

Tim looked stunned as well, but just shrugged and drew his card.

"Alright, your funeral," He said, noticing the card he now held. "Ah…better make that a cremation. I summon my third and final Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)!"

A burst of fire lit up Tim's field, and a third of the dragons now slithered about with the other two. All three monsters growled in Yugi's direction, and the young man controlling them smiled.

"A triple solar lock, you can't attack anything and you lose 1500 life points a turn," Tim smiled. "Huh, and I thought 'do as much damage as I could' wasn't a real strategy."

"Tim has all three of his infamous dragons together! Can Yugi smash this lockdown?" Roland fretted.

"I end my turn, and you get burned," Tim laughed. "Oh Roland, you might want to duck…"

The commentator took Tim's advice, and just in time. Rather than fly over themselves this time, the three dragons began swirling around one another faster and faster, until a huge ring of flame was formed around them. It flew forward, passing right over Roland's prone form before slamming into Yugi and knocking him into the waiting arms of his deckmaster (a few members of the audience sighed with jealousy). Yugi regained his footing just as the grate dropped even more, knocking him to his knees as it came to an abrupt halt more than a third of the way to the pot.

**Tim: 8000**

**Yugi: 5500**

"Anybody have a bag of marshmallows? I'm making smores out of Yugi," Tim taunted

Yugi drew his card, looking surprisingly unworried as he looked over his options.

"_Yugi, did you draw what you were waiting for?"_ Yami's voice asked in his mind.

"_Actually, I think I may have got something better,"_ Yugi responded.

"I activate Brain Control, giving up 800 life points in order to brainwash one of your dragons," Yugi began.

Next to the young man appeared the demonic brain, a pair of misty arms extending from it as it grabbed hold of one of the snakes. It hissed weakly as it was dragged over to Yugi's field, and Tim looked confused.

"That probably would have helped last turn. Then you could have had my two dragons kill each other," Tim pointed out.

"True, but I didn't have this card on my last turn," Yugi admitted. "Since I have it now though, I thought I'd use it to break your lock wide open."

Tim seemed even more confused as he asked, "How is Brain Control going to do that?"

"By being used with my Soul Taker spell card, letting me tribute one monster on your field by giving you 1000 extra life points," Yugi went on. "So use the dragon I brainwashed and one of your other dragons…"

A burst of blue magic covered Tim's field, leaving him with a pleasant tingle all over his body and a scent of mint leaves hanging in the air. This nearly distracted him from the fact that one of the two dragon's that had been left on his field was now gone, and the one Yugi had stolen was vanishing.

"With them, I summon my Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!" Yugi called out.

Dark Magician Girl squealed in glee as one of Yugi's strongest monsters floated from below on a green cloud. He had pale-blue skin, and wore a form fitting black outfit, carrying a black staff in one hand. His lanky body seemed to radiate magical energy as he glared at Tim's lone dragon.

"Oh…Yeah, that'll work…" Tim nodded. "He's gonna hurt me now, isn't he."

"Well, it is my battle phase," Yugi pointed out. "Attack his last dragon with chaos scepter blast!"

The sorcerer swung his weapon forward, firing a bolt of pure blackness from the tip. The remaining Solar Flare Dragon screamed (not a pleasant noise) as it was erased from existence by the energy.

"And when Dark Magician of Chaos destroys a monster, it stays destroyed because it's removed from the game instead of going to your graveyard," Yugi explained. "Plus, my Skilled White Magician has been on the field this whole time…"

Tim gulped as the teenage warlock pointed his iron staff toward him. The younger monster did not look amused by the damage Tim had dealt to Yugi.

"Attack!" Yugi commanded.

Tim let out a shout of pain as an explosion of light struck him, followed quickly by another shout as his platform dropped and he fell over from the sudden jarring. His life point count plummeted as he got back to his feet, rubbing his head which had struck the grating beneath him.

"I really need to stop getting hit in the head like this…" he grumbled. "I have enough problems as is."

**Tim: 6000**

**Yugi: 4300**

"I'll end my turn here," Yugi announced

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Tim is still winning," Espa pointed out. "He's got more life points."

"But take a look at the field, he's got no monsters and Yugi has two," Kevin assessed. "I'd say winning is a relative term here. How long will Tim's life points stay ahead if Yugi has field control?"

"All I know is that we probably don't want to see what that Dark Magician of Chaos can do when it attacks a human," Brian worried. "You heard Tim's dragon."

"Well, Tim's pretty tough," Celeste pointed out. "Look how many times he gets hit in the head, and he still makes bad jokes."

"Please, don't remind me," Brian sighed.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Tim drew his card, and quickly took three of the cards from his hand. He set them into his disk one at a time, and they appeared between him and Yugi's monsters. He then took a fourth card, and slid it onto the tray, a facedown monster appearing in front of him.

"Yeah, that looks better," Tim nodded. "Okay, bring it on Yugi!"

Yugi drew, taking in Tim's field with a worried look.

"_He set so many cards on his field…He must be trying to bluff me,"_ Yugi reasoned in his mind. _"Most duelists would be trying to get a strong monster out right now, so he must not want me to get rid of his monster."_

"Dark Magician of Chaos, attack his monster!" Yugi shouted.

The mighty Spellcaster lifted his staff, and pointed it at Tim's hidden monster. As he did, Tim tapped one of the buttons on his disk, causing one of the facedown cards to flip over. From it sprang a demonic suit of armor which dashed forward on a trail of green smoke and wrapped its arms around Yugi's monster. Dark Magician of Chaos gasped in horror just before he and the armor burst into shards of light.

"My Sakuretsu Armor trap destroys your attacking monster," Tim explained. "Come on Yugi, I thought you were smarter than that."

"_Urgh…My own monster's effect means Dark Magician of Chaos just removed himself from the game,"_ Yugi worried. _"So not all of those cards are bluffs…But that can only mean that he doesn't want that monster destroyed."_

"Skilled White Magician, attack his monster!" Yugi ordered.

The light sorcerer took a deep breath before aiming his attack. This time, Tim did nothing as the blast of magic shot forward and slammed into the back of his monster's card. From the card came a spray of gears and circuits again, followed by a plume of flame. Yugi had just destroyed another UFO Turtle.

"Another UFO Turtle? Wait, so you did want me destroy your monster then?" Yugi realized.

"That, and I needed to get rid of that Dark Magician," Tim smiled as he took a card from his disk. "What, you thought I just wanted to protect the monster?"

Yugi mentally slapped himself, realizing he had walked right into this situation. Tim took the monster he had chosen and slapped it down, revealing the bronze-skinned Flame Ruler (1500/1600) riding on yet another smoke puff.

"_Okay, so Tim's plan was less complex than I thought,"_ Yugi realized.

"_Tim isn't much younger than Brian, but their strategies seem different, maturity wise,"_ Yami stated. _"Brian had several plans and back up plans in place for our duel…"_

"_Tim just seems to be winging it. That could be dangerous for me, if he doesn't have a set plan then it's hard to predict what he'll do next,"_ Yugi thought as he took a card. _"However, I can only think of one thing he would do with that Flame Ruler…"_

"I set this card facedown and end my turn," Yugi declared as the card materialized behind his magician.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

"Looks like Yugi is starting to realize the strength of my brother's strategy," Brian observed, his brow furrowing.

"He has a strategy? I dueled him before and it looked like…" Kevin started.

"He just winged it?" Brian finished for the geekish teen. "That's exactly what he did. The strength to Tim's strategy is that he has none."

The others were silent for a minute, staring at Brian as he went on.

"Most duelists take one of two paths when they build their deck. Either they constantly attempt to turn the duel in their favor, like I do, or they wait for the opponent to tire themselves out and turn it around on them, like Gold did," Brian explained. "Tim doesn't do either one. He watches the situation and then picks the best move from what he has. If he gets locked down, he goes for his Solar Flare Dragons, or if he facing strong monsters than he locks them out with the dragons."

"Or if the opponent leaves a big hole in their defense, then he rushes in with powerful monsters!" Kevin gasped.

"Meanwhile, the opponent wastes time and energy trying to figure out Tim's plan when he doesn't have one," Celeste pointed out.

"Hmm…to use that sort of idea he must either be very clever, or highly inexperienced," Ronaldo muttered. "I'm guessing the former here, seeing as he's made it this far."

"So, do you think he stands a chance against Yugi?" Espa asked.

"Probably not," Everyone else answered.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Tim claimed his new card before he flipped over one of his facedown cards. From it emerged a Pot of Greed, which chuckled before tipping over and spilling gold dust into the cauldron below Tim. The fumes around him turned silver and gold for a moment as he drew two new cards.

"I don't know what is in this mist here, but it's giving me the munchies," Tim said as he looked over his cards. "Think I'm in the mood for something flame-broiled, so I tribute my Flame Ruler, using its power so it counts for two monsters…"

Tim quickly swapped the monster on his disk for one from his hand. Flame Ruler slammed his fists together, and an exact duplicate of him made completely out of fire appeared. Both Flame Ruler and his doppelganger vanished, and a golden fire began to rain down.

"…To summon: you know her, you love her, the Sacred Phoenix of Nepthys (2400/1600)!" Tim yelled.

The golden fire coalesced into the shape of the massive bird, and the majestic creature exploded from its blazing shroud. The audience cheered at the sight of Tim's favorite monster, and Yugi took a step back.

"Okay, Phoenix, attack his magician with sacred fire!" Tim continued. "Boy, that's a lot easier to get through than 'phoenix wing wind blast.'"

The huge bird pulled back her wings as rings of golden flame surrounded her body. The fiery hoops exploded outward, flying toward Yugi's monster in the form of multiple waves of fire. Before they could get close though, Yugi pressed the button to use his facedown card.

"I activate Draining Shield!" Yugi called out, a silver shield appearing on his Skilled White Magician's arm. "This will halt your attack, and turn it into life points for me."

"Doesn't Celeste have that move trademarked or something?" Tim complained

The magic user huddled behind his barrier, the flames slamming against it and bathing Yugi's field in a green glow. The chains supporting Yugi's platform clinked and groaned as they drew Yugi and his monster up and further away from the noxious potion.

**Tim: 6000**

**Yugi: 6700**

The audience once more cheered as Yugi pulled ahead. Tim just grumbled a little, but then sighed.

"Eh, I'll roast him next turn," He said.

"In that case, I'm guessing it's my move," Yugi stated, drawing a card. "Oh and Tim, how many spells have we both played since my Skilled White Magician got to the field?"

Tim seemed confused by this question, but then noticed that the three disks which supported the magician's cape were all glowing brightly.

"Oh boy…" Tim frowned.

"I activate my Skilled White Magician's ability, and tribute him to summon Buster Blader (2600/2300)!" Yugi decreed.

The Spellcaster waved his staff, vanishing into a pulse of light. The light faded, leaving behind a large man in purple armor, hefting a huge sword that looked as though it was meant to slay dragons (and probably was). He swung the massive blade in front of him, aiming at Tim's phoenix with a furious war cry.

"Buster Blader, attack his phoenix with slayer's blade!" Yugi commanded.

The dragon hunter jumped high into the air, coming down fast with his sword extended. Phoenix cried in pain as the weapon sliced into the back of her neck and she burst into a cloud of fire and soot. Buster Blader landed, sneered at Tim, then jumped back to Yugi's side of the field.

**Tim: 5800**

**Yugi: 6700**

"In a stunning display, Yugi manages to take down one of Tim's best monsters!" Roland gasped. "Can Tim recover from such a blow?"

"I'm ending my turn now," Yugi stated. "Go ahead, Tim."

Tim drew, not seeming worried in the slightest about the loss of his favorite monster. He casually took a card from his hand, and gave it to his deckmaster who had been standing quietly behind him this whole time.

"Hey Yugi, do you know how hard it is to kill a phoenix?" Tim challenged.

"Huh? What are you…" Yugi began to ask.

He trailed off as he noticed Tim's deckmaster was holding the card she had been given, and was softly chanting a strange spell in an unidentified language. The card turned into an orb of golden fire, in which Yugi could see a tiny, baby bird. The priestess smiled as she held the infant avian over head, and an explosion of gold flames shot out from around her. Yugi covered his eyes against the light, and a glorious melody began to be sung. When the King of Games lowered his hand, he saw the Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys hovering back in front of Tim as if it had never left.

"Let's just say, very," Tim explained. "My deckmaster makes it harder with her rebirth ritual power. If Phoenix is in the graveyard during my standby phase, I can give up a monster in my hand to summon her back to the field with 600 extra attack points."

The phoenix seemed to shimmer for a minute with more energy as her attack strength leapt to (3000/1600). Buster Blader drew back, suddenly realizing what a bad situation this had become, while Tim turned over his last facedown card.

"Oh, and since I have this Salamandra that I had been bluffing with, I may as well use it," Tim taunted as a dragon made of red fire shot from the card and surrounded his monster. "Oh Buster Blader, my phoenix (3700/1600) would like a word with you."

The mighty bird sang out, the dragon that was swirling around her turning into golden fire and lunging forward. Yugi and Buster Blader both screamed as the flames washed over the field and obliterated the warrior. Yugi let out another shout as his platform made another lurch downward.

**Tim: 5800**

**Yugi: 5600**

--------------------------------------------------------------------

"Um…How's Yugi supposed to beat a monster that can keep coming back?" Serenity asked.

"Uh…" Joey droned, trying to come up with an answer. "Just keep watching."

"_Until I can figure out an answer,"_ Joey thought.

"Don't worry Serenity. If Yugi could beat my Harpie's Pet Dragon back in Duelist Kingdom, he can beat this oversized piece of fried chicken," Mai assured her neighbor.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey, now Buster Blader is just a hunk'a hunk'a burning…Flesh." Tim joked.

Yugi just grimaced in pain a bit as he drew his next card. Looking at it, he sighed, setting his new monster facedown onto his disk, along with a card in his spell and trap zone. The fumes from the cauldron swirled under his two cards, forming interesting patterns as Yugi said, "I end my turn here."

"Doesn't look like there's much else he can do," Roland fretted.

Tim drew his own card, and frowned as he saw no monsters that he could summon.

"Okay, well my phoenix is more than enough so she'll…" Tim began.

Yugi suddenly waved a hand over his facedown card, and a blast of light shot out of it. Phoenix, who had just been pulling back to attack, suddenly froze in place as a ring of light and strange symbols drew itself around her.

"Spellbinding Circle will hold your monster in place, unable to attack or change its battle position," Yugi smirked as Tim's jaw dropped. "You're pretty good at adapting your tactics to the situation Tim, but two can play at that game."

"Oh no, if you start doing it to then I'll lose another franchise, and that'll three today!" Tim shouted, laughing a bit at the end. "I'll just set this facedown and end my turn."

Yugi drew his own card, and turned over the monster on his disk.

"Okay, time to take back this duel. I flip summon Queen's Knight (1500/1600)," Yugi started.

From the card rose the blond knightess in ruby armor. She drew her sword from its scabbard, and pointed it directly at Tim.

"Next, I normal summon my King's Knight (1600/1400)," Yugi went on, placing a card from his hand down.

From the swirling pockets of smoke stepped the bearded knight in gold armor. He and Queen's Knight crossed swords and let out a cry which echoed across the dungeon.

"Plus, since they're both on the field now, I can special summon Jack's Knight from my deck (1900/1000)," Yugi finished.

A third warrior, this one young and wearing sapphire armor leapt from below and landed next to his comrades. All three crossed swords and let out a battle cry together.

"Even if she is frozen, none of them can beat my phoenix," Tim noticed.

"Unless they have a little help, and these three monsters are designed to help each other out," Yugi smiled. "I equip Jack's Knight with a powerful spell called United We Stand!"

A glowing aura surrounded the blue knight, and he looked to his allies with a grin. Queen's Knight and King's Knight both nodded, auras of red and yellow energy extending from them and merging with the blue aura of Jack's Knight.

"Now my monster gains 800 attack and defense points for each face up monster I control. That's a grand total of 2400 extra points," Yugi declared.

Jack's Knight (4300/3400) lifted his bladed, his two friends standing behind him.

"Attack together: royal flush rush!" Yugi commanded.

"No wait, not in the head!" Tim worried, his eyes going wide

The trio of warriors jumped forward, Jack's Knight cutting through the frozen phoenix with a single swipe of his empowered blade. The bird burst into flames again and vanished, while King's Knight and Queen's Knight carried through and slashed at Tim directly, crossing their weapons over his chest. Tim howled in pain as he was launched backward, skidding to the edge of the grate he stood on. He let out another shout as the platform dropped drastically in altitude, plunging until it was nearly three-quarters of the way to the pot below. Tim got back up, sweat brimming on his forehead from the combination of the attack and the heat from the cauldron.

**Tim: 2100**

**Yugi: 5600**

"When I said 'not in the head' I didn't mean 'please aim at my heart,'" Tim wheezed out.

Yugi seemed quite pleased as he looked over the edge of his own platform to Tim.

"I'm setting a facedown card and ending my turn, so go ahead," Yugi called down.

"_This Mirror Force will be perfect for protecting King's Knight and Queen's Knight if he brings back his phoenix,"_ Yugi nodded to himself.

"Yugi once again pulls ahead! He's not the King of Games for nothing folks," Roland cheered as the audience went nuts with support for Yugi.

Tim scowled a bit as he drew his card, then took the one he had just drawn and dropped it into his graveyard. Behind him, Hand of Nephthys raised another orb of flame over her head, a tiny baby bird appearing inside as she chanted. A burst of heat and flame covered the field, and Yugi cringed as Tim's phoenix (3000/1600) once again rose into play.

"I'm starting my turn with my deckmaster, but the fun won't stop here," Tim warned. "I activate Call of the Haunted to revive my Flame Ruler (1500/1600)."

Tim's trap lifted up, and a thick plume of purple smog lifted from below. It slowly solidified into a platform, from which rose the Jamaican monster, looking ready for battle.

"Hey mon, ready when you are," Flame Ruler smiled.

"Glad to hear it," Tim smiled as he removed the card from his disk. "I use Flame Ruler's effect again to summon a monster that needs no introduction:"

Flame Ruler once again slammed his fists together, the fiery copy appearing next to him. Both vanished in a burst of heat, and a huge bonfire shot up from below.

"Eh, what the hell?" Tim shrugged. "Here's my Infernal Flame Emperor (2700/1600)!"

The bonfire took shape into a massive centaur, with huge dragon wings sprouting from the back of its human torso and the head of a ferocious lion. Unlike Tim's Solar Flare Dragons, the flames continued to burn on this creature, as though it were made of living fire.

"Next comes his effect," Tim declared, his UFO Turtles falling out of his grave slot. "By removing creatures of fire from my graveyard, I can destroy one spell or trap you have for each one I remove. I remove my two UFO Turtles to burn up United We Stand and your facedown card."

"Oh no!" Yugi screamed.

Two ghostly versions of the mechanical turtles flew away from the body of Tim's infernal beast. From the back of each one sprouted a small cannon, and both ghosts fired out a beam of red energy that ripped first through Yugi's facedown Mirror Force, and then through the multicolored aura that surrounded Jack's Knight. The sapphire-dressed warrior groaned as his stats fell back to (1900/1000).

"Oh yeah, burn baby burn," Tim smiled. "Let's really get this fire started! Phoenix, you attack Queen's Knight! Infernal Flame Emperor, attack King's Knight with Dante's inferno!"

Phoenix reared back again, unleashing her sacred golden fire. Queen's Knight screamed as she vanished in a puff of smoke upon contact with the flames. Infernal Flame Emperor growled before opening his massive jaws and spraying out a cone of hellish fire, immolating King's Knight before he could move to defend himself. Yugi felt his weight shift again as the platform plummeted closer to the brew.

**Tim: 2100**

**Yugi: 2900**

Tim looked up, smiling as he saw Yugi was now much closer to him and trying to put out a few small flames that had lit on his jacket.

---------------------------------------------

"You know, I need to ask, why did Tim decide on a fire deck?" Kevin asked, looking to Brian.

The elder Hokage sighed as he ran a hand through his hair saying, "It's a sort of homage to a past life for him."

"Huh?" The other's asked, confused by this statement.

"Tim, as you no doubt notice, is a bit of a pyromaniac," Brian admitted. "What you probably don't know is this was a major problem when he was younger, he was even suspected in a few minor arson cases. No one was hurt, and properties that got torched were condemned anyhow, but…"

Brian sighed again, looking a bit worried.

"Ugh, he might not happy if I told you guys, but I confronted Tim about his problem one day," he went on. "Turns out he had been responsible for the arsons. I convinced him he needed help, and he thankfully listened to me. After a stint in juvie, he got professional counseling, and after that he got into a less destructive hobby."

"In other words, Duel Monsters," Celeste guessed.

"The fire deck just came naturally to him," Brian nodded. "I thought it was good though, he was…reborn almost. From a menace to society to a normal kid like everyone else. He still likes fire though, that hasn't changed, but he's a bit more responsible at least."

"He just likes making a big blaze with holographic flames," Kevin noted.

"Well, what can you do?" Brian shrugged.

-----------------------------------------------

"Okay, that's out of my system for a while," Tim said as Yugi finished extinguishing his jacket. "You can go ahead Yugi."

Yugi drew his card, nervously looking up at Tim's two monsters which towered over the field. He looked to the card he had just drawn, and nodded as he played it, steeling himself for the move that was to come.

"I activate…Five Star Twilight!" Yugi cried.

"Five Star…huh?" Tim queried, looking confused.

Jack's Knight sheathed his sword, and looked up into the air. In the blackness of the ceiling above, five shimmering stars appeared. He closed his eyes, his body fading away as the stars swooped down.

"To activate this spell I need to tribute a monster of at least level five," Yugi elaborated as five cards flew around him. "Once I do, I can summon forth the Five Kuriboh Brothers!"

The stars hovered in front of Yugi, then vanished in pulses of light. In front of the young man appeared five balls of fur, each a different color (pink, brown, white, blue, and purple) and each with tiny paws and big blinking eyes.

"Are those…Rainbow colored Kuribohs?" Tim asked.

"Actually, only one of them is a Kuriboh (300/200)," Yugi continued, pointing to the brown one. "The others are Kuribeh, Kuribah, Kuribih, and Kuribuh (300/200 X4)."

As he said this, Yugi pointed to the blue, then purple, then pink, and finally white fur balls in turn, all of which began to twitter excitedly. Tim seemed confused as Yugi took his Penalty Game! trap card and placed it into his graveyard.

"I should warn you right now that each of them has a special power," Yugi announced. "For example, if I discard a trap from my hand, then Kuribuh can deduct the total attack of all five of my Kuriboh Brothers from the attack of one of your monsters. So I'll use that power on your Infernal Flame Emperor: Kuri-bowl!"

The five fuzzballs squeaked with glee as they began to tumble and roll around in midair. They formed a chain, the brown Kuriboh leading with the white Kuribuh trailing behind. Kuribuh suddenly picked up speed, opening its mouth and gulping down its brethren, swelling up to five times its size. The now massive dust bunny hurtled itself straight into the towering inferno that was Tim's monster, sending the hellish beast stumbling back in pain as its attack score dropped to (1200/1600).

With their job complete, Kuribuh bounced back to Yugi's field and spat its brothers back into place. The four Kuribohs that had been swallowed squeaked and giggled as Tim stared at his monster, which had fallen to its knees and was clutching its chest in pain.

"Next, I use Kuribah's effect," Yugi decided, the purple Kuriboh bouncing around excitedly. "It can tribute itself and the other four to summon a monster known as Kuribabylon (?/1000)!"

The purple one squeaked something to the others, all of whom jumped into the air. A burst of sparks lit up the ceiling for a moment, dazzling the audience and both duelists. Once Tim uncovered his eyes, one of them gave an involuntary twitch.

Standing in front of Yugi was a giant ball of fur, at least as tall as he was, with a massive horn sprouting from its forehead. It grinned, showing rows of sharp teeth, and Tim chuckled.

"Okay, I'll grant it's a big dust bunny…" He started to joke.

"A big dust bunny whose attack score equals the total attack of the monsters I used to summon it," Yugi interrupted.

Kuribabylon (1500/1000) chuckled as a glowing aura flared to life around it. Tim gulped as Yugi pointed directly at his weakened Flame Emperor.

"Okay, a large _angry_ dust bunny…" Tim fretted.

"Attack his Infernal Flame Emperor with Kuri-ram!" Yugi ordered.

The larger Kuriboh lunged onward, driving its spear-like horn into the flaming monster and out the other side. Infernal Flame Emperor roared in pain, before it simply dissipated into a cloud of embers that were carried away by the rising potion fumes.

**Tim: 1800**

**Yugi: 2900**

"Finally, I'll use Kuribabylon's effect and offer it as a sacrifice in order to bring back my five Kuribohs," Yugi finished. "That will end my turn."

The larger monster smiled at Tim one last time before it shattered into five orbs of light. The lights faded, leaving behind the multi-colored Kuribohs (300/200 X5) once more, chirping and squeaking in delight.

"Ugh…These things are driving me kuri-crazy!" Tim shouted, clutching his head before drawing his card.

He looked over his hand, frowning as he noticed he still lacked any monsters that he could summon.

"_I am having my worst luck ever,"_ Tim realized. _"On the other hand, I don't need anything else to get rid of a bunch of Kuribohs…"_

"Phoenix, attack the regular Kuriboh now!" Tim shouted.

Phoenix sang out, her flames dancing around her before launching toward the brown lump of fur. It squeaked in fear and curled in on itself as Yugi pointed to its pink companion.

"Kuribih, activate five star defense!" Yugi commanded.

The pink fur orb squeaked and waved one paw in a circle. In front of Yugi's field appeared a massive, pink star, which intercepted the blast of fire. Tim blinked in surprise as the star faded away, revealing all five of Yugi's monsters still squeaking away.

"_Of course, I've been wrong once today,"_ Tim said to himself.

"So, Kuribih stops me from attacking," Tim guessed.

"That's right, Kuribih can negate one attack each turn," Yugi confirmed

"Great…" Tim frowned. "I thought I was supposed to be the one with annoying surprises."

Roland, who had been stunned into silence upon the Kuribohs making their entrance, finally snapped back into focus on the situation and lifted his microphone.

"It would seem that an odd strategy on Yugi's part may have stopped Tim cold!" Roland commented. "Can he turn the heat back up, or is 'Mr. Molotov's' fire finally going out?"

Tim looked over the remaining cards in his hand, and let out a sigh.

"Nothing else I can try this turn Yugi," he admitted. "Go ahead."

Yugi drew his new card and then pointed at the blue ball of fluff that sat on his field. It turned toward him with a squeak, and Yugi nodded to it. It squeaked again and flew at the other four furballs, ramming into them and sending all five bouncing around like pinballs.

"Woah!" Tim shouted, narrowly dodging one of the catapulted Kuribohs. "Hey, if you wanted to play dodgeball, you could have asked!"

"I had a different idea, I'm using Kuribeh's effect," Yugi elaborated. "By removing him and his four brothers from play, I can summon another new monster."

Tim dodged another one of the fuzzy bullets, and it ricocheted off the wall behind him. All five collided right in front of Yugi in an explosion of stars. When the tiny lights cleared away, a larger ball of black fur with two fangs, a bandana wrapped around its head, and an eye patch stood in their place.

"Meet Kuribandit (1000/700)," Yugi introduced, the pirate Kuriboh growling at Tim.

"Captain Kuribandit, savvy?" Tim joked.

Ignoring that, Yugi took the Kuribandit card that had appeared on his disk, and placed it into his graveyard. The pirate monster let out another growl in Tim's direction, then leapt skyward and vanished amidst the swirling shadows of the ceiling. A clattering sounded from above, and a large treasure chest fell from aloft and landed on Yugi's platform. It burst open upon landing, scattering five cards which hovered in front of Yugi before he claimed them.

"Like most pirates, Kuribandit is talented at finding treasure," Yugi stated as he looked over the cards. "By tributing him, I can draw five cards, but then I need to discard any monsters I draw."

Yugi took two of the cards he had drawn, and placed them into his graveyard. He then took a third one from his hand, and set it right into his disk.

"However, thanks to the magic of Premature Burial, one of them is about to make a fast recovery," Yugi smiled.

"Oh you don't mean…" Tim realized.

"Yep, my Dark Magician (2500/2100)!" Yugi called out.

A circled of red smoke rose from the cauldron, forming into another platform. From the center emerged Dark Magician, wiping a few stains of dirt from his robes and his staff sparking dangerously from a crack that ran along the length of it. Dark Magician Girl swooned upon seeing her teacher, and smiled as he gave her a nod of approval.

"Next, I equip my Dark Magician with Magic Formula, giving him a bonus 700 attack points," Yugi continued.

As the card was played, an ancient tome appeared in front of Yugi's monster. Dark Magician (3200/2100) took the book, a purple aura flaring over his entire body as its magic charged him.

"Oh bugger…" Tim moaned.

"Attack his Phoenix now, dark magic attack!" Yugi commanded.

Phoenix screeched as Dark Magician aimed his weapon at her and she turned blue for a moment. She shattered apart, and her ashes fell to the steaming liquid below. Tim braced himself, this time managing to stay on his feet as his platform dipped lower.

**Tim: 1600**

**Yugi: 2100**

"That ends my turn Tim, go ahead," Yugi invited.

Tim drew his card, looking a bit nervous as he looked at Yugi's Dark Magician. Checking his hand, he discarded a card, and with another of his deckmaster's prayers the Phoenix rose up once again in her burning glory.

"Okay, I bring back my Phoenix (3000/1600) in defense mode," Tim declared, his monster folding up her wings close to her chest. "Plus, I'll set one card facedown and a monster in defense mode."

The two cards appeared, one behind Phoenix, the other right next to her. Tim nodded toward the cards as he waved to Yugi.

"Okay, that's all," He said.

Yugi took a new card to his hand, and slapped it down next to his Dark Magician.

"I summon Magician's Valkyria (1600/1800) in attack mode," Yugi decided.

In a flurry of sparkles and globules of light, Dark Magician Girl's brunette double jumped onto the field. She smiled as she hooked her arm into Dark Magician's and planted a kiss on his cheek. Dark Magician Girl's face turned red, and she looked as though she'd love nothing more than to be standing on Tim's field right now so she could blast the other sorceress.

"Well, that's never happened before," Yugi admitted, eyes wide as Dark Magician carefully removed his arm from Valkyria's. "Okay…Dark Magician will attack your phoenix…"

"And he'll recharge my life points thanks to my Enchanted Javelin trap!" Tim called out, pressing down on the button on his disk.

Dark Magician brought up his staff to attack, and as he did a pink and yellow spear shot out of Tim's card and headed right toward him. Dark Magician hurriedly cast his dark spell, consuming both his target and the projectile in a blast of negative light. The spear and Phoenix both burst apart, but the steam rising from the potion below Tim turned pink and yellow for a moment, lifting the platform up as the chains were pulled toward the ceiling.

Yugi grit his teeth together for a moment before sighing, "Okay then, Valkyria, attack his facedown monster with rainbow burst!"

Valkyria spun her own staff, releasing a stream of multicolored light. Tim's facedown monster flipped over to reveal one of his Great Angus (1800/600) which groaned as the light assaulted it before shattering it to pieces.

"Tim has managed to pull his life points ahead of Yugi's again, but for how long now that the King of Games has his favorite monster out?" Roland speculated.

"That will end my turn," Yugi finished.

**Tim: 4800**

**Yugi: 2100**

Tim drew his card, now holding only two of them. As he saw them though, a smile formed on his face.

"Well, here goes something," Tim announced, discarding his Tenkabito Shien. "First I discard a monster for my deckmaster, so here come the Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys (3000/1600 still) again!"

Hand of Nephthys raised her hands overhead once more, this time barely chanting two words before the blazing bird leapt forth with her glorious song. Tim took the last card in his hand and played it with a grin.

"And for a quick boost, my second copy of Salamandra," He declared.

Just like earlier in the duel, a dragon made of red flame burst out from below and began swirling around Tim's monster. It slowly turned to golden fire as Tim pointed at Dark Magician.

"Phoenix (3700/1600), attack his…" Tim began.

"Hold on Tim!" Yugi interrupted, "Before you can attack any other Spellcasters, you need to go through Magician's Valkyria first."

Valkyria heard this, and gulped nervously. She shot a glance at Yugi, as if angry with him for reminding Tim of that rule.

"Um…I knew that," Tim said, somewhat embarrassed as he pointed to the young witch. "Phoenix, attack his Magician's Valkyria with sacred dragon fire!"

Phoenix unleashed her song once more, and the golden dragon flying around her swooped down toward her victim. Dark Magician Girl stuck out her tongue at Valkyria, right before the Spellcaster was consumed by the holy flames. Yugi grabbed hold of a chain to steady himself, right before his platform dove down, hovering only a few feet over the sloshing fluid in the pot below him.

**Tim: 4800**

**Yugi: 1000**

"Astounding! Tim has reignited his chances at victory!" Roland gasped as the audience began to murmur excitedly. "Can he actually dethrone the King of Games?"

"I'm out of cards, so it's your turn Yugi," Tim admitted.

Yugi drew, not looking worried in the slightest as he took another card from his hand.

"I wasn't sure if I'd need this for the duel," Yugi said as he placed the card into his disk. "Well, just goes to show you that you never know when a card may change from overkill to necessary. I activate Mage Power, giving my Dark Magician an extra 500 attack and defense points for each spell and trap on my field! All in all, that's 1500."

Dark Magician (4700/3600) gasped as his entire body flared up with a blue aura. His staff began to smoke and spark dangerously with magical energy, and he held it up with a determined look in his eyes.

"Oh boy…" Tim moaned again.

"DARK MAGIC ATTACK!" Yugi shouted.

Dark Magician took aimed, and almost flattened himself with the recoil of the blast of energy that shot from his weapon. Phoenix was consumed in a burst of blue and purple energy, which danced across her form for a moment before she vanished. Tim screamed as his platform plummeted once more, before jarring to a halt. He was still higher up than Yugi, but the situation was now officially bad once more.

**Tim: 3800**

**Yugi: 1000**

"Are you okay?" Yugi shouted up to Tim.

"Fine, I'm fine," Tim gasped, standing back up. "Soon as my ears stop ringing,"

"You can take your turn now," Yugi offered.

Tim looked at his deck, then down to Yugi monster.

"_I thought I was the joker around here. I don't have much that can stand up to that…"_ Tim thought. _"My only chance would be…One of my trap cards, here goes…"_

Tim drew his card, and looked at it.

"_I was hoping for Mirror Force, but this is much better,"_ Tim said to himself as he played the card. _"It comes down to what Yugi does next."_

Seeing Tim's card appear facedown Yugi drew his own card.

"It looks like it will be the end or this turn folks," Roland called out nervously. "Who comes out on top?"

Yugi looked over the cards in his hand, then to Tim's facedown card.

"Better safe than sorry, I use my deckmaster's power right now," Yugi declared. "Soul circle!"

Dark Magician Girl nodded and waved her scepter, images of Yugi's fallen monsters swirling around him as he drew eight cards from his deck. Seeing one of them, Yugi placed it into play.

"Now I activate Dark Magic Attack," Yugi declared.

"I'll use my Magic Cylinder trap to…" Tim started, before realizing what Yugi had said. "Wait, you _activate_ Dark Magic Attack?"

"That's right, as in the spell card Dark Magic Attack," Yugi confirmed. "If Dark Magician is on the field, then this card destroys every spell and trap you control. You only have one right now, but this only spell destroyer that I managed to draw."

Tim gulped again as his facedown card sparked with black energy before collapsing in on itself and vanishing. The audience was going nuts, chanting name at the top of their lungs.

"Thank you and goodnight ladies and gentlemen," Tim called out over the noise.

"You put up a good match Tim, but it's over now," Yugi hollered. "Attack now!"

Tim screamed in pain as the blast of dark energy reversed all colors in his vision for a second. He fell to his knees, his skin tingling with the remnants of the attack.

"_Hm…I need a line to go out on now,"_ He realized as he cast his gaze around the audience.

He spotted Brian, who gave him a look and a shrug that seemed to ask, 'You didn't see this coming?'

"Well, I expected this," Tim said, hearing the chains groan and creak overhead. "But still…"

Tim pumped one fist into the air as the chains snapped.

"I regret nothing!" He shouted just before landing in the elixir below with a splash and a sizzle.

The audience was still calling Yugi's name as he faded from view, and Roland smiled.

"What an amazing duel folks, but stay in those seats!" He requested. "In less than six minutes, Victor Greenstone and Seto Kaiba will be down here and beating the ever-loving snot out of each other for your enjoyment!"

----------------------------------------------------

"Now that was an enjoyable match," Mako grinned as Tim splashed down.

"Indubitably," Richington agreed. "In fact I for one…"

Before he could get any further, a scream sounded from overhead, and Tim fell into the aisle nearby. He grunted as he landed flat on his back, his head cracking against the floor. He stumbled to his feet, and slumped down into the chair next to Mako.

"You thin…You think I'd be used to that…" He muttered, obviously dazed and groggy from the head trauma.

Tim slumped down, clutching the back of his head and closing his eyes.

Mako held his own forehead, grumbling "Why me?" under his breath.

_**Oh come on, did you guys really think Yugi would lose?**_

_**At any rate, Yugi Mutou has secured his place in the final match.**_

_**And next time, it's Seto Kaiba versus…Yeah right.**_

_**Tune in next week to see Seto claim his rightful spot in the top tier in a chapter we call**_

_**Primal Rage**_

_**Time to unleash your wild side!**_

---

Original Cards

---

Five Star Twilight

Spell

Image of five Kuribohs, each a different color, flying around on stars.

Tribute one monster on your side of your field with five stars or more. Special summon one of each of the following monsters from your hand or deck: "Kuriboh", "Kuribeh", "Kuribih", "Kuribah", and "Kuribuh."

---

Kuribeh

One star

DARK

Fiend

300 attack

200 defense

You may remove this monster along with one each of "Kuribuh", "Kuriboh", "Kuribah", and "Kuribih" on your field from the game. Special summon one "Kuribandit" from your hand or deck.

---

Kuribah

One star

DARK

Fiend

300 attack

200 defense

You may sacrifice this monster along with one each of "Kuribuh", "Kuriboh", "Kuribah", and "Kuribih" on your field from the game. Special summon one "Kuribabyblon" from your hand or deck.

---

Kuribih

One star

DARK

Fiend

300 attack

200 defense

When this monster is on the field with one each of "Kuribuh", "Kuriboh", "Kuribah", and "Kuribih", you may negate one attack per turn.

---

Kuribuh

One star

DARK

Fiend

300 attack

200 defense

When this monster is on the field with one each of "Kuribuh", "Kuriboh", "Kuribah", and "Kuribih", you may discard one trap card from your hand. Reduce the attack of one monster your opponent controls by the total combined attack of all monsters on your field. You may do this once per turn.

---

Kuribabylon

Five star

DARK

Fiend

? attack

1000 defense.

This monster can only be special summoned by the effect of "Kuribah." This monster's attack score is the total attack of the monsters used to summon it.

---

Kuribandit

Three star

DARK

Fiend

1000 attack

700 defense

This monster can only be special summoned by the effect of "Kuribeh." You may tribute this monster to draw five cards from your deck. Discard any monsters you draw by this effect. You may activate this effect on your opponents turn.

_The above six cards were originally used by Yugi during the Orichalcos saga of the anime. Credit for them goes to their original creators._

---

Magic Formula

Spell/equipment

This card can only be equipped to "Dark Magician" or "Dark Magician Girl." The equipped monster gains 700 attack points. If this card is sent from the field to the graveyard while equipped to a monster, you gain 1000 life points.

_This is an actual card in Japan that has yet to reach the states. All credit for it goes to its original creator._

---

Original deckmaster

---

Hand of Nephthys

Two star

WIND

Spellcaster

600 attack

600 defense

Rebirth Ritual: If a "Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys" is in your graveyard during your standby phase, you may discard one monster card. Special summon one "Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys" from your graveyard, and increase its attack by 600 for as long as it remains face up on the field.


	38. Primal Wrath

_**One finalist chosen, and one to go.**_

_**In our upcoming match, there's no reason for anyone to hold back!**_

_**First, the young business emperor we know and love: Seto Kaiba!**_

_**His opponent? None other than our resident beast-master Victor Greenstone!**_

_**Only one of these two will be walking out of the arena and into the space for the finalists.**_

_**The other will have a one-way airline ticket to Loserville.**_

_**It's time to release your wild side!**_

Primal Wrath

In the VIP box, Victor was watching as Tim fell to the pot of boiling liquid below. He looked to the only other person in the room with him: Seto Kaiba.

The young CEO was watching the match with a cold stare. He smirked a bit as he saw Tim plummet into the potion with a scream, and then turned to Victor, his face cold once more.

"Well, I guess it's down to us Mr. Kaiba," Victor observed, extending one hand to his neighbor. "May the best duelist win."

"I assure you, I will," Kaiba stated, looking at Victors hand before turning away with a dismissive shrug.

"_Not too cold,_" Victor said to himself as Yugi reappeared next to him.

"That was a good duel down their Yugi," Victor said to the King of Games.

"Oh, thanks," Yugi smiled, looking pleased with himself. "Now I'm kind of wishing Zeffie had won her duel though. She's…overly energetic sure, but Tim's jokes…"

Yugi shook his head, and then leaned back.

"Well, good luck Victor," Yugi wished the older duelist.

"Thanks Yugi, I've got a feeling I'll need it," Victor smiled.

With that said, the card lists for both remaining duelists appeared. Victor and Kaiba began sorting through them one by one.

------------------------------------------------------

"Only one duel left till the finals," Kevin said, sounding ecstatic. "I can't wait!"

"We already know who the finalists will be," Brian pointed out.

"Still, how often do you get to be a live witness to a match between Yugi and Kaiba?" Kevin responded.

"He has a point," Espa nodded.

----------------------------------------------------------

"So, do you think anyone cares who Kaiba is up against?" Mary asked her father.

"Dunno, probably not though," Gold answered. "They just care about supporting their hero."

"Just like back in Kansas!" Zeffie cheered. "They always cheer for Goldie down there!"

Gold chuckled a bit, and gently pat Zeffie on the head.

"Come on Zef, I'm not that popular," Gold said.

"Oh don't be so modest Julie-boy," Pegasus grinned. "You made it this far, and you're recognized as a champion. I'd bet you have your fair share of fans back home."

Gold just shrugged as Pegasus continued.

"The same could probably be said for Mr. Greenstone. He's just being overshadowed at the moment by Kaiba-boy," Pegasus went on. "Hope it doesn't damage his pride too much."

-----------------------------------------------

"So why am I sitting next to this firebug?" Weevil wondered, looking at Tim.

"Because Mako refuses to sit next to him, and you didn't mind giving up your seat," Richington stated.

"That was before I knew he wanted to take my seat," Weevil grumbled. "I thought he wanted to dump laughing boy in it."

"Come on Mako, don't be mad," Tim said, trying to cheer up the ocean duelist. "I mean I only embarrassed you in front of an international audience in a children's card game. Is that anything to get worked up about?"

Mako cast a glare at Tim. It was clear that he thought it was something to be upset over.

"What?" Tim promptly stated.

-------------------------------------------------

"Kaiba again?" Joey frowned. "Give me a break. Hope Victor wins this match..."

"Isn't he that new friend you met earlier in the tournament?" Serenity asked.

"Yeah, the one that beat me and Bakura," Mai answered for Joey. "If he took us out, he might just be a match for Kaiba."

"Oh come on Mai, neither of us would have a prayer against Kaiba, so him beating us…" Bakura began.

He trailed off as Mai cast him a withering glare.

"Um…Never mind," Bakura cut off.

"_Wise choice,"_ The ring spirit advised. _"You don't want to disagree with a woman that gives you that look."_

------------------------------------------------------

Roland raised one hand overhead as the audience began to cheer.

"The time has come for our second finalist to be decided!" Roland shouted out, whipping the audience into a storm of support for Kaiba. "But don't go thinking that the match is cut and dry yet. Our last two semi-finalists are as tough as they come! My I present…"

Two rings of light descended, exploding against the floor and revealing Seto and Victor on opposing sides of the arena. Roland gestured to his employer first.

"Seto Kaiba, the chief executive of Kaiba Corp, and the man who made this day possible," Roland introduced. "His challenger…"

Roland pointed to Victor, who was taking a deep, calming breath.

"Victor Greenstone, who's beastly baddies have been laying down a major trail of hurt all day!" Roland called out. "Only one of them will have the right to take on Yugi in the finals, so who's it gonna be? It's time for _PRIMAL WRATH!"_

The audience's screams were drowning out all other noises as both duelists lifted their arms. The disks activated as Roland raised both hands.

"This match takes place in our…uh…." Roland paused.

The arena hadn't shifted at all. It was still a plain dirt floor with spotlights overhead. Kaiba and Victor now noticed this, and also stared, aghast at the lack of change.

"Someone is so fired…" Kaiba grumbled under his breath as he glared at Roland.

"Hey what's the hold up?" Shouted an onlooker.

The other bystanders seemed to share this feeling of confusion, questions raining down from the stands as Roland tapped his earpiece with one hand. The other hand was loosening his collar as he felt panic rise in his chest.

-------------------------------------------------------------

"I am not getting paid enough for all the malfunctions I've had to put up with today!" Roland yelled on the screen of the control center. "What are you guys doing in there?"

"Sorry Roland, we're doing our best." Rei responded. "But for some reason the arena programs have all frozen."

"Can you see how Mr. Kaiba is looking at me right now?" Roland fretted. "The only times I've seen him look like that is when he's about to crush an opponent in Duel Monsters, or fire someone. I'm not a duelist!"

Mokuba was looking over his personal screen, musing over the figures on it.

"_This doesn't make any sense, not even my codes are able to unfreeze the programs,"_ Mokuba thought.

"You aren't having any luck either?" Noah lamented, looking over Mokuba's computer. "This doesn't add up…Hey wait a minute…"

Sota was seated at his terminal, frantically punching in a line of code and watching as the arena floor shimmered. Roland looked relieved as the dirt changed to metal and he redid his collar.

"What happened?" Noah asked. "Who did that?"

"Sorry sir…" Sota stammered out. "I just sort of panicked and I uh…downloaded on of the rejected programs…"

Mokuba looked ready to jump down and throttle Sota, who threw up his hands defensively.

"Don't worry, it's not dangerous!" He shouted. "Mr. Kaiba just didn't think it was elaborate enough. It was in a separate folder of rejected designs so I figured that maybe they wouldn't have…locked…up?"

Mokuba sighed; nothing could be done to stop it now unless Seto said so.

"I guess we'll have to go with it," Mokuba grumbled. "Next time though, run it past me before you upload something."

"Y…Yes sir," Sota whimpered, wiping his brow.

--------------------------------------------------------

Roland listened in his earpiece as to what had just transpired. He nodded, getting the information on the arena that they were now forced to use.

"Sorry for the delay, our battlefield is decided," Roland called out to the audience.

The arena shifted more, the walls and ceiling now turning metal as well. Each of the duelists gasped as a section of the metal floor rose up beneath them, revealing a black cube about five feet in height, width, and depth. On each side of the cube appeared the number 8000 in bold, red numbers.

"For lack of a better term, this arena is known as the danger zone. As players lose life points, the counter on their platform will drop." Roland explained. "And should they reach zero…Kaboom! The platform goes up with the force of about half a ton of dynamite!"

"This seems a touch extreme," Victor muttered.

"I thought I disapproved this one," Kaiba grumbled. "On the other hand, now I don't need to waste a good arena."

"Are you two ready?" Roland asked.

"Yes!" Victor nodded.

"Ready as I need to be," Kaiba grumbled.

"Choose your deckmasters!" Roland commanded.

Victor and Kaiba both nodded, and pointed to their left at the same time.

"I choose Pitch Black Warwolf!" Victor announced.

"I select Kaiser Seahorse!" Kaiba called out at the same time.

Victor's growling, black wolf man jumped from behind his cube and landed next to him. In the meantime, Kaiba's shimmering sea creature fell from above, catching his spear and twirling it before pointing right at his opponent.

"First turn honors go to…" Roland smiled.

The numbers on each cube suddenly began to flash randomly. Victor and Kaiba both watched as they went out then came back on. Victor's cube red seventeen, while Kaiba's was forty-two

"…Victor Greenstone, for getting the lower number," Roland confirmed. "Whenever you're ready."

Victor pulled six cards from his disk, while Kaiba drew five.

"Time to duel!" Victor intoned.

**Victor: 8000**

**Kaiba: 8000**

Victor took one card from his hand, setting it facedown onto his disk. In front of him appeared a facedown monster, and Victor gave it a nod.

"I'll start with just one monster facedown," Victor stated. "That's all for my turn."

"Good, the fewer you moves you make, the faster this will all be over," Kaiba said as he drew. "I open with a spell known as Ancient Rules."

Kaiba played a card from his hand, and in behind him descended a brown scroll. It unfurled, revealing a sequence of strange letters and a bluish-white dragon. Kaiba smiled as he pointed to the scroll.

"With this spell, I can special summon on level five or higher monster from my hand. Even with my deckmaster I'd still need one sacrifice for this monster, but with this spell…" Kaiba trailed off.

"Hang on, you can't already be…" Victor gasped.

Kaiba slapped down one of the cards from his hand, shouting out, "By the effect of Ancient Rules, I summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"

Kaiba's deckmaster raised its spear overhead, and the dragon on the scroll flew from the parchment. It shimmered with silver light, growing in size until it towered over Kaiba. The light faded, unveiling his prized dragon which looked lazily toward Victor and his facedown monster.

"Just to be certain though, I'll use my normal summon to bring in Lord of Dragons (1200/1100)," Kaiba went one, playing another card.

Next to the mighty dragon appeared a much smaller human. He wore brown robes and a headdress shaped like a dragon skull. He looked up at the Blue-Eyes and smiled under his hood.

"Blue-Eyes, remove that facedown monster from my sight," Kaiba ordered. "Unleash your white lightning!"

The dragon roared, snapping its head forward and releasing a burst of crackling energy from between its jaws. Victor's facedown monster turned over, and from the card leapt a familiar rough collie. The dog jumped to the side just in time as the beam of destruction slammed into where it had sat just a moment before.

"Mr. Kaiba, you were watching my duel with Mai Valentine I believe," Victor smirked. "I'm sure you remember my Dogged Defender (1000/1700) can't be destroyed in a fight with monsters that have more than 1900 attack points."

Kaiba glared at the dog as it lay down at the base of its master's cube and yawned.

"This is going to be a long duel," Kaiba grumbled. "That will end my turn."

Victor drew his card, staring up into the cerulean eyes of the monster that spelled the doom for countless duelists before him. He cautiously picked through his options, before settling on one card and placing it into his disk.

"Fine Mr. Kaiba, if you plan on bringing out your big guns early I'll just have to disarm them," Victor decided.

"I would love to see you try," Kaiba challenged.

"If you insist: I summon Rampaging Rhynos (1500/1500)!" Victor responded.

Pitch-Black Warwolf titled back his head in a long howl. One of the walls that surrounded the arena dented inward suddenly. It pushed in further, then finally the section of weakened metal burst and from the new hole sprang a rhino in blue armor, walking on its hind legs. It charged onto Victor's field, stopping right across from Kaiba's dragon and removing a battle ax from its back.

"I see…I remember this monster gains 500 attack points when it attacks an opponent across from it," Kaiba mused. "Even with that bonus however, it stands no chance against my mighty beast."

"Maybe, maybe not," Victor smiled as he played another card. "Did you perchance take into account that I have Wild Nature's Release ready to power him up?"

Kaiba's eyes narrowed as his enemy's monster began to glow with a red aura. Rampaging Rhynos (3000/1500) snorted in rage as its muscles expanded, causing its armor to groan with the effort of containing them. It cast aside its ax, now a much less effective weapon, and slammed its fists together.

"Rhynos, time to do what you do best and rampage all over Kaiba's dragon!" Victor ordered. "Rampant charge!"

Rhynos took off, aimed directly at the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, its power swelling even further to (3500/1500) as per its effect. The dragon groaned in pain as the power-packed pachyderm rammed directly into its chest, the sound of cracking scales and bones echoing around the compound before the monster fell over with a crash. It faded away in a barrage of sparks, while Victor placed a card facedown onto his disk.

**Victor: 8000**

**Kaiba: 7500**

"I think that's enough damage for one turn, go ahead Mr. Kaiba," Victor declared as the facedown card appeared.

Rampaging Rhynos suddenly clutched its chest and groaned. It toppled over and shattered into data bits as it struck the floor, Wild Nature's Release taking its toll on the monster and destroying it. If Kaiba found this to be comforting, he didn't show it. The look in his eyes was displeased (at the least) with Victor's attack.

"You'd dare insult my dragon by bringing it down with a monster not even half its level?" Kaiba growled.

Kaiba looked at the card he drew, and placed it amongst his other ones. He set another card onto his disk.

"I promise you'll pay for that, and your little dog too," Kaiba called out. "I summon La Jinn, Mystical Genie of the Lamp (1800/1000)!"

With a hearty chuckle and a plume of smoke, the wicked djinn rose up on Kaiba's field. He stroked his mustache as he looked toward Victor's lone monster, a smile on his face.

"La Jinn, put that mongrel to sleep with disastrous desires!" Kaiba barked.

The genie pointed at the Dogged Defender, pulling his finger as though he were pulling an invisible trigger. A bolt of dark magic shot from above, and Lassie's tribute howled in agony as it was struck down.

"Now Lord of Dragons, attack directly with draconic sorcery," Kaiba continued.

The wizard raised one hand, an orb of black energy swirling around his fingertips. Victor waved a hand toward his facedown card, causing it to lift up.

"I activate Scapegoats, granting me four fuzzy little friends!" Victor called out.

From the card sprang four goats (0/0 X4) which bleated happily as they floated above the ground. Kaiba grit his teeth, but nodded to his Spellcaster who continued his attack. A dragon skull made of black energy appeared next to one of the goats and gobbled it down, causing the other three to run behind Victor, bleating in fear.

"Hey, you guys are supposed to protect me!" Victor exclaimed, trying to shoo the little monsters back to the field.

"They have the right idea, trying to hide," Kaiba warned. "You bested one of my dragons. I guarantee that won't happen twice."

Sliding one card from his hand, Kaiba set it facedown on his field.

"Now take your turn," he ordered.

Victor drew and immediately placed another monster onto his disk.

"Okay Mr. Kaiba, time to release the hounds," Victor declared. "I summon Mad Dog of Darkness (1900/1400)!"

With a howl of anger, the orange canine bounded onto the field from Rhyno's entrance hole. Victor pointed at Kaiba's facedown card with smirk.

"Next, how about my deckmaster takes a whiff of your facedown card?" Victor offered.

The Warwolf inhaled sharply and then growled as Kaiba's trap lifted up. A web of black chains appeared in between the two duelists, and the wolf man charged forward, brining his sword down and carving through every last link.

"Your Shadow Spell trap is useless before me," Warwolf growled.

Kaiba grumbled something under his breath. Whatever he said didn't seem to go over well with either of Victor's canine monsters, both of whom now seemed even angrier.

"Wow, I don't know what you said, but I guess you forgot that dogs have much better hearing than humans," Victor observed.

"Then how come Wheeler never listens when I tell him to get lost?" Kaiba muttered.

Whether he didn't hear Kaiba or just chose to ignore the question, Victor went on and pointed at Lord of Dragons.

"Mad Dog, sic his Lord of Dragons!" Victor commanded.

The rabid canid bound forward, clamping its massive jaws around the chest of Kaiba's dragon tamer. He gasped in pain before vanishing from the jaws of the monster in a flurry of shadows. The counter on Kaiba's platform dipped a tiny bit more.

**Victor: 8000**

**Kaiba: 6200**

Victor looked over the rest of the cards in his hand. Shrugging his shoulders, he looked over to Kaiba who did not seem amused with this turn of events.

"Guess that's all I'll do for now," He offered.

"Fine, my move," Kaiba declared as he drew. "I'll think I'll start by setting one card facedown…"

A facedown card materialized on the floor in front of Kaiba, La Jinn giving it a reproachful look. He didn't seem confident in the card, whatever it may have been.

"I'll also set one monster facedown," Kaiba finished as another brown card appeared next to La Jinn. "Oh, and I'll switch my genie into defense mode. That's all."

La Jinn knelt down and crossed his arms over his chest. Victor drew, and immediately pointed at Kaiba's hidden monster.

"As long as I've got you pinned, I may as well press my advantage," Victor decided. "Mad Dog of Darkness, frenzied rush! Attack his facedown monster."

The dog barked once before beginning its charge, and Kaiba's mouth split into a smile.

"_You_ have _me_ pinned? I'm afraid you have it backwards," Kaiba corrected. "You walked right into my trap: activate Final Attack Orders!"

Kaiba's trap card lifted, and the lights in the arena began to pulse red. An alarm blared, causing La Jinn to jump back to an offensive position. The noise startled Victor's Scapegoats, all of which sprang up into the air with their eyes wide, bleating in fear. As Kaiba's facedown monster turned over, revealing the strange cloth demon known as Slate Warrior (1900/400), it also stood up and raised its woven fists.

"What? Your monsters moved into attack mode," Victor observed, scratching his head.

"That's what Final Attack Orders does, and according to the official rules, if a facedown monster is attacked it will move attack mode before we calculate damage," Kaiba responded.

"So then both our monsters get taken out!" Victor realized as his dog continued its attack.

"No, only yours does," Kaiba said. "When Slate Warrior (2400/900) flips face up, it raises its attack and defense by 500."

A powerful wind began to push out from behind Slate Warrior, causing its arms to fan forward, stretching on the breeze. As they got close to Victor's canine commando, the Scapegoats suddenly swooped down and chomped onto the stretchy limbs with their little teeth!

"What!" Kaiba exclaimed as Victor held up the card he had just played.

"A simple chain Kaiba, my Big March of Animals gives every Beast-type monster 200 extra points for each beast I control," Victor cleared up. "What's more, it's a quickplay spell card, so I can chain it to your trap. In short, my card goes first, and your fiend goes down!"

Mad Dog of Darkness (2700/1400) slammed into the chest of the Slate Warrior, causing the monster to fall over. It was smashed into a pile of rubble and strips of cloth by the crushing weight of the canine. Kaiba grit his teeth together, but then smiled as a blue mist appeared around the dog.

**Victor: 8000**

**Kaiba: 5900**

"Maybe you win that round, but Slate Warrior reduces the attack of the monster that destroys him by 500 points," Kaiba reminded Victor.

"Shoot, forgot about that…" Victor growled. "I end my turn."

Mad Dog of Darkness (1400/1400) looked sick, it limbs shaking and its fur ragged and patchy as it stumbled back to its owner's field. The Scapegoats nuzzled at its ankles, looking sympathetic for their comrade.

"Now then, my turn," Kaiba smiled as he drew. "How about another playmate? I summon Luster Dragon (1900/1600)!"

The warning buzzer had long since silenced, but the red lights still flashed over the field. As they did, they illuminated a large table which rose from the floor, carrying a massive chunk of blue crystals. The gems slowly fell away, shattering on contact with the ground, revealing a dragon with scales that shone like sapphires. It stood straight and tall, wings spread behind it as it glared down at Victor's field.

"Another thing I may have forgotten to mention: Final Attack Orders affects your monsters too," Kaiba smirked.

Victor looked to his Scapegoats, who were all trembling in fear.

"La Jinn, destroy his mangy mutt now!" Kaiba ordered.

La Jinn shot forth a bolt of black energy, striking Victor's monster right in the forehead. Mad Dog toppled over, and lay still before vanishing into particles of shadow.

"Luster Dragon, sapphire burst blaze!" Kaiba continued.

The dragon responded by spitting out an orb of blue fire which flew right into one of the goats. Victor screamed as the fireball went through the goat and right into his chest, the tiny token shattering apart an instant later.

**Victor: 5700**

**Kaiba: 5900**

Clutching his chest, Victor looked at his life point readout. Frowning, he took a look over the rest of his hand again.

"_Guess it's about time to try that card out,"_ he figured.

"Is it my turn yet Mr. Kaiba?" Victor asked.

"As a matter of fact, it is," Kaiba nodded.

"Good," Victor stated as he drew. "Then I'll start with my Stray Lambs magic card."

A soft bleating was heard, and two more goat tokens (0/0 X2) floated out from behind Victor's cube. They bleated softly as the red light raised them into attack mode.

"Next comes my Token Thanksgiving card," Victor went on. "Useful when you need a fast way to get rid of a few Scapegoats, no matter whose field they're on. This spell destroys them and gives me 800 life points for each one."

The four tokens lowered to the floor, and from nowhere appeared a green goblin carrying a wicker basket. He walked up to each of the little sheep and picked them up, placing them inside his basket before moving to the next one. After scooping up the fourth, he reached inside his parcel and pulled out a fist full of sparkling powder. Scattering it into the air, it drifted down over Victor, surrounded his body a multi-colored glow.

After taking a deep breath and relaxing his shoulders, Victor took another card from his hand and set it onto his disk while saying, "That's much better. Now I'll just set this card facedown before ending my turn."

A facedown monster appeared as the goblin vanished just as quickly as he had appeared.

**Victor: 8900**

**Kaiba: 5900**

"Gain as many points as you want, I'll knock them off just as fast," Kaiba threatened as he drew. "Luster Dragon, attack!"

The blue reptile reared back and released another shot of blue flames. Victor's facedown monster jumped up, showing a cuddly looking koala with brown fur. It growled as it bared its claws right before it was burnt to a cinder.

"Look before you leap next time, you just struck down my Des Koala (1100/1800)." Victor cautioned. "You lose 400 life points for each card you have now, and I count two."

A ghostly koala appeared behind Kaiba, who turned around just in time for the enraged marsupial to pounce on him. Kaiba fell over, the ferociously attacking monster ripping at his chest and face with its sharp claws and teeth. The young CEO finally shoved it off and got to his feet, his wounds healing over even as the counter on his bomb dropped.

"A minor annoyance…" Kaiba began.

"About to become a major problem," Victor interrupted. "Since you just destroyed a Beast monster I controlled, I can awaken the most powerful monster in my arsenal, one that I reserve for special opponents. Congratulations Mr. Kaiba, you qualify."

"I'm honored, really. Now let's see this monster," Kaiba challenged.

"If you insist," Victor nodded, spreading his arms as he dropped a card from his hand onto his disk. "I just pay 1000 life points…"

An anguished scream could be heard echoing from the hole that had been made in the wall earlier. The sounds of smashing machines and explosions could be heard as well as heavy footsteps.

"I call forth: Green Baboon, Defender of the Forest (2600/1800)!" Victor finished.

The hole that had been opened before suddenly grew much wider as a fist approximately one-and-a-half times the size of it forced its way through. It grabbed the edge of the hole, ripping upward to form a massive tear in the wall.

"I have no idea what Victor just summoned, but folks, it doesn't sound friendly!" Roland called out over the racket.

The tear was widened, and a huge ugly monster, a massive ape covered in green fur and armor made of boulders tied together with vines, stomped its way in. It was almost as big as the Blue-Eyes had been, and it towered over both of Kaiba's monster which trembled in fear.

"Well, what do you think? Be honest," Victor queried.

"I've seen better," Kaiba responded.

The beast roared and glared at Kaiba with an angry look.

"I would not want to get this thing mad at me, but Kaiba doesn't seem shaken at all!" Roland realized. "Either he has a plan, or he just doesn't care…"

"_I'm guessing it's the first one,"_ Victor reasoned.

**Victor: 7100**

**Kaiba: 5100**

Kaiba crossed his arms as he looked calmly up at the face of the beast. It let out another roar at the business man, blowing his hair back with its foul breath. Kaiba simply fixed his hair as he looked to Victor.

"I'll end my turn here," he said.

Both of Kaiba's monsters looked stunned and turned to their master. They then at each other and gulped nervously.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Up in the audience, Joey fingers dug into the armrest of his chair as he watched the duel.

"I don't believe it…" he grumbled. "Victor's got the upper hand…But Kaiba's acting like _he's_ the one that's winning!"

Joey's knuckles turned white, and Serenity placed a hand on his.

"Joey, calm down," Serenity requested. "You're starting to scare me a little…"

"Serenity's right," Mai sighed. "Look, Kaiba is one of the best duelists in the world. He didn't get that way by panicking every time a strong monster appears."

"He's certainly acting calmer than I would have," Bakura observed. "I'm scared of that monster, and I'm not even the one dueling!"

"If I recall, Mr. Greenstone didn't use that card in his previous duels," John chimed in.

"Well it's a powerful card. He probably planned to save it for Kaiba or Yugi," Mai pointed out.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

"I say…" Richington gasped, staring at the massive monster.

"Wow…" Weevil breathed.

"Don't you dare try to make any jokes now," Mako warned Tim as he looked to the fire duelist.

"Why do people always assume I'm going to make a joke?" Tim asked.

"I'm not sure I want to answer that," Mako muttered under his breath.

"Well, if you insist…" Tim began.

Before he could get a word out, Mako clamped one hand over the younger Hokage's mouth. Tim grunted in surprise, but got the message upon seeing Mako's glare.

-------------------------------------------------------

Victor seemed wary as he drew his card.

"_He's not even playing a trap? What's Kaiba's game this time?"_ Victor wondered.

He looked at the monster he had drawn, frowning as he saw it.

"_Oh no, Des Kangaroo! I removed Big Koala for Green Baboon, but I really should have taken this one out too,"_ he realized. _"Without Big Koala to fuse with him, he's useless…"_

Victor looked up to his monster, which growled down at him, awaiting its orders.

"Well, seeing as the monster I already have is more than enough, I attack La Jinn with Green Baboon!" Victor ordered. "Primeval punch!"

The giant ape hollered and lunged at Kaiba's field. The green genie gasped in horror as the beast's massive fist came down on him. He vanished in a puff of green mist, a low moan escaping from under the gargantuan fist that had pressed it into the floor.

**Victor: 7100**

**Kaiba: 4300**

"That's all for my turn…I guess," Victor muttered.

Kaiba drew, and set another card on his field without hesitation. A facedown monster appeared, followed just as quickly by a facedown card behind it.

"Go on," he challenged.

"A very…short turn on Mr. Kaiba's part," Roland observed. "Is he planning something?"

Victor drew slowly once again, looking at the card as he added it to his hand. Behind him, Pitch-Black Warwolf drew his weapon and growled.

"I think I'll start my turn with my deckmaster," Victor began. "Show me his facedown card."

The werewolf sniffed at the air, and as he did Kaiba's hidden card turned over. It showed the image of a totem pole covered with loud speakers , surrounded by a green border for the card.

"A spell card?" Victor asked, his deckmaster looking disappointed. "And it's…Command Silencer? What does that do?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out," Kaiba answered in a mocking tone.

Victor thought for a moment before placing his new card onto his disk.

"Well, this duel won't get anywhere if neither of us takes a few chances," Victor declared. "I summon Enraged Battle Ox (1700/1000)!"

A snorting and stamping could be heard beneath the floor, which suddenly dented upward as something pounded on it from below. A door started to open where the dent had appeared, but whatever was under the door didn't want to wait. A pair of hand reached up and wrenched the portal open wide, followed closely by their owner: a ferocious minotaur in red armor. The bull-man detached a hand-ax from his waist and pointed it at Kaiba's monsters, a maddened gleam in its glowing eyes.

Green Baboon seemed to take well to its new company. Its eyes shone red and flecks of spittle gathered by the edges of its mouth.

"As I'm sure everyone remembers, my Battle Ox grants all Beast, Beast-Warrior, and Winged-Beast monsters a trampling effect," Victor reminded the audience. "So now there's nothing left to do but go wild on Kaiba's life points! Attack now my menagerie…"

Victor was cut off by a piercing whistle that sounded from all around the room. He and his monsters all grabbed their ears in pain as the noise increased in volume. Kaiba merely scratched at his ear for a minute, apparently un-phased (or possibly immune to) the auditory attack. After a moment, he snapped his fingers and the whistling ceased, allowing Victor and his monsters to recover.

"What in the world was that?" Victor demanded.

"That would have been my Command Silencer card," Kaiba responded with a grin. "You wanted to know what it does. It's very simple: Your monsters are no longer permitted to attack this turn, seeing as my quickplay spell has temporarily deafened them. As a bonus, I get to draw a card right now."

As he said this, Kaiba tucked another card into his hand. Victor clenched a quick fist, but released it with a sigh.

"No use in getting worked up about it I suppose…" he grumbled. "Your move Kaiba."

Kaiba drew his card, the smirk still on his face as he did so.

"Well now, I promised you'd pay for earlier," Kaiba stated. "Time to make good on it. I tribute my facedown Saggi the Dark Clown(600/1500)…"

The facedown monster flipped over, showing a white-facedown harlequin in purple and blue clothes. It laughed insanely before vanishing into a flurry of sparkles. A laser fired from the ceiling, striking the sparks and gathering them into a massive orb of light overhead.

"You wouldn't…" Victor gasped.

"Try and stop me," Kaiba snickered. "Bow before my second Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"

The orb exploded into a shower of silver sparks as the mighty dragon burst from it. It roared, spreading its wings and stretching its scaly neck, its eyes expressing nothing but anger at the man who had slain its brother.

"Oh, but don't think I brought him out here just to feast on your big, smelly ape," Kaiba sneered. "I had another plan. I activate a spell that only I'm capable of using: Burst Stream of Destruction!"

The card shone as Kaiba placed it into his disk, his destructive monster open its jaws and gathering energy between them.

"I remember this from the opening demonstration," Victor gasped. "It destroys all of my monsters, so long as you have a Blue-Eyes on the field!"

"Good to see someone was paying attention, now I don't have to waist time explaining," Kaiba shouted over the racket his monster was making. "FIRE!"

A massive burst of light and energy consumed Victor's field as the dragon fired its deadly breath at him. Both of the Beast-duelist's monsters screamed in agony before they were vaporized by the intense energy. Victor covered his eyes against the light, and as the attack faded he began to blink rapidly, his sight slowly coming back.

"Sapphire blaze burst!" Kaiba's order came.

Victor's eyes recovered just in time for him to see an orb of blue fire heading right for his face. With a yelp of panic, he raised his disk and intercepted the attack with his card tray. The flames exploded on the point of impact, sending the man stumbling back a few steps.

**Victor: 5200**

**Kaiba: 4300**

Kaiba was glaring at Victor as he lowered his disk.

"You beat one of my dragons due to a fluke. It won't happen again," Kaiba declared. "That's another promise. Now take your turn."

Victor shook a bit as he drew his card, but his hand steady as he turned it around.

"Pot of Greed, I get two new cards," Victor announced.

The green jar appeared on the field, laughter echoing from its depths. From the jar sprang a tiny imp made of green smoke, which chuckled as it produced a small pistol made of silvery metal. It pulled the trigger, a green light washing over the confused Victor's deck, and then both the pot and its occupant vanished without a trace.

"Someone seems to be going overboard with the special effects," Kaiba commented as Victor drew his cards.

In the real world, Sota was grumbling 'suck up' under his breath as he glared at Jackson.

Weird happenings aside, Victor took one of the cards he had drawn and placed it onto his disk. A hollering noise echoed from the hole carved by the Green Baboon, and through the opening leapt a mandrill with purple fur. It beat its chest as it landed in front of Victor, staring up at the two bigger monsters.

"For this turn, I summon Bazoo the Soul Eater (1600/900)," Victor announced. "Next comes his effect: I remove Rampaging Rhynos, Dogged Defender, and Mad Dog of Darkness from my graveyard, and he gains 300 attack points for each of them."

A hole opened in the ceiling, and from its slithered a black tube. The tube rattled and shook for a moment before spitting three glowing orbs onto the ground in front of Bazoo. As the tube retracted, the simian gulped down all three of the offerings, its muscles bulging and its fur turning bright red. Bazoo (2500/900) beat its chest wildly as it finished its 'soul food.'

"Bazoo, attack his Luster Dragon with sacrifice feast!" Victor called out.

The mandrill hollered again as it plowed forward, tackling the smaller of the two dragons and sinking its fangs into its throat. Luster Dragon gave a weak cry before it shattered to bits.

"That's all I can do," Victor sighed as his monster trampled back to his field. "At least the bonus sticks around until you end your turn."

"What a waste of time," Kaiba commented as he drew. "My Blue-Eyes can destroy that monkey even with its ability. Blue-Eyes, white lightning attack!"

Once more the mighty dragon built up energy within its jaws. This time the blast that it fired only struck one section of Victor's field, the one that was occupied by Bazoo. The simian screamed before it was atomized, Victor's life points falling…

Then proceeding to fall even more as a shimmer of light appeared in his graveyard.

"Thank you Mr. Kaiba, by doing that you've allowed me to use Green Baboons effect once again," Victor smiled. "Its power lets me summon it from my hand or my graveyard, so here comes his return appearance!"

Victor's life points finished dropping, and from the hole in the wall stomped his giant beast once again. It sported a bit of grave dirt on its stone armor, and it scowling at Kaiba as it took its place by Victor's side (2600/1800).

**Victor: 3700**

**Kaiba: 3700**

"And you brought that oversized hairball back because…?" Kaiba challenged.

"You'll see soon enough," Victor retorted.

"_I hope,"_ he thought to himself.

-----------------------------------------------------------

"It comes back from the grave too? How are you supposed to keep it dead?" Espa wondered aloud.

"I think that's the point," Brian answered, looking over the field. "Kaiba can't kill it for good if Victor can pay the 1000 life points to bring it back."

"Unless he's got some major gaining cards, he can only bring that…thing back three more times," Celeste observed, cringing a bit at the sight of the monster.

"Of course, that does not include the damage he might take from Mr. Kaiba attack his monsters," Ronaldo pointed out. "Don't forget that Final Attack Order card makes defending impossible."

"I'd say Kaiba has the advantage here," Kevin summed up.

"Kaiba always has the advantage," Celeste spoke back.

------------------------------------------------------

"Mr. Pegasus? A question," Gold said, turning to the creator.

"Yes Julie-boy?" Pegasus said with a smile.

"What were you on when you drew that card?" Gold asked. Pointing to the grotesque monster lording over Victor's field.

"Well, I wanted a creature that would look like it embodied all of nature's fury and power," Pegasus explained.

"It smells bad," Zeffie whined, holding her nose.

"That you can blame on Kaiba-boy," Pegasus agreed.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Victor drew his card, nervously biting his lip when he saw it.

"_This will help him as much as it does me…"_ Victor thought as he reached for the card to play it. _"However, I don't have a choice if I want to have a chance."_

"I activate Card of Sanctity!" Victor cried, placing the spell into his disk.

Golden light exploded around both duelists, allowing them each to draw five cards. Seeing one of them, Victor smiled as he placed another spell into his disk.

"Next comes a fairly basic card known as Rush Recklessly, granting my monster an extra 700 attack points," Victor announced.

Green Baboon titled its head in a terrifying howl, causing Kaiba's dragon to begin to shake in fear! The powerful primate's attack sprang to (3300/1800) as Victor placed one more card next to it.

"Finally, meet my little friend from down under: Des Kangaroo (1500/1700)," Victor introduced.

A bouncing sound was heard as a green kangaroo wearing a purple vest and red boxing gloves. It took a few practice jabs before settling into a fighting position.

"Green Baboon, unleash nature's wrath on his Blue-Eyes!" Victor shouted.

The dragon roared in defiance, only for Victor's beast to grab it by its neck and force it to the ground. Straddling the dragon, Green Baboon grasped its upper jaw and pulled upward with all its strength.

Several members of the audience turned green as a loud snap was heard from the field (Gold, of course, covered Zeffie's eyes with one hand and Mary's with the other). The dragon went limp before vanishing, and Kaiba had a gleam in his eyes that made it sure Victor would be sorry he had done that.

"Des Kangaroo, dreamtime combination!" Victor shouted again. "Go teach Kaiba how they say 'pain' in Australia!"

The marsupial bounded toward its target on its powerful legs, hopping onto Kaiba's cube and pummeling him in the chest and stomach with a five-hit combo. Kaiba grunted as he staggered back, the numbers on his bomb dropping rapidly.

**Victor: 3700**

**Kaiba: 1900**

Roland was silent for a moment, but snapped out of it as the audience began to cheer wildly.

"I…Don't believe it folks! That challenger Victor Greenstone actually has the upper hand, and is only one attack away from winning!" Roland screamed. "Is this the end for the great Seto Kaiba?"

Kaiba glared at Roland as Victor chuckled a bit.

"Announcers sure like to blow things out of proportion don't they?" He laughed. "I have a feeling you'll prove him wrong on your coming turn."

"Like you wouldn't believe," Kaiba stated as he drew. "Thanks to your card, I've drawn just what I need. I activate Spell Sanctuary!"

The lights behind Kaiba began to grow brighter, and the holographic image of a temple made of white marble appeared behind him. Each player's deck began to shimmer with light as Kaiba explained.

"This spell lets each of us take one spell from our deck and add it to our hand," Kaiba instructed as he took a card. "Then, as long it stands, we can activate any spell on the field as though it were a quickplay spell, no matter what kind it really is."

"Interesting," Victor mused as he took his Heavy Storm card. "I'd imagine you have some great plan to take advantage of that."

"Naturally. It starts with my Premature Burial card, which will resurrect my Blue-Eyes Dragon!" Kaiba roared.

Rings of red light fell from the ceiling, and in them appeared Kaiba's dragon. The lights expanded to circle its entire body, illuminating several patches of missing scales and one wing which was bent at an odd angle. The creature growled from within its confinement as Victor took a nervous gulp once more.

"Of course, if I destroyed your monkey you could just bring it back later," Kaiba observed. "So I think its time for your kangaroo to teach us the Australian word for goodbye! Blue-Eyes, decimate the Des Kangaroo!"

The dragon's head snapped forward, extended outside the rings for a brief instant. A burst of white energy consumed the frightened marsupial, causing Victor to scream in pain as the spillover damage splashed across his body.

"_That hurt…Much more than it should have…"_ Victor realized. _"Ugh…This is what I was warned about…Got to use the emergency system and hope that still works,"_

-----------------------------------------------------------

"REI!" Mokuba yelled as the female technician jumped in her seat.

"I know, Sir, I'm trying to reinstate the safeties now," Rei stammered. "But my whole keyboard is locked down, I can't do a thing!"

"Same here," Sota fretted.

"Don't look at me, my terminal is trashed too," Jackson withered under Mokuba's glare.

The same answer came from all the other techs, while Noah wheeled his body over to the corner of the room.

"That does it, if you want something done right…" Noah grumbled. "Mokuba, leave this one to me!"

Before the other Kaiba could protest, Noah had extended a plug from the back of his body and placed it into a special socket in the wall. The screen on his head powered down, his image vanishing from it and reappearing on Mokuba's screen.

"Be careful Noah…" Mokuba fretted.

-----------------------------------------------------

Back on the field, Victor was getting back up after Kaiba's attack. The last twinges of pain tingled from his arms as he shook them out and checked his life points.

**Victor: 2200**

**Kaiba: 1100**

"Two cards facedown, and that will end my turn," Kaiba finished, two more cards appearing next to his dragon.

"Not bad Kaiba," Victor grunted as he drew. "But don't count me out yet. I activate Heavy Storm…"

Winds began to pick up around the duelists, but Kaiba pointed to one of his facedown cards with a grin.

"To that, I chain Emergency Provisions, offering Spell Sanctuary, Final Attack Orders, Premature Burial, and my facedown Negate Attack. This grants me 4000 more life points, and removes the ties my dragon had to Premature Burial without destroying it," he listed off.

Victor cussed under breath as a computer screen appeared next Kaiba. The words 'VIRAL INFECTION' flashed across it in bold letters before the red lights and holographic temple both fizzled out. The rings of red light around Kaiba's dragon flared brightly before being extinguished, leaving the Blue-Eyes as good as new. Finally, Kaiba's facedown card shattered apart, and on the computer screen appeared the words 'RECOVERING PROGRAMS.' The numbers on the bomb below Kaiba faded away before being replaced by his higher total.

**Victor: 2200**

**Kaiba: 5100**

The winds of Heavy Storm, with nothing left to destroy, died down and faded before ever reaching their full potential. Victor took another card from his hand and removed his lone monster from his disk.

"In that case, I'll tribute Green Baboon for one monster in facedown defense mode," Victor stated.

The primal creature faded away, replaced by a facedown card and several confused murmurs from the audience. Everyone suddenly fell silent as a strange sensation swept through the whole crowd as well as over both duelists. A feeling like the world was suddenly moving much slower then sped back up.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Noah, who was wandering around the backdoor hallway of the Virtual World, suddenly stumbled as he felt the odd sensation as well.

"Urgh…Either they fixed the safeties or something bad just happened…" Noah muttered, reaching up next to his ear and tapping it once. "Mokuba, can you hear me?"

-----------------------------------------------------------

"_Well, that's out of the way,"_ Victor thought.

"I'll set these two cards facedown," Victor went on, the two cards appearing in front of him. "And that will end my turn."

Kaiba drew his card, but as he did Victor's hand flew to his disk. The lights overhead suddenly shattered, electricity arcing wildly between them. The Blue-Eyes roared as the stray bolts struck it, causing it to slump down as its muscles went numb.

"Thunder of Ruler forces you to skip your battle phase this turn," Victor said as Kaiba glared at him.

"How clever, I'll be sure to award you next turn with a painful end to this duel," Kaiba threatened. "Until then, nothing is stopping me from summoning my Vorse Raider (1900/1200)."

An axe fell from above and imbedded itself in the floor. Following it came Kaiba's ogre, which slumped down next to its weapon. A few sparks fell from its clothes, indicating it had probably been hiding up near the lights as it waited to summoned.

"That ends my turn," Kaiba finished.

His monsters slowly got up, the numbness fading from their limbs as they did so. Victor drew his card with another smile on his face.

"Time now for a little teamwork," Victor declared. "I summon Wild One (1500/900) in attack mode!"

A howl was heard from beyond the hole in the wall. White mist began to swirl around the floor as a blurry shape suddenly dashed inside. It settled in front of Victor, revealing a pure white wolf for a moment before the mist rose around it, obscuring any view of the animal.

"Another handy Beast for my deck, this creature allows me to treat any monster in my hand or on my field as though it were a Beast-type," Victor elaborated. "So now I flip summon my Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000)."

The mists swirled up then fell, leaving Victor's winged-lion crouching on all fours in front of him. It lifted its tail in preparation to strike as its master held up another card.

"Next comes my second Wild Nature's Release, adding Manticore's defense to its attack," Victor stated as he played the spell.

The amalgamated monster roared as a blazing fire rose up around it (3300/1000) burning away the mist that surrounded Victor's field and revealing the white wolf hiding in it.

"Manticore, attack! Hell breath of death on the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Victor ordered.

The enraged lion/scorpion/raven hybrid took a deep breath before spraying a massive surge of flames onto Kaiba's dragon. The Blue-Eyes screeched as its scales warped and cracked under the extreme heat right before it burst into flames itself and collapsed.

"You win that round, but your monster dies at the end of the turn," Kaiba growled.

"Unless I remove it from the field, that's where Wild One comes in," Victor went on as he activated his remaining facedown card. "Since I can treat my Manticore as a Beast-type, I can use it with this Beast Soul Swap trap card. This lets me take it off the field and back into my hand."

The manticore collapsed, panting heavily, and a white orb flew from its body. The body vanished into thin air, Victor's card rematerializing in his hand as he took another and placed it onto his disk.

"Of course, it is called Beast Soul _Swap_. That means I can replace it with a new Beast of the same level, like my second Manticore of Darkness (2300/1000)," Victor said as he played the card. "This one wasn't affected by the Wild Nature's release, meaning it won't die when I end my turn."

A blast of flames rose up around the white orb that had remained on the field, and from the column of fire emerged an exact duplicate of the monster that had just left. Wild One growled as the Manticore strode onto the field on two legs, causing the Beast-Warrior to look down at it. Seeing the wolf, Manticore fell onto all fours, its bestial nature taking hold.

"Seeing as it's still my battle phase, how about I take care of your Vorse Raider?" Victor proposed to Kaiba's sneering face. "Manticore, attack!"

The newer beast opened its mouth and belched forth a wave of fire, consuming Kaiba's ogre before it had a chance to lift its axe. Victor pointed to the now-defenseless Kaiba with a savage grin on his face.

"Time for the direct attack Wild One, howling claw!" Victor shouted.

The wolf howled as it leapt from the floor and raked its claws across Kaiba's chest. The younger man gasped in pain as he braced himself in place, the wolf pouncing back to Victor's field with a single bound.

**Victor: 2200**

**Kaiba: 3900**

Kaiba clutched at his chest as the claw marks faded away, scowling at Victor as he did so.

"Congratulations, Mr. Greenstone, you now have my undivided attention," Kaiba growled.

"Oh, didn't I before?" Victor asked with a smug grin. "You seemed fairly attentive after I beat two of your Blue-Eyes."

Kaiba grumbled something under his breath. All that could be caught was the word 'showoff.' Victor just shrugged the muttering off.

"I'll end my turn on that note," he said.

Kaiba drew, now brining his hand to five cards. He slapped one of the cards onto his disk, and a flurry of green cloth flew from the floor.

"I start this turn by summoning Versago the Destroyer (1100/900)," Kaiba announced.

The green wrappings twisted together, and in the center of them formed a black cloud. A white mask with glowing red eyes appeared on the top of this cloud, while purple wings and clawed hands burst from it as well. Kaiba took another card from his hand, placing it into the slot behind Versago.

"Next comes my Dragon's Mirror spell card, letting me summon a Dragon-type fusion monster by removing its components from my field or graveyard," Kaiba continued. "So I remove Lord of Dragons from my grave, and I use Versago's ability to stand in for the other fusion-material I need, namely Divine Dragon Ragnarok."

The folds of green cloth fell away as Versago's limbs retracted into its body. Its smoky form elongated into a serpent like shape with a draconic face at the head. It twisted about as a ghostly version of the Lord of Dragons floated from Kaiba's grave and came into contact with the pseudo-dragon. In a burst of black smoke, the two monsters vanished leaving a massive cloud over the field.

"What are you doing Kaiba?" Victor asked.

"Summoning a monster, what's it look like?" Kaiba taunted. "Descend now my King Dragun (2400/1100)!"

The cloud parted, and from it emerged what appeared to be Lord of Dragons wearing golden armor. As the creature descended though it could be seen that Lord of Dragon's upper torso was all that was familiar. From the waist down, his body was that of a golden, serpent-like dragon (much Divine Dragon Ragnarok). The creature pulled from his armor a golden flute shaped like a dragon's head, which he placed to his lips.

"Now I can activate the effect of my King Dragun and special summon one Dragon from my hand," Kiaba laughed. "Come forth my final Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"

King Dragun blew into the flute, and a single clear note rang out. A section of wall behind Kaiba suddenly began to glow red hot as sparks of lightning danced over it. With a massive explosion, the wall suddenly burst apart to reveal the last of Kaiba's dreaded dragons. This one was covered with bits of wire and circuitry, indicating it had probably taken a route through a computer lab of some kind. It shook off a few bits of electronics as it stomped onto Kaiba's field.

"Now my dragons, remove his monsters from my sight!" Kaiba commanded. "ATTACK!"

Blue-Eyes gathered energy between its jaws and unleashed it in an unstoppable torrent, obliterating Wild One in a single shot. Kind Dragun spat a ball of black and gold flames from his mouth, the fires ramming right into Victor's Manticore of Darkness and reducing it to a pile of ash on the floor of the lab. Victor began to sweat as his life points soared down, the bomb under his feet now flashing between **600** and the word **WARNING!**

**Victor: 600**

**Kaiba: 3900**

"_I'm in trouble now!"_ Victor realized. _"I've never heard of this King Dragun before, and I don't have anyway to summon my stronger monsters yet."_

"I'm ending my turn now. Feel free to make your last move," Kaiba offered.

Victor snapped out of his thoughts as he quickly took the two cards from his hand.

"I discard the Manticore of Darkness in my hand in order to revive the one you just destroyed," Victor interrupted. "Plus, I'll discard my Exarion Universe in order to revive the Manticore I just discarded, so both can come back in defense mode!"

As Victor dropped the two cards into his graveyard, the two Manticores (2300/1000) suddenly flew in from the hole that had been opened up earlier by Green Baboon. They fell to their knees in front of Victor, folding their wings over their bodies in an effort to protect themselves.

Victor drew his card, and smiled as he saw it.

"_Draining Shield? Seeing as my deckmaster can't help this situation, I guess it's my best chance,"_ Victor reasoned as he set the card in play.

"One facedown is my entire turn," Victor admitted as the trap appeared.

"What else can you do?" Kaiba observed as he drew his own card.

"_Mystical Space Typhoon, huh?"_ He thought, looking at the spell he had drawn. _"Plus my Heavy Storm. Either of these would destroy his last pathetic defense."_

Kaiba looked up at King Dragun and shrugged.

"_On the other hand, why bother?"_ He asked himself.

"I activate King Dragun's effect once again to special summon my Cave Dragon (2000/100)," Kaiba declared.

The ruling-class dragon sounded another note from the flute he carried, and into the room lumbered in a large, wingless dragon covered in dust and grime. It plodded its way onto Kaiba's field and let out a yawn, which it attempted to stifle as King Dragun looked down at it.

"Normally, I can't summon this monster if I already have a monster in play, but that's only for normal summons," Kaiba elaborated. "Special summoning him works just fine. Now then, time I ended this and got to the real challenge in this tournament."

The audience began to cheer at this declaration, though a few voices of disagreement could be heard from the crowd. Apparently, Victor had made a few fans.

"Cave Dragon, destroy one of his Manticores with slumber blast!" Kaiba shouted. "King Dragun, you get the other one with dragon's rage!"

Cave Dragon opened its mouth wide again, this time unleashing a toxic green mist that billowed out over one of the manticores. The poor creature fell over, gasping for breath before it disintegrated under the toxic gas. King Dragun shot forth another blast of gold and black flame, consuming the second manticore where it knelt.

"Blue-Eyes, finish this! White lightning!" Kaiba demanded.

Blue-Eyes roared as it began to charge its attack once again…

"I activate my Draining Shield trap, stopping your attack and…" Victor began.

He was cut short as King Dragun unleashed a deafening roar, causing Victor's trap to burst into black flames and vanish as soon as it lifted!

"WHAT! Wait, something's wrong!" Victor gasped.

"Yes, what's wrong is that you expected such a simple ploy to save you," Kaiba spoke back. "King Dragun can negate and destroy any card effect that tries to target a dragon on my side of the field, and your Draining Shield does just that. Which means my attack will end the duel in three…two…one…FIRE!"

Blue-Eyes unleashed its devastating breath attack, slamming the white lightning right into Victor's chest. He screamed in pain as the attack almost knocked him from his platform, his life points soaring to nothing and his duel disk almost flying off his arm!

**Victor: 0**

**Kaiba: 3900**

Victor groaned as he picked himself up, his life points having hit zero. Under his feet, his bomb began to beep wildly and flash red.

"I'd like to say it was nice knowing you, but that would make me a liar," Kaiba said, his expression blank. "Happy landings…"

_KA-BOOM!_

Victor screamed once more as his bomb went off, sending him soaring upward and out of site. Kaiba simply crossed his arms as the arena faded away, along with his body.

"Amazing! Seto Kaiba has done it again folks!" Roland announced. "He's truly on top of his game today, no one has come close to beating him. But stay fastened to your seats, because the match you're waiting for is coming up. In just ten minutes, you'll be seeing what I'm sure you've all waited for today: Seto Kaiba vs. Yugi Mutou!"

The audience members were screaming their heads off as a ten-minute timer appeared overhead. Roland raised his arms as images of duels from the tournament appeared on the jumbo screens.

"To tide you over till then, please enjoy some of today's highlights, which will on be the DVD of this tournament," Roland invited.

--------------------------------------------------------------

"What happened, where's that Greenstone guy?" Mokuba asked.

"He's still alive," Rei answered. "And completely unharmed…The safeties switched back on by themselves."

Noah's face appeared on screen, and Mokuba looked up at his step-brother.

"Mokuba, what happened? I felt some strange lag and…" Noah started to ask.

Mokuba cleared his throat as he stepped forward.

"It was Victor, he re-enabled the safeties," Mokuba explained.

"So he had to use that code huh?" Noah asked.

"Looks like it, although the way things have been going so far I wouldn't count on it working twice," Mokuba warned. "Noah, I hate to ask this, but try to figure out what happened, please."

"I've already found a promising lead," Noah answered. "Remember the door you sealed the Big Five in? They're still there but I've found traces of something trying to bust the seal open…from the outside."

Mokuba bit his lip in worry.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Sighing Yugi looked at his deck. Next to him projected the astral image of the Pharoah.

"_Are you ready Yugi?"_ Asked Yami. _"If you're tired, I could take on Kaiba for you."_

"_Thanks for the offer, but I'm just mentally preparing,"_ Yugi assured his partner. _"This'll be the first time I've ever dueled him without your help though. Guess I'm a little nervous."_

"_No reason to worry, Yugi, you've been doing very well today,"_ Yami smiled. _"No matter the outcome, I'll still be here cheering you on."_

Yugi nodded as his card list appeared in front of him. He began looking through his deck, checking for any changes he might want to make.

------------------------------------------------------------

Joey pulled Serenity aside just as Victor's blackened body slammed into the chair she had been sitting in a moment before.

"You alright Victor?" Joey asked, looking worried.

"Let me get back to you on that…" Victor moaned as he slid out of the chair and onto the ground.

_**This is it folks!**_

_**It's the big time now!**_

_**Yugi vs. Seto, you couldn't ask for a better match up!**_

_**The only question now is, can Yugi hold onto his title against the only duelist ever to offer him a worthy challenge?**_

_**Find out next time in:**_

_**Title Match!**_

_**You're gonna love it.**_

---

Original Card

---

Wild One

EARTH

Beast/effect

Four star

1500 attack

900 defense

As long as this monster remains face up on the field, you may treat all monsters in your hand and on your field as if they were Beast-type monsters.


	39. Title Match

_**This is it. The moment you've all been waiting for!**_

_**You knew it was coming since the top sixteen were announced, and now it's finally here…**_

_**Yugi Mutoh vs. Seto Kaiba!**_

_**It's the match of the millennium in a winner-takes-all slug fest!**_

_**Who'll take home the gold in this confrontation?**_

_**There's only one way to find out…**_

Title Match

Yugi had just finished sifting through his cards. He had a grim smile on his face as he looked to the deck that now sat in his duel disk.

"_Okay, this is as good as it'll get,"_ Yugi thought as he turned to Yami. _"Win or lose, it all comes down to dueling skill."_

"_I'm sure that just how Kaiba wants it. No Egyptian god monsters, no Exodia, just you and himself."_ Yami pointed out.

"_You know, it's funny, Kaiba's never actually dueled against _me._"_ Yugi pointed out as he looked at the countdown on the big screen. _"He's always dueled against the two of us with our minds fused together."_

Yugi seemed slightly nervous now as he gently stroked his cards. Yami just smiled as he placed a transparent hand on his friend's shoulder.

"_I'm sure you'll do fine Yugi. Don't forget that Joey and the others are cheering you on,"_ Yami assured him.

Yugi smiled and nodded to the Pharaoh as the counter went on. Only three minutes remained until the final match started.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Off in a separate waiting area, Kaiba had also finished preparing his deck. He was looking it over as Mokuba's voice broke in on his thoughts.

"Seto, are you ready for the duel?" Mokuba asked.

"I've been ready for quite some time. I trust that you've all dealt with that minor issue we were having earlier," Kaiba responded.

"Yeah Seto, the safeties are fully instated, and Victor Greenstone is still in the Virtual World," Mokuba reported. "Whatever it was that kept turning them off seems to have stopped for now."

"So the little code we gave Victor worked. Good," Kaiba smiled. "Two accidents can be covered up, but a third one might have made things…Difficult."

"We'll make sure nothing interrupts your duel with Yugi, so show him who's boss," Mokuba cheered. "We're all rooting for you!"

Mokuba's voice cut out, and Kaiba just leaned back against a wall as he placed his cards carefully into his disk.

"This is it…Time for the main event," Kaiba muttered to himself.

-------------------------------------------------------------

"Seto Kaiba vs. Yugi Mutoh, I've only ever such a duel broadcast on television," Ronaldo was saying to the others nearby.

"It's their first match since Battle City," Espa agreed. "This is gonna be one for the record books."

"No doubt, Yugi seems to be in top form today," Celeste pointed out.

"Take it from me, he is," Brian quipped, rubbing his shoulder a little. "Anyone who beats another duelist that badly is in rare form,"

"What's more, I've calculated the odds of victory for each participant in this duel to be roughly fifty-fifty," Kevin said, pushing up his glasses.

"Did you count that Kaiba has the home field advantage?" Celeste asked.

Kevin thought for a moment, rubbing his chin, then shrugged.

"Unless a field spell is played, location shouldn't have an effect on the duel," Kevin stated.

"Okay, I won't try to argue against that," Brian said. "Let's just enjoy the show,"

----------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, guess it's time for Kaiba to take his spot at the top," Richington grinned to his own neighbors.

"You're joking, right? There's no way Yugi would lose to Kaiba," Mako disagreed.

Weevil just snickered as he shook one finger at Mako.

"I wouldn't be too sure of that fish boy," Weevil grinned.

"Now don't you start that," Mako warned.

"Yeah, that's my line," Tim said.

"My point is, Kaiba has probably been preparing for this match for some time now," Weevil went on as though the others hadn't spoken. "While Yugi was more than likely more concerned with other events. Therefore, advantage goes to Kaiba."

Tim and Mako both looked a little unsure at this logic, but Richington was chortling.

"An excellent point my high-pitched friend," Richington laughed. "Kaiba will undoubtedly prove that's he's higher than Yugi on the financial scale, and the dueling scale!"

----------------------------------------------------------------

In the real world, at the Kaiba Land Emergency Medical Clinic, a small hospital that had been set up for the park's patrons so they wouldn't need to go far for medical treatment if the occasion arose, one of the nurses was busy dealing with the demands of the patient in room C-2.

The nurse, who was wearing her standard white uniform, walked into the room carrying a tray of hospital meatloaf and the remote control for the television, which had been removed seeing as up until twenty minutes ago, the occupant of this room had been unconscious.

Rex Raptor looked up from the TV listings he had been reading as the nurse set the food and the remote on the nightstand next to his bed.

"About time," Rex grumbled as he snatched up the control (ignoring the food) and flicked on the television suspended from the ceiling.

"Now Mr. Raptor, please remember that you're supposed to be taking it easy," cautioned the nurse.

"I'm in bed, I'm just watching some TV, what part about that isn't 'taking it easy?'" Rex challenged. "Besides, I'm not about to miss a chance to see that stuck-up Kaiba get his butt handed to him."

Rex flipped through the local channels, and smiled as he came across the image of several duels from earlier that day. The nurse just shrugged as she left.

"Well, call if you need anything," She said as she closed the door.

----------------------------------------------------

Elsewhere in Domino City, at the game shop, Yugi's remaining friends were all returning to the couch after a much needed bathroom break.

"Okay, no more sodas for me until after this duel," Tristan said as slumped into his chair. "I don't want to miss a second of this."

"You think Yugi will win?" Duke asked.

"Of course Yugi will win, who do you think taught him all he knows about dueling?" Grandpa Mutoh asked as he glared at Duke.

"Sorry, it's just that Kaiba seemed awfully confident in his other matches. Heck, he's done better and better with each finalist he took down," Duke pointed out.

"How could you even doubt Yugi?" Tea challenged. "He's defended his title for years now, and I doubt Kaiba will be taking it today."

"Right, just forget I said anything," Duke apologized. "Go Yugi!"

------------------------------------------------------

"Wow, Yugi vs. Seto…" Mary gasped. "I can't believe I'm gonna get to see it, live and in person!"

"Yeah, chances like these are once, maybe twice, in a lifetime," Gold agreed. "But don't get too excited honey, you wouldn't want to pass out or anything."

"Like you did when you saw Johnny Depp in 'Pirates of the Caribbean,'" Ruby agreed.

"Not funny mom," Mary pouted.

"Oh let the girl enjoy herself," Pegasus smiled. "As for Kaiba and Yugi…This will certainly be a match to remember."

Zeffie was unusually quiet. Noticing this, Gold tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hey Zef, what's eating you?" Gold asked.

"Zeffie wanted to duel Yugi today, and now everybody except Zeffie has done it," Zeffie complained.

"I didn't get to duel Yugi, neither did Mary or Ruby or…" Gold listed off.

"But Zeffie could of won against him," Zeffie whined.

"_Ah, to be young and foolish,"_ Pegasus thought as Gold chuckled good-naturedly.

"Eh, don't worry Zef. I'm sure get a chance someday," Gold smiled. "Till then, we can Yugi beat the crud out of Kaiba."

-------------------------------------------------------

"Okay, Yugi vs. Kaiba, we all know who we're cheering for, right?" Joey asked.

"We know very well what you'll do if we say we're supporting Kaiba," Bakura said. "Besides, Yugi is our friend too."

"Yeah, so settle down Joey," Mai cautioned.

"The duel hasn't even started yet, big brother," Serenity pointed out as she gently pulled Joey back into his seat.

"Patience is a virtue," John said, feeling the need to add something to the conversation.

Joey took a deep breath as he settled into his chair.

"Yeah, you guys are right," Joey agreed. "Plenty of time to celebrate after Yugi wins."

------------------------------------------------------

On the arena floor, Roland watched as the last few seconds ticked off of the timer. The minute the clock hit zero, the entire dueling arena was coated in darkness. Nothing could be seen at all, save for the audience and Roland. Everything else had seemingly vanished, leaving confused and somewhat frightened duelists seated on nothing but empty space.

"The time has come," Roland intoned, drawing the attention of the audience. "Yugi Mutoh and Seto Kaiba will be dueling any second now…So for the last time today I ask that you welcome them into our arena!"

The audience began to clap and cheer as two rings of light appeared in amidst the shadows and faded away, leaving Yugi and Kaiba on opposite sides of the 'arena.' Slowly, points of light began to form in the darkness, and lines of pink energy began to draw themselves along the space under the duelists' feet.

"I hope you don't mind Roland, but I've arranged for a special arena for this duel," Kaiba explained to his confused employee. "After all, I felt that the place for my duel should be a spot that would be fitting as the last dueling field Yugi would be seeing as the 'King of Games.' So I call this arena 'Final Destination.'"

The lines of energy joined together, forming the outline of a platform in the empty space. The stars began to move past the field, slowly at first, then faster and faster until they became mere lines of light, as though the entire field were flying past them at amazing speed. The audience gasped as their seats became outlined by blue and silver energy, which seemed to be flowing under their bodies even as they remained seated.

"Very impressive, Kaiba," Yugi said, staring in awe at the selected field. "You really know how to program an arena."

"I know quite a bit about Duel Monsters as well, as I'm sure you're aware," Kaiba smirked. "Plus I've learned some new tricks for our match. Whenever you're ready…"

Yugi nodded and lifted his disk. Roland stepped between the two rivals and raised one hand.

"Very well then, here it is, our title match!" Roland shouted to the cheering crowd. "The winner today will be walking away with the right to be called the King of Games. Now gentlemen, present your deckmasters!"

Yugi and Kaiba both nodded, each of them reaching for a very familiar monster.

"I choose Dark Magician Girl!" Yugi called out.

A flurry of pink stars gathered behind Yugi, then they exploded in every direction leaving behind the busty sorceress in their wake. Rather than her usual peppy smile and wave, she glared at Kaiba with a look of grim determination set on her features.

"My choice is the Kaiser Seahorse, of course," Kaiba declared.

In a burst of yellow light, the blue-scaled warrior appeared behind Kaiba. He spun his trident and pointed it at Yugi with a threatening scowl as he flared his fins.

"Very well then," Roland declared as a twinkle of light appeared in the distance behind him. "First turn honors shall go to…"

The light suddenly sped toward the field, veering wildly left and right. As it drew closer, everybody could see it was a brilliantly white comet with a sparkling tail trailing behind it. It swerved from side to side, as though trying to choose a direction to move in, before it finally passed right behind Yugi and his deckmaster.

"…I'm assuming that means Yugi, so take your first move, Mr. Mutoh," Roland decreed. "Let the final match begin!"

Yugi and Kaiba both nodded as they drew their first cards.

"Let's duel!" They both shouted, the audience bursting into cheers behind them.

**Yugi: 8000**

**Kaiba: 8000**

Yugi drew his first card of the duel, and looked over his hand. Carefully sliding one finger from card to card, he finally selected one and placed it onto his tray.

"I'll start the duel with one monster in defense mode," Yugi began.

The stars from the background shimmered, light falling onto Yugi's field and causing a facedown monster to phase into existence in front of him.

"That's all," Yugi nodded, once more impressed by the arena's effects.

"I expected something a little more…Inspiring for your first turn," Kaiba remarked as he drew his own card. "None the less, you've left me an opening to exploit. I summon Spear Dragon (1900/0)!"

Kaiba's deckmaster spun its weapon, and a beam of green light shot from one of the stars in the background. The light smashed into the field and dissipated, leaving behind a pterodactyl-like monster, with blue scales and a long, needle shaped nose.

"My monster has the power to damage your life points even if its target is in defense mode," Kaiba explained. "So now he'll do away with your facedown monster with cyclone burst!"

The odd-looking opened its beak, unleashing a powerful tornado from deep within its body. Yugi braced himself as the winds tore through his facedown monster, which turned over to reveal a familiar ball of orange fur with three eyes. The creature groaned before shattering apart, and Yugi's deck began to shimmer with orange light.

"That was my Sangan, meaning that now I can find one monster with low attack points and add it to my hand," Yugi shouted over the dissipating whirlwind as his cards projected themselves in front of him.

Yugi tapped one card, and it slid away from the others, placing itself into his hand. His deck ceased glowing as his life points finished dropping.

**Yugi: 6400**

**Kaiba: 8000**

"Like it will matter," Kaiba scoffed, his dragon panting for breath as it settled down on the platform and folded its wings. "I'll end my turn here by setting one card facedown, and allowing my Spear Dragon to go to defense mode as per his effect."

The back of a card appeared between Kaiba and his monster, which seemed thankful for a chance to rest. Yugi drew his own card, setting it onto his disk as he did so.

"I summon my Feral Imp (1300/1400) in attack mode," Yugi announced.

Dark Magician Girl raised her staff and began chanting in a strange language. The darkness of the empty space behind her seemed to swirl under the influence of whatever spell she was casting, and from the mass of blackness emerged a gangly looking creature with green fur and tiny, useless looking wings on its back. It scratched behind its ear, its long arm bending at an odd angle to reach, as Kaiba began to laugh.

"You must be joking Yugi," Kaiba taunted. "Feral Imp? No one uses that old fashioned card any more!"

The imp seemed peeved at Kaiba's comment, and brandished its claws in a threatening manner.

"He may not be the strongest, but last time I checked he didn't need to be to get rid of your Spear Dragon," Yugi pointed out. "Attack with wild claw!"

Kaiba scowled as Yugi's monster charged forward and grabbed his dragon by the throat. Spear Dragon tried to struggle free, only for Feral Imp to carve the claws of its free hand through its captive's stomach. Spear Dragon burst into motes of starlight, which were carried away with the other points of light from the background.

"Good effort, but all in vain," Kaiba warned as his facedown card lifted. "I activate Flat Level 4, so now we each need to summon a monster of exactly level four from our decks."

Over Kaiba's head the streaks of light began to swirl and gather, forming into a large number four. Both duelists pulled their decks from the holders, and searched through them, each one selecting a monster.

"I'll go first, meet my Rare Metal Dragon (2400/1200)," Kaiba introduced.

From the four that hovered overhead, a spark of silvery light flew. It blazed toward the field, getting larger with each second, until it was almost the size of Kaiba and slammed to the floor. The light fell away, revealing a monster that more closely resembled a silver rhinoceros covered with spike along its back. Its eyes glowed red as it glared at Yugi, who took his own card and placed it sideways.

"Then I choose my Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000)," Yugi declared.

The four spat out another point of light, this one slate gray. As before, the spark expanded until it hit the floor in front of Yugi, this time revealing the humanoid stone statue, crouching in defense mode.

"I'll also set a card facedown," Yugi went on as the card appeared behind his monsters. "That ends my turn."

Kaiba drew his card without hesitation, adding it to the others in his hand. He took one of the cards and smiled as he played it.

"I'll summon my Slate Warrior (1900/500) in attack mode," He said.

A cold wind blew over the platform, and trails of colorful cloth rode in on the breeze. The strips of fabric began to twirl around like a tornado over one patch of Kaiba's field, before flying off again. In their place appeared the stone-chested fiend with its nylon arms held at the ready.

"Now to take down your defenses, Rare Metal Dragon, demolish his Giant Soldier of Stone!" Kaiba shouted.

The silver monster opened its mouth and breathed out a stream of red energy which headed right for Yugi's monster. As it drew close, Yugi's facedown card lifted, and the statuary monster pulled a massive shield from its back. It blocked the energy stream, emitting a bell-like tone as it did, and covered Yugi with a green aura.

"My Draining Shield trap stops that attack and turns it into life points for me," Yugi interrupted. "Nice try Kaiba."

"I'm not done yet, Slate Warrior, destroy his Feral Imp!" Kaiba went on. "Slate slammer!"

The cloth demon dashed forward, driving its flimsy looking fist into the chest of Yugi's green beast. The weaker fiend groaned as the air was knocked from its lungs, and it flew backward off the platform, vanishing in a blur as it was left behind by the speeding arena.

"That's it for my turn, let's see what you've got," Kaiba challenged.

**Yugi: 8200**

**Kaiba: 8000**

Drawing his card, Yugi paused to consider his options.

"_I could summon this monster, but his Slate Warrior would weaken whatever destroys it,"_ Yugi thought. _"One the other hand, that wouldn't really matter with this card…"_

Nodding to himself, Yugi removed his Giant Soldier of Stone from his disk. The Rock faded away, and a column of purple and red energy swarmed up from where it had kneeled.

"I use my Giant Soldier of Stone as a tribute, and summon my Archfiend of Gilfer (2200/2500)," Yugi announced.

The column dropped, revealing the muscular demon as it spread its wings. It roared in Kaiba's direction, causing his monsters to drop back a step.

"Archfiend, destroy his Slate Warrior with demon's fire!" Yugi called out.

The creature obeyed immediately, opening its mouth and releasing a gout of black and purple flames. Slate Warrior remained silent as it was struck in the chest by the fire, causing it to burst into a cloud of blue mist. The mists settled over Yugi's demon, causing it to screech in pain like an oversized bat as its skin became covered in patches of red burns (1700/2500).

**Yugi: 8200**

**Kaiba:7700**

"Did you forget, Yugi? My Slate Warrior takes 500 attack points away from any monster that destroys it in battle," Kaiba reminded his rival.

"I remember Kaiba, don't worry," Yugi assured the business man. "You can take your turn now."

"Like I need your permission," Kaiba grumbled as he drew. "I summon my Battle Ox (1700/1000)."

A flash of light covered Kaiba's field for a moment, and when it cleared the Minotaur in red armor now stood over Kaiba's dragon. It snorted, a blast of steam issuing from its nostrils, as Kaiba gave his next order.

"Rare Metal Dragon, destroy the Archfiend of Gilfer! Plasma blast!" Kaiba yelled.

The dragon once more emitted its red breath, and Gilfer screeched as it was seared by the attack. The black-skinned monster fell over, its wings in a crumpled heap, before its shattered into a black and purple cloud which hovered over Kaiba's field.

"By destroying my archfiend, you activated his effect," Yugi warned. "Now I can attach him to one of your monsters, and decrease its attack by 500 points. I choose your Rare Metal Dragon."

The cloud fell over the silver monster, causing its sheen to diminish. The dragon began gasping for breath as the demon's power worked its way through its body, forcing its strength down to (1900/1200).

"You should have used it on my Battle Ox, seeing as he's about to attack you," Kaiba responded. "Axe crush!"

The minotaur trampled forward, only for Yugi to quickly discard a card from his hand. Kuriboh appeared before him, squeaking in defiance of the larger monster. Angered, the Battle Ox drove its weapon into the puffball, resulting in a small explosion which sent it sprawling to its back on Kaiba's field.

"Sorry Kaiba, but the Kuriboh that Sangan gave me protects my life points," Yugi smirked.

"I've always hated that little rat…" Kaiba hissed under his breath.

Speaking louder, he set another card into his disk, saying, "I'll set this card facedown and end my turn."

**Yugi: 7500**

**Kaiba:7700**

Yugi drew his card now, and slapped it down without a moment's pause.

"I summon my Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700) to the field," Yugi called out.

There were no showy flashes or portals this time. One moment Yugi's field was devoid of any monsters, and the next moment the teen spellcaster in the black cape was simply standing their, as though he always had been. Even Yugi seemed a touch taken back at the sudden appearance, but not so much as to forget to point at Battle Ox.

"Okay…um…Attack his Battle Ox with black magic burst," Yugi stammered out.

The young warlock spun his weapon and pointed it at the Minotaur. The bull-man hollered as a blast of black energy slammed it off the field and into the shooting star field behind it.

**Yugi: 7500**

**Kaiba:7500**

"That's all from me," Yugi said, the shock of the summoning now worn off.

Kaiba drew, a cruel grin spreading over his face as he saw the card he now held.

"Uh oh, that smile is never good news for Mr. Kaiba's opponent," Roland commented. "We can all guess what's about to happen…"

"I tribute my weakened Rare Metal Dragon…" Kaiba intoned as the silver monster gave a feeble cough, and then vanished. "And I summon my unstoppable Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"

A point of white light appeared in front of Kaiba, quickly growing in size until it towered over the young man. A pair of silver wings burst from within the light, causing the rest of the obscuring glow to fall away and leave the famous, silver-scaled dragon looming over Yugi's monster. It let out a triumphant roar, causing the stars behind it to shake as they flew by.

"Now our real duel begins Yugi," Kaiba called out. "Blue-Eyes, destroy his monster with your white lightning!"

The dragon snapped its head forward, spraying a devastating stream of electricity from its mouth. Yugi's young wizard struggled to defend itself, but in vain. The massive dragon's attack reduced it to a smear in the black reaches of space around them.

"Now Yugi, let's see if you can beat my dragon this time…" Kaiba invited. "I end my turn."

**Yugi: 6400**

**Kaiba:7500**

"I draw…" Yugi said, nervously watching the dragon as he did so. "I'll set one monster facedown, and a facedown card as well, that's all."

"_These will buy me some time, I just need to hope it's enough,"_ Yugi thought as the two cards appeared on his field.

"That's pathetic," Kaiba sneered as he drew. "I summon La Jinn, the Mystical Genie of the Lamp (1800/1000)!"

A chortling was heard as a plume of green smoke rose up. From the smoke emerged the wicked genie, laughing as he crossed his arms.

"Blue-Eyes, destroy his facedown monster!" Kaiba ordered.

The dragon began to charge its attack, but as it did Yugi pressed a button on his disk.

"I activate my Magic Cylinder trap!" He shouted.

A pair of pink tubes appeared on either side of Yugi, prepared to intercept the incoming assault.

"Do you now? I chain my Royal Decree card!" Kaiba countered.

Yugi gasped as Kaiba's facedown card lifted up. From the card stepped a kind in red robes, holding a golden scepter. He looked to Yugi's trap card and scowled, waving his hand and causing the trap, and both cylinders, to shatter apart.

With nothing between it and its target, the Blue-Eyes fired its deadly attack, striking the back of Yugi's card. From the card emerged a muscular man with a gigantic shield (the Big Shield Gardna (100/2600)) who strained against the blow for a moment before being plowed backward into oblivion. Kaiba was just laughing more as Yugi shielded his eyes from the blast.

"Yugi, you've countered some of my best moves with your trap cards," Kaiba scoffed. "Everyone knows that they're one of your most effective defenses against powerful monsters. That's why I decided to include a little insurance against them. Royal Decree negates all traps but itself, rendering most duelists, like you, incapable of stopping my dragon!"

Yugi gulped as Kaiba gestured toward his now-empty field.

"Now then, there's nothing left to stop my attack so…La Jinn, if you would," Kaiba offered.

The genie nodded and pointed one finger at Yugi. It pulled the finger back like a trigger, resulting in a loud _bang_ echoing across the empty space (how it echoed was unclear) and causing Yugi to fall backward as though shot with a pistol.

"That ends my turn," Kaiba stated.

**Yugi: 4600**

**Kaiba:7500**

Yugi picked himself up, rubbing at his chest as he did. He drew his card, a look of defiance on his face as he turned his gaze to Kaiba before going over his hand.

"_I thought I'd try to be a little polite in this duel, but if Kaiba wants to play this game rough, I guess I don't have a choice,"_ Yugi thought, placing a card onto his tray.

"I set one monster and end my turn," Yugi declared. "Your trap is powerful Kaiba, but not unbeatable!"

"Maybe not, but it will slow you down sufficiently," Kaiba taunted as he drew. "While I pull out all the stops! I tribute La Jinn to call forth my second Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"

La Jinn gave one last laugh before fading away, and a second light appeared over Kaiba's field. Like before, it swelled, then shattered to leave behind another of the metallic behemoths, roaring along side its brother as Kaiba pointed to Yugi's field.

"Only one monster stands between me and victory, and my dragons will crush it! White lightning!" Kaiba yelled.

The twin monsters both unleashed their attacks together, scoring a direct hit on the facedown card. From the piece of holographic cardstock leapt an elven warrior dressed in a green cape, holding his sword in one hand while securing his helmet with the other. He landed just to the side of where the attacks had hit, wiping his brow as he narrowly escaped death.

"What!" Kaiba shouted.

"You're trap isn't unbeatable, but my Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (1400/1200) might as well be," Yugi said as his warrior fell to one knee. "You know, if you hadn't tribute La Jinn, you'd still have been able to get rid of my monster: your genie was just weak to destroy him."

Kaiba clenched his teeth, his face going slightly red as he held back a few choice curses. A few giggles sounded from the audience, but were silenced as Kaiba took a deep breath.

"That was a hasty mistake, one that I won't replicate in the future," Kaiba growled. "You bought yourself a little time, nothing more, now take your turn."

Yugi drew now and swiftly played two more cards. They appeared behind his guardian, who looked at the defenses and nodded.

"Those two cards are my turn Kaiba, go ahead," Yugi declared.

"Nice try, but did you forget Royal Decree negates trap cards?" Kaiba asked as he drew.

Another smile came over him as he raised the monster he had drawn.

"Just what I need to end this. I summon X-Head Cannon (1800/1500)," Kaiba said.

From behind one of the dragons emerged a blue robot with a cannon mounted on either soldier, balancing on a metal sphere where its legs should have been.

"Just weak enough to rid the field of your last monster," Kaiba observed as he pointed to the warrior. "X-Head Cannon, attack his Celtic Guardian with positron laser!"

The machine began to charge up blue plasma within its cannons only for Yugi to smile as he waved a hand over his disk.

"Your trap can't stop me from activating trap cards, go Mirror Force!" Yugi shouted.

The trap lifted, and as it did the king (who had positioned himself behind Kaiba) began to raise one hand again.

"I may not stop the activation, but I still negate the effect," Kaiba scoffed.

"Maybe, if Royal Decree stayed on the field. I chain my other facedown card: Mystical Space Typhoon!" Yugi went on.

A blast of wind shot from the other card, and the kind was suddenly thrown into the stars the passed behind them. A comet came out of nowhere and carried the monarch off, while Kaiba's eyes went wide as he realized what was about to take place.

"Chains work in reverse order, so my Mystical Space Typhoon destroys Royal Decree first," Yugi explained. "Then, my Mirror Force stops your attack and destroys your monsters, and Royal Decree isn't around to stop it anymore!"

During all this, X-Head Cannon had been patiently charging its attack. It now fired, only for Dark Magician Girl to wave her staff and set a dome of blue energy over Yugi's field. The blue shockwaves from the cannons bounced back, right into all three of Kaiba's monsters, causing them to burst into wisps of smoke which floated into the background.

"NO!" Kaiba shouted.

The audience began cheering wildly as Roland began his commentary once more.

"An astounding turn-about by Yugi Mutou folks," Roland called out. "But can he maintain it?"

Kaiba grit his teeth and slid one more card into his disk. It appeared facedown in front of him before he waved to end his turn. Yugi drew, and turned the card to face Kaiba.

"I'll open this turn with Pot of Greed," Yugi began.

The green pot appeared next to Yugi, who swiftly drew his two card before it shattered into stardust. Looking the cards over, he turned the one monster on his disk.

"I'll move Obnoxious Celtic Guardian to attack mode," Yugi stated, the elven warrior getting to his feet. "Then I'll summon Skilled White Magician (1700/1900)."

In a burst of pure light, the white robed teen took occupancy on the space next to Yugi's warrior. Both monsters raised their armaments, preparing to attack.

"Okay Kaiba, here I come," Yugi called out. "Attack…"

Before he could continue, Kaiba pressed a button on his disk.

"Go, Command Silencer!" Kaiba interrupted.

Yugi coughed, and grabbed at his throat as his voice was suddenly silenced. He tried to mouth his commands to his monsters, but neither of them seemed to understand.

"Sorry Yugi, guess your monsters can't hear you," Kaiba chuckled. "And what's more, I now get to draw one card."

Kaiba slid another card into his hand, while Yugi reluctantly waved to signal the end of his turn. A tingling sensation near his throat told him he could now speak again.

Drawing, Kaiba swiftly placed down a new card.

"I'll summon Cave Dragon (2000/100) to the field," Kaiba decided.

From behind Kaiba flew a large meteor which crashed to the ground in front of the CEO. The 'meteor' then uncurled, revealing itself to be the giant, lazy dragon, which yawned and promptly fell asleep.

"Of course, he can't attack until I summon another dragon, but neither of your monsters can get past him," Kaiba admitted. "Make your move, Yugi."

Yugi drew, and frowned as he saw the card he held.

"I'll use this turn to move both my monsters into defense mode," Yugi declared, both of his creatures falling to their knees. "Then I'll set this card facedown and call it a turn."

Behind the two monsters appeared Yugi's latest defense. Kaiba didn't seem to care as he drew his own card. His deckmaster peeked over his shoulder, looking over the cards with a sly grin.

"Well, this is a pleasant surprise. I've just drawn my Ancient Rule card, so I think I'll use it to summon my final Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!" Kaiba shouted.

Kaiba's deckmaster pulled out a paper scroll, unfurling it to show the picture of a white dragon. Kaiser Seahorse then tapped his trident on the floor, causing the image to glow and leap from the page. The figure expanded, and became more detailed, eventually roaring to life as the third of Kaiba's famous dragons. Yugi took a step back, his own deckmaster placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"One thing Kaiba, neither of your monsters is capable of destroying my Celtic Guardian," Yugi pointed out.

"You think I didn't realize that? Ancient Rule is a special summon, so I'm free to normal summon my Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600)," Kaiba went on.

A streak of red flew by, turning suddenly toward the playing field. It screeched to a halt in front of Kaiba, revealing a red robot shaped very much like a dragon. Cave Dragon was now fully awake, a lazy look in its eyes as it looked between Yugi's two monsters.

"Cave Dragon, Y-Dragon Head, destroy his pathetic defenses!" Kaiba ordered.

The robot dragon opened its mouth, exhaling a blast of lightning from between its jaws. Obnoxious Celtic Guardian attempted to parry the blow, only for his sword to channel the electricity straight into his body, resulting in a very messy end for the warrior.

Cave Dragon spat out a foul, green mist, which rolled over Skilled White Magician. The Spellcaster took one wiff of the fumes and fell backward, shattering on impact. Yugi's field was now empty, except for his facedown card.

"Blue-Eyes, exact your vengeance on his life points!" Kaiba shouted. "White lightning!"

The largest of the dragons roared prior to unleashing a mighty blast of pure energy. Yugi screamed as the attack hit home, driving him backward toward the empty space beyond the platform. He fell to the ground as the attack faded, smoke rising from his body.

**Yugi: 1600**

**Kaiba:7500**

Kaiba's supporters in the stands went nuts as Yugi slid to the ground, and the young business man began to laugh as he watched his rival struggle to rise again.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

"Rei, safety report," Mokuba requested.

Rei double checked her screen before answering, "All safety programs in acceptable parameters, sir."

"Good," Mokuba nodded.

"I can't wait for this tournament to end," Sota hissed to Jackson. "With all these problems, I feel like I'm in a bad sci-fi show."

"I know, I'm taking the system apart once we're done here and rebuilding from scratch," Jackson answered. "We can't afford for this to keep happening."

On the big screen, Yugi was getting back to his feet, stumbling a bit after the latest attack.

----------------------------------------------------------------

"Come on Yugi, you've taken worse than that!" Joey cheered from the audience.

"When has he exactly? I can't seem to remember," Bakura wondered out loud.

"_Possibly because I usurp your body half the time,"_ The ring spirit reminded him. _"But I think the blond idiot is right."_

"_Oddly enough…"_ The evil ghost noted to himself. _"The Pharaoh hasn't taken control in this duel, or at all today from what I've sensed."_

----------------------------------------------------------------

"Ouch, that had to hurt," Duke winced as he watched the attack strike Yugi.

"Tea, Yugi's alright, you can look now," Tristan told his friend.

Tea uncovered her eyes as Yugi got back up, a bit of smoke still rising from his body.

"Oh…He can still win this, right?" Tea worried.

"Of course, I taught him everything he knows, remember?" Grandpa reminded the teens.

"And in lieu of that, Yugi always has a trick or two up his sleeve," Duke chimed in.

"Hey, I think he's doing something," Tristan noticed, cutting off Grandpa Mutou before he could retaliate against Duke.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi drew his card, a look of sheer defiance on his face as he checked his hand.

"Oh, do you have something planned Yugi?" Kaiba challenged. "By all means, go ahead and try."

"I'll do more than that," Yugi answered, placing two cards into his disk. "I lay these card facedown, and activate Card of Sanctity!"

The stars flying by turned gold, and Kaiba reached down to begin his extra draws.

"But I'm not done, I chain from my hand with Emergency Provisions, giving up Card of Sanctity, as well as my facedown cards to gain 4000 life points," Yugi went on. "But since I activated Card of Sanctity, we still take its effect."

A black hole suddenly manifested itself behind Yugi. Both deckmasters grabbed hold of their duelists, preventing them from being pulled in, while Yugi's three hidden cards (Lightforce Sword, Book of Secret Arts, and Penalty Game) were all pulled roughly from the field and into the spiraling darkness. The golden stars behind Yugi were also yanked toward the special anomaly, but as the flew past a golden dust fell over Yugi and his deck, allowing him to draw six new cards while his life points climbed higher and higher…

**Yugi: 5600**

**Kaiba:7500**

Kaiba almost cracked his teeth has he watched all the damage he had dealt last turn reverse itself, leaving Yugi looking completely refreshed and the audience clapping for him. Looking over his new hand, Yugi smiled.

"Next comes Double Spell. By discarding this Polymerization spell card, I can duplicate one spell in your graveyard," Yugi announced, his deckmaster twirling her staff as it shimmered with magic.

"Fine, which of my spells do you think will help you?" Kaiba challenged.

"Well let's see, you've used a few good ones. But that Ancient Rule card really caught my eye, how does work exactly?" Yugi wondered.

"If you must know, it specials summons any monster from your hand with higher than five stars, and no special ability," Kaiba explained. "In other words, powerful normal monsters."

"You mean like this one?" Yugi asked, playing another card.

Dark Magician Girl swung her staff, the same scroll from earlier unfurling in front of Yugi. This time it bore the image of a human dressed in purple robes and armor, which, like the dragon before it, began to glow and peeled from the paper. The glowing figure transformed, being completely revived as the Dark Magician (2500/2100)!

"Ha, you always rely on that wanna-be-wizard to get yourself out of trouble," Kaiba scoffed. "He's no match for my dragon!"

"Not yet, but with a Magic Formula spell card, he will be," Yugi argued.

Under the famous warlock's arm materialized a leather bound tome, which shone with eldritch power. Dark Magician (3200/2100) smiled as the same power appeared around his body.

"Attack his Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Yugi ordered as Kaiba and his monster both braced themselves. "Dark magic attack!"

The sorcerer supreme brought down his staff in a deadly swipe, sending a massive charge of dark power into the chest of Kaiba's Dragon. The Blue-Eyes shattered apart, its scales spreading the stars behind it.

"That's all for your dragons Kaiba," Yugi declared.

"Um…Unbelievable…Yugi has managed to best all three of Kaiba's dragons," Roland gasped as the audience began to cheer.

"_I am so fired…"_ Roland worried.

Surprisingly, Kaiba didn't seem angry. In fact, he actually seemed quite calm with the situation for once.

"You haven't heard the last of my mighty beasts Yugi," Kaiba corrected. "Trust me."

"We'll see, until then I'll set a card facedown." Yugi declared, the card appeared behind his magician. "Take your turn."

Kaiba drew, and reluctantly shifted his cards around.

"I'll move both of my remaining monsters to defense mode, then set one more monster facedown," He said.

Cave Dragon turned itself sideways and lay flat on the ground, while next to it the Y-Dragon Head settled on the platform and folded in its wings. To Cave Dragon's other side appeared a brown card, which gave no indication to what it hid.

"That's all," Kaiba confirmed.

As Yugi drew, he summoned another monster to his field.

"Okay, first I play Beta the Magnet Warrior (1700/1600)," Yugi announced, a monster made of yellow stone and magnets dropping from nowhere to his field. "Then comes my Meteorain trap card!"

"What!" Kaiba gasped, his calm demeanor suddenly shaken.

"I think you know this trap, it gives all of my monsters the power to damage your life points, even if they attack a defense monster," Yugi smiled.

Behind him, Dark Magician Girl raised her wand, calling down a storm of space rocks. The huge chunks of stone crashed down around Kaiba's monsters, causing Cave Dragon to flip helplessly onto its back while Y-Dragon Head found itself falling onto one side, unable to right itself with its wings folded.

"Dark Magician, attack the Y-Dragon Head," Yugi commanded. "Beta, you can take Cave Dragon with magnet burst!"

Dark Magician cast forth his spell again, blowing the helpless machine into shards of flaming metal, which Kaiser Seahorse tried to defend Kaiba from. It didn't work, several bits of shrapnel got past, scorching Kaiba's clothes and face.

At the same time, Cave Dragon was blasted into the air by a pulse of electrical energy. It flew back, plowing over both Kaiba and his deckmaster before shattering apart as it flew from the platform.

"_So very fired…"_ Roland fretted once more as the audience continued cheering.

"That's all for my turn," Yugi announced. "So Kaiba, what happened? You were doing well up until I got rid of your dragons…"

"Meteorain…While unexpected…Will not affect my plans," Kaiba grimaced as he got back up.

**Yugi: 5600**

**Kaiba:4100**

He drew, turning the card toward Yugi to reveal a familiar jar.

"My own Pot of Greed. It worked well for you," Kaiba commented as he took his draws without waiting for the hologram. "Next I'll set one monster in defense mode."

Kaiser Seahorse whistled, and from the infinite blackness above descended a brown card which settled on Kaiba's field.

"I'll also set one card facedown, ending my turn," Kaiba announced.

Yugi drew his card, carefully thinking over his options.

"_He has two facedown monsters, and knowing Kaiba either one of them could be dangerous,"_ Yugi said to himself. _"Best if I got rid of them quickly, before he has a chance to use them with that facedown card."_

"I tribute Beta for my Summoned Skull (2500/1200)," Yugi declared, switching the card on his disk.

Beta folded its arms and vanished, a circle of red light appearing on the platform where it had stood. From the center of this ring burst the horrific, skeletal demon, its muscles tensing as it stared down at Kaiba's field.

"Dark Magician, destroy his older facedown monster!" Yugi ordered.

The Dark Magician obeyed, firing his spell and striking the facedown card that had been sitting in front of Kaiba the longest. From the back of the card flew a singed clown in rather colorful clothing, a red harlequin cap floating over where he fell as his body faded away.

"You just struck down Peten the Dark Clown (500/1200), meaning I can remove him from play and summon another one in defense mode," Kaiba reminded his foe as a second clown emerged from the hat.

The new Peten (500/1200) fell to the field, crouched in defense mode but still wearing a silly grin. Yugi nodded to his Summoned Skull, who quickly blasted the new clown into particles with a bolt of lightning from its horns. Kaiba merely chuckled, waving one hand and causing his third and last Peten (500/1200) to appear before him.

"Frustrating, isn't it? Having your mightiest creatures stopped by such an insignificant peon," Kaiba taunted. "Rather like the two of us, wouldn't you say?"

"Oooh…That was cold," Roland commented as half the audience erupted into jeers and laughter.

Somewhere amongst the crowd, Serenity, Mai, and Bakura were all wrestling Joey back into his chair.

Kaiba shot a glare toward Roland, who nearly dropped his microphone.

"He's right of course," Roland called out very quickly. "It looks like after Yugi's managed to stop Kaiba's biggest hitters, he's turned the tables with a similar tactic!"

--------------------------------------------

In the control room, the spectators all breathed a small sigh of relief as Kaiba just nodded to Roland, who seemed quite relieved.

"Good save," Jackson breathed out.

"Very good," Rei agreed.

----------------------------------------------

"Ouch, and I thought my sense of humor was painful," Tim winced.

"It is, trust me," Mako grumbled.

"I don't think I deserved that," Tim said, looking to Mako.

"Pardon me if I don't find you funny after you publicly humiliated me," Mako grumbled.

"Hey, Joey and Yugi did it first, didn't see you moping then," Tim added.

Mako seemed about ready to reach for something to throw, but much to his regret no such objects sat within reach.

-----------------------------------------

"_Well, it seems Kaiba is using a familiar strategy here,"_ Yami noticed as he watched the duel from inside Yugi's mind.

At the moment, the Pharaoh sat within his own soul chambers, in a dark room made of sandstone and granite. A single screen showing the outside world was currently the only source of light in the chamber.

"_I know Yugi wished to do this without me, so I can only hope he knows what Kaiba must be planning,"_ Yami prayed. _"Otherwise this duel may come to a very quick end."_

------------------------------------------------------

"I'll set one card facedown, and end my turn," Yugi called over the laughter as he played his card.

Kaiba drew, placing another card onto his disk, resulting in yet another facedown monster appearing before him.

"One monster, and one facedown card," Kaiba said smoothly as a second card appeared behind his monsters. "That's all."

Yugi seemed wary as he reached for his deck. He slowly picked up his card…

Kaiba began to laugh as his own facedown card lifted.

"And here it ends, I activate my Crush Card Virus!" Kaiba called out, a disgusting red blob falling on top of one of his monsters. "I simply use my facedown Pitch-Dark Dragon as the carrier, and all of your powerful monsters will be destroyed!"

From the infected card emerged a black dragon that stood slightly shorter than Kaiba himself. It looked ill, with patches of its scales shedding away and red smoke curling from its mouth and nostrils. Just before it could burst into a cloud of pestilence though, a large pocket knife suddenly flew from Yugi's field and stabbed the suffering creature in the chest!

"What in the world?" Kaiba exclaimed.

"Nice try Kaiba, but I could see that virus card coming a mile off," Yugi smiled. "That's why I set my Seven Tools of the Bandit trap card, to counter and negate your virus at the cost of 1000 of my own life points."

The dragon slumped over, thoroughly dead, and vanished. Kaiba and his deckmaster both looked displeased with the situation as Yugi pointed at his field.

"Next, I'll have my deckmaster use her special ability: Soul circle," Yugi went on. "With ten monsters in my grave, I can draw ten cards."

Dark Magician Girl leapt up, and ten orbs of pink light appeared around her. She began chanting, energy flowing from the orbs, to her, then to Yugi's cards, allowing the young man to draw ten times. Looking over his hand, Yugi smiled, seeing several good options.

"Now then, Dark Magician, get rid of his last clown!" Yugi ordered.

Peten gulped, looking frightened as the stronger magician bore down on him. With a single wave of his weapon, Dark Magician banished the final Peten to the graveyard, his hat falling to the ground before bursting into smoke.

"Summoned Skull, his facedown card. Lightning strike!" Yugi shouted.

The demonic skeleton raised its arms, brining down another rain of lightning bolts onto Kaiba's field. From the card that was struck flew a glob of purple gel, which slammed into Yugi's chest and began to sizzle like acid. Yugi screamed in pain as the goop fell off, evaporating upon hitting the floor.

"My Giant Germ (1000/100) always has a parting blow for the duelist that destroys it," Kaiba sneered. "What's more, I can summon two more in attack mode, so come to me my germs (1000/100 X2)!"

Kaiser Seahorse and Dark Magician Girl were both disgusted as two filthy, purple orbs materialized on Kaiba's field. Yugi and Kaiba themselves didn't seem as troubled, though that may have been because they were otherwise occupied.

"I'll set another monster facedown, and three facedown cards," Yugi decided, his field quickly filling with several more cards. "That's my turn."

**Yugi: 4100**

**Kaiba:4100**

Kaiba didn't seem concerned, even with Yugi's field almost filled. He carefully drew his card, and seemed pleased with what he held.

"Well Yugi, you beat one of my plans to rid the field of your monsters," Kaiba admitted. "But everybody knows you should always have a back up plan. I switch both of my Giant Germs to defense mode."

The two pathogens floated lower to the ground, indicating a defensive posture while Kaiba held up another card.

"Next I use Mystical Space Typhoon, ridding your Dark Magician of his Magic Formula," Kaiba continued.

Dark Magician gasped as a strong wind flew form nowhere, yanking the dusty tome from his hands and into the stars beyond the arena. As it flew off though, a purple shell of light fell over Yugi, who took a deep breath.

"By destroying Magic Formula, you gave me an extra 1000 life points, so thanks Kaiba," Yugi smirked.

"Don't thank me yet, I have a way to take those points away just as fast. I use my deckmaster's ability and summon Kaiser Glider (2400/2200)," Kaiba warned.

A screech sounded from far above, and the golden hawk-dragon descended onto the field. The blazing stars reflected off its body, giving it a shimmering glow.

"Then I use my Tyrant Wing trap card," Kaiba went on, his facedown card lifting. "With this, I give one dragon an extra 400 attack points, plus the power to attack two monsters in one turn."

Kaiser Glider's (2800/2200) wings began to glow, and the feathered dragon stretched them out with a ferocious cry. Flames built in its mouth as it prepared to attack, While Dark Magician Girl looked toward her teacher with fear in her eyes.

"Kaiser Glider, strike down his monsters and his chances of victory! Golden blaze!" Kaiba roared.

The dragon obeyed, spraying twin streams of golden fire at Yugi's monsters. Dark Magician Girl began to sob as her mentor was blown into ash by the attack, while Summoned Skull's bones cracked under the intense heat before shattering to dust. Yugi tightened his grip on the cards in his hand, his life points dropping along with his monsters.

**Yugi: 4500**

**Kaiba:4100**

"I don't need my Blue-Eyes to beat you Yugi," Kaiba taunted. "At least not now, seeing as your strongest monster has bitten the dust. Feel free to take your turn though."

"It's not over yet Kaiba," Yugi cautioned as he drew his card. "I use my facedown Graceful Charity."

A swirling mass of stars flew from behind Yugi, coming together in the shape of an angel. The starry maiden gently tapped Yugi's disk, and he took his three draws. Without even checking first, he then placed two cards into his graveyard.

"That was a fast discard, Yugi must have something in mind," Roland commented. "But will it help him beat Kaiba?"

"Yugi, that had to be one of the fastest Graceful Charity decisions I've seen," Kaiba observed. "So that means one of two things. Either you don't care what you discard at this point, or it doesn't matter."

"You're right Kaiba, it doesn't matter. I use my Disgraceful Charity trap card," Yugi declared.

One of the stars whizzing past suddenly turned red, and flew toward the field. From the star came a beam of crimson light, which shone onto Yugi's disk, causing his two discards to eject themselves from his graveyard.

"Just what are you planning Yugi?" Kaiba challenged.

"I've just found a way around your defenses, go Brain Control!" Yugi called out. "I give up 800 life points, and take your Kaiser Glider."

A pulse of pink energy blasted from behind Yugi, fired by his deckmaster. Dark Magician Girl had an angered look on her normally happy face, while Kaiser Glider's eyes went blank, and it floated over to Yugi's field.

"Next, I'll tribute Kaiser Glider and my facedown Mystical Elf (800/2000)," Yugi went on. "Dark Magician may be strong, but he can get stronger still, so I summon his next level of power: Dark Magician of Chaos (2800/2600)!"

Yugi's field was temporarily occupied by a young woman in green robes, kneeling next to Kaiba's dragon. In one moment, both of those monsters had vanished, and the air in front of Yugi seemed to warp. As the strange warping effect stopped, a new monster now stood before the swooning Dark Magician Girl. A lanky sorcerer in a black body suit with a large headdress, carrying a staff topped with a green orb. The orb shimmered for a moment, and Yugi's graveyard began to glow.

"Now I can use his effect to bring a spell back to my hand, so I choose my Pot of Greed," Yugi announced, taking the card. "Then I'll activate it, drawing two more cards."

In one motion, Yugi placed the card into his disk, then took his extra draws before the hologram could appear. Nodding, he looked to his powerful monster.

"Okay, Dark Magician of Chaos, destroy one of his germs with chaos scepter blast!" Yugi ordered.

The magician smirked, spinning his staff overhead before slamming it to the floor. A massive orb of magical energy flew from the weapon, striking one of the hovering blobs and vanishing with it into nothingness.

"And thanks to his effect, any monster he destroys is removed from the game, meaning your germ couldn't use its effect," Yugi finished. "You aren't going to win so easily Kaiba."

Kaiba just smiled.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Up in the audience, the section near Brian and Celeste was going wild after the latest move.

"Quite an impressive play," Kevin noted. "I wonder if Kaiba can overcome that."

"I'll bet he already has a plan," Brian answered. "Take a look, he's not even worried."

"But Kaiba doesn't have anything strong enough to beat that Spellcaster," Celeste pointed out. "Except for his Blue-Eyes and...Uh oh."

"Ah yes, I too just recalled what happened to Mr. Raptor," Ronaldo winced. "This might be unpleasant."

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Yugi didn't seem to notice Kaiba's smile as he placed more cards into his disk.

"Next I'll play these four extra cards facedown, and call it a turn," Yugi said, completing his move.

"Then I'll end this little charade," Kaiba declared as he drew. "Prepare to face the combined fury of my dragons!"

**Yugi: 3300**

**Kaiba:4100**

"I'll start with Heavy Storm, obliterating all of your defenses," Kaiba shouted.

Yugi gasped as a powerful blast of wind pulled all five of his facedown cards (De-Fusion, Spellbinding Circle, Mystic Box, Magical Hats, and Black Pendant) away. Before leaving the field though, the Black Pendant fired a pulse of energy at Kaiba, knocking off 500 of his life points as its effect stated.

Kaiba didn't seem to notice the lost points as he placed the card he had drawn into play, and Kaiser Seahorse grinned as it raised one hand overhead, a silver mirror with a dragon frame appearing above him.

"Now is the time for my Dragon's Mirror card," Kaiba intoned. "By removing my Blue-Eyes White Dragons from the graveyard, I can combine them into a far more destructive force…"

The spirits of the three dragons flew from Kaiba's disk and into the mirror, which began to crack and splinter as though something were trying to escape.

"Awaken, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500/3800)!" Kaiba yelled.

"This is the part where I go to the commentator booth, you're on your own folks!" Roland shouted, vanishing in a burst of energy.

The mirror shattered apart, and from the wreckage of it rose the three headed, silver scaled, blue eyed death machine. All three mouths opened in hunger, ready to rend apart Yugi's monster, and possibly Yugi himself.

"I hadn't forgotten about your Dark Magician of Chaos, in fact, I wanted you to summon him," Kaiba declared. "Now your last, best hope will be torn limb from limb right in front of you. Neutron blast attack!"

The dragon's heads simultaneously released three beams of energy, one red, one blue, one green. The three streams swirled together into a massive, white trail, which atomized the Dark Magician of Chaos the minute it touch him. Yugi fell back into his deckmaster's arms, screaming in pain as the remainder of the assault sent his life points plummeting.

Kaiba just continued to laugh as he placed one more card into his disk.

"This is it Yugi, you're finished," Kaiba taunted. "I set one card facedown, and I guarantee that it will win me the duel, now go ahead."

**Yugi: 1600**

**Kaiba:3600**

"_How many times…Have I heard that line?"_ Yugi wondered to himself as he his deckmaster helped him back up. _"Kaiba has definitely been preparing for this for a while now, but I can't just give up…"_

Yugi reached for his deck, closing his eyes and slowing drawing his card. He opened his eyes, and an idea came to him.

"I set two cards facedown," Yugi began. "Then I'll set one monster in defense mode. End turn."

Kaiba pointed to his facedown, and it lifted up to reveal a frightening image of a dragon ripping through a stone wall. The dragon in front of him began to growl in anger, its six eyes shimmering with malice.

"As you end your turn, I activate my Dragon's Rage trap card," Kaiba laughed. "Now you can't hide behind defensive monster any longer, and it's my turn."

Kaiba drew his card, and an interested look crossed his face.

"Well, this is a treat. I now have the chance to truly crush you Yugi," Kaiba grinned. "I activate Burial from the Different Dimension, allowing me to return up to three monsters that were removed from play to their proper graveyard. I believe I'll do so to my dragons."

Three orbs of silver light floated from the tip of Kaiser Seahorse's spear, swirling around Kaiba before they entered his grave. He then removed a card from his disk, causing his Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon to begin to glow.

"And now, I'll bring about the end to your reign as 'King of Games' with the most vicious monster my deck can produce," Kaiba intoned. "But you should feel honored Yugi, you're the only one I'd ever use this card against."

"What are you…Oh no," Yugi gasped as he realized what was about to happen.

"I tribute my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon for a creature of pure power…The Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon (3000/2500)!" Kaiba shouted.

The light that gathered around Kaiba's three headed monster grew in intensity, causing both deckmasters to slowly back away from the field. Waves of power flowed from the light, causing an unsettling feeling to pass through the audience.

Before anybody could comment on what was happening, the light suddenly exploded outward in a brilliant, but silent, burst. Everyone shielded their eyes as from the glow emerged a giant dragon, silver in color with blue lines running all across its body. A giant jewel, blue of course, was set into the creature's chest, giving it the appearance of being part dragon, part machine.

"Your Shining Dragon…You haven't used that since…" Yugi began.

"I'd prefer not do dwell on the past," Kaiba interrupted. "I'm looking toward the future, and destroying you in the present! Now Yugi, my dragon gains 300 attack points for every dragon in my grave, and at the moment, that's seven."

The dragon's gem began to glow, the blue lines on its body lighting up like some sort of power grid with the energy of the fallen monsters (5100/2500).

"It ends now…Shining neutron flash!" Kaiba shouted.

The dragon's jaws opened, and pure light flowed from its mouth onto Yugi's field. The monster in front of Yugi began to flip over…

Everyone in the audience was waiting with bated breath…

In the control room, Jackson was grumbling as he counted out twenty-thousand yen…

"I activate Waboku!" Yugi's voice rang out.

The light immediately went out, Kaiba slammed his fist angrily into his palm, and the Magician's Valkyria (1600/1600) that had narrowly escaped destruction wiped several beads of sweat from her brow. Yugi's trap had stopped the damage, but it hadn't kept her from flipping over and into the bright light.

"One turn, that's all you've bought," Kaiba grumbled. "Go ahead. This can only end one way."

"We'll see Kaiba…" Yugi stated as he drew. "You believe in power, I believe in myself and my cards. Shall we test whose faith is stronger?"

"Not one of you 'Heart of the Cards' speeches again…" Kaiba grumbled.

Yugi looked slightly insulted at Kaiba cutting him off, but shrugged.

"Well, if you really don't want to hear it…I activate my other facedown card: Call of the Haunted. Return to me, Dark Magician (2500/2100)!"

A swirl of purple smoke appeared next to Yugi, before it blasted away leaving his supreme spellcaster on the field. Both Valkyria and Dark Magician Girl swooned, the former nuzzling close to her teacher.

"Next, I'll move Valkyria to attack mode and summon my deckmaster to the field," Yugi went on.

Dark Magician seemed a bit uncomfortable with this idea, and more so when Dark Magician Girl tapped her classmate on the shoulder. Valkyria gulped, and moved away from the stronger wizard, Dark Magician Girl taking a position between the two.

"Next, I'll tribute Dark Magician…"

Both the females on Yugi's field gasped at this announcement.

"For a monster I earned from one of your eliminators. I summon Dark Eradicator Warlock (2500/2100)!" Yugi went on.

Both girls watched as their mentor shimmered with a purple magic, his staff extending and gaining a sharp prong on the end, his robes adding a purple cape. He smiled at the pair of witches, both of which giggled as they looked up at their improved teacher.

"Does any of this have a point?" Kaiba spat. "All you're doing is wasting time, both mine and the spectators! Don't forget I only need one attack against your weakest monster to claim victory!"

"I'm not done yet, Kaiba. I use Premature Burial to revive my Dark Magician (2500/2100)!" Yugi continued.

Kaiba seemed to develop an odd facial tik, while Yugi's all-too-familiar wizard arose once more next to his students and his counterpart. Both Dark Magician and Dark Eradicator Warlock gave each other an odd glance, then nodded in agreement.

"Sorry girls, but I need to tribute both my Dark Magician and the Warlock," Yugi apologized as the girls stared at him. "I summon the Sorcerer of Dark Magic (3200/2800)!"

"Sorcerer of Dark…" Kaiba started to repeat.

He was cut off as both of Yugi's wizards crossed their weapons, resulting in a massive portal of green energy opening overhead. Together, they levitated through the portal, and an entirely Spellcaster floated out of it.

This one wore robes that were as black as the space around him. His staff was tipped with three claws that came together to hold a small, black crystal, and his through a wink at the two female monsters standing next to him, causing both of them to drape themselves over his arms.

Yugi cleared his throat, and all three monsters returned to their proper positions. Kaiba seemed massively unimpressed.

"I'm supposed to be impressed?" He wondered, sarcastically. "All that for a monster that's too weak to even scratch the scales of my dragon?"

"I have two more cards Kaiba, and I intend to use them," Yugi warned. "The first is Soul Release, letting me remove five monsters in either of our graveyards from play. I choose your three Blue-Eyes White Dragons, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, and Cave Dragon. Without them, your Shining Dragon is weakened."

It was all too true. Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon (3600/2500) seemed to fade as five orbs of light floated from Kaiba's graveyard and joined the stars the flying past once again.

"Next, I give my Sorcerer the back-up he needs, with United We Stand!" Yugi shouted. "Since I have three monsters, he gains 2400 attack and defense points!"

"No…" Kaiba gasped.

"What's more, Dark Magician Girl (2300/1700) gets 300 attack for the Dark Magician in my graveyard," Yugi went on.

"No…" Kaiba growled.

"Now then, let's finish this," Yugi called out. "Sorcerer, celestial devastation! Destroy his Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon!"

"NO!" Kaiba screamed.

The young man's protests were all for naught. Yugi's powerful monster raised his weapon, causing the stars themselves to tremble and pull away. Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon was no match for its foe in its weakened state, as the Sorcerer (5600/5200) channeled energy from both of his partners, releasing an indescribable bolt of pure darkness. The dragon wasn't destroyed, it was consumed by the shadows, its shimmering scales being overpowered by the darkness that covered them and extinguished until the once great beast became one with the endless abyss.

Kaiba nearly dropped his remaining cards, a look of shock etched on his face. The audience was in a stunned silence, which continued as Yugi went on.

"Valkyria, destroy his Giant Germ," Yugi ordered.

In a much less visually impressive energy bolt, the long forgotten toxic spore was burst apart, spraying its contents onto Yugi and brining his points down, but not far enough.

"Dark Magician Girl…" Yugi began.

He noticed the look on Kaiba's face, and frowned.

"Let him down easy," Yugi coached.

The girl nodded, and flew up to Kaiba. She gently tapped him on the forehead, resulting in a tiny spark from her staff, then she planted a kiss on Kaiba's cheek with an apologetic look.

**Yugi: 300**

**Kaiba: 0**

Roland reappeared, his jaw hanging slack as Kaiba fell to one knee, the holograms fading around them.

"Ladies and Gentlemen…The winner of the Kaiba Corp Virtual World Tournament, and still King of Games," Roland stammered, the audience awakening from their shock and beginning to applaud. "Is Mr. Yugi Mutou!"

The roar of the crowd was deafening! Joey leapt from his seat, screaming the loudest cheers he could, while Serenity, Bakura, and Mai all grabbed hold of his shirt to stop him from falling into the arena. John crossed himself before joining the jubilation with a massive smile on his face.

In the real world, Tea was almost squeezing the life out of Duke and Tristan as she pulled them into a group hug. Both young men were cheering as much as they could with their windpipes compressed.

In the hospital, Rex just laid back with a satisfied smirk, then got started on his meatloaf, which had long since grown cold.

Brian and Celeste's group were among the cheering crowd, and Ronaldo smiled as he tired slide in close to Celeste, only for Kevin to pump one fist in the air and almost knock a few of his teeth loose on accident.

Richington, despite having supported Kaiba, seemed pleased the result. Weevil, didn't seem as excited, grumbling to himself while Tim let out a shout that nearly burst his ear drum. Mako was on his feet, giving a standing ovation.

For several rows around Zeffie, people were on the ground clutching their ears due to the girl's shriek of glee. Only Gold, Mary, Pegasus, and Ruby were still up, dancing in celebration as Zeffie hopped up and down in an empty chair.

Jackson and Sota were staring at their betting slip. Rei peeked over their shoulders and let out a low whistle.

"Wow, you two broke even, huh?" She asked.

Both men simply nodded. Mokuba was still in his seat, popping open an orange soda and letting a sigh over his brother's defeat.

And amidst all the cheering and celebration, one person smiled to themselves and thought, _"All according to plan."_

_**Think this is over?**_

_**Not by a long shot…**_

_**I still have my plans to enact, and soon they come to fruition.**_

_**Yugi's victory in only one step in the path…**_

_**Next chapter is titled**_

_**Where Credit is Due**_

_**No, I'm not Roland, you'll find out soon…**_

------------------------------------------

Original Cards

---

Flat Level 4

Trap

Image: Axe Raider standing under a series of numbers, the number four is highlighted over his head.

You may activate this trap when a monster on your side of the field is destroyed in battle. Each player must special summon a level four monster from their deck.

_This card was first used by Kaiba in the anime episode "One Step Ahead (Part 1)." All credit goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Tyrant's Wing

Trap

Image: A dragon on top of a mountain, spreading its wings.

Equip this card to one face-up Dragon-type monster on your side of the field. The equipped monster gains 400 attack points and may attack a second monster if its destroys a monster in battle

_This card was first used by Kaiba in the anime episode "Flight of Fear (Part 2)." All credit goes to the writers of that episode._

---

Disgraceful Charity

Trap

Image: Marie the Fallen One holding a card in each hand.

Each player may take any cards they discarded this turn and return them to their respective hands.

_This card was first used by Yugi in the anime Episode "Clash in the Coliseum." All credit goes to the writers of that episode._


	40. Where Credit is Due

_**So the tournament has reached its end.**_

_**Finally.**_

_**Yugi has won, not like that will matter soon, and everyone is busy celebrating.**_

_**Of course, they'd have no reason to think that they're festivities will be interrupted soon.**_

_**They have even less of a reason to think that I'll be the one who does it…**_

_**By all rights, I should be dead.**_

Where Credit is Due

Deep within the 'back alley' of the Virtual World, Noah Kaiba was checking each of the doors that lined the hall one by one.

"Nothing…Nothing…Everything seems fine now," Noah commented aloud as he checked door after door, each one housing a different program.

Opening up another door, he frowned upon seeing several Duel Monsters lying in hospital beds. Noah just shook his head as he remembered which door this was.

"The area where we secluded damaged eliminators, nothing out of the ordinary here," Noah said, shutting the door quietly. "Well, nothing other than the fact that we actually needed it…"

"Noah, how's your search coming?" Mokuba's voice echoed from all directions.

"I can't find any sign of the person that may have tried to free the Big Five," Noah worried. "But if they went to trouble to get back here and try to force open a sealed program, I doubt that they'd just give up."

"We can worry about that in a minute, the tournament is over now," Mokuba advised. "Seto lost."

"Saw that coming," Noah shrugged.

"The guests will be leaving soon, so it would be better for everyone if we just waited until they were gone, then did a full system check," Mokuba recommended.

"Perhaps…" Noah mused. "Well…Just start the awards ceremony, I'll be there soon. I just need to check on last thing."

"Okay Noah, be careful," Mokuba answered.

Noah started back down the hall, heading in the direction he had come from. As he rounded a corner, he stopped in his tracks, his jaw dropping.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Back in the arena, the audience hadn't stopped cheering, and Roland could see that trying to ask for order would be useless. The MC just held up his microphone and began performing his final task of the finals.

"What a day folks! Yugi Mutou has successfully defended his title against any and all challengers today!" Roland shouted. "But before we get to his prize, let's call down all the rest of our top sixteen!"

Several lights flashed about the audience, and in a dozen beams of energy the remaining finalists were pulled onto the arena floor as it shifted back to normal, the space theme fading away.

"Ugh…I hope the last time I teleport today," Joey moaned as he held his stomach.

"You and me both…" Tim grunted as he got up from off his back.

"Tim, Mako!" Brian shouted as he ran over to his brother, Celeste right on his heels. "Some duel, huh?"

"One of the best I've seen in a long time," Mako agreed. "Can't say much for my neighbors, though."

"What jokes did you say about Mako?" Celeste asked Tim.

"I'd never joke about Mako…To his face at least…When he's right next to me," Tim said with fake innocence.

Mako clenched one fist and was about to do something everyone might regret when a blond-haired bullet suddenly plowed into his back and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Maky!" Zeffie cheered.

Gold chuckled as he walked up, and pulled Zeffie from Mako's back.

"Sorry, she out ran me," Gold apologized as he helped Mako up.

"That's fine, I'm okay," Mako assured the larger man.

"That was such a cool match; Zeffie can't believe she actually got to watch it!" Zeffie said very quickly and in one breath. "With all the dragons and the Spellcasters and the magic and the traps and then…."

Zeffie went one, dancing circles around the other five and going her favorite parts of the match at warp speed. Bakura, Joey, and Mai had found one another and were watching this anomaly with some interest.

"How does she keep going like that?" Bakura wondered.

"I think it's sugar, lots of sugar," Joey guessed.

"How long till it wears off?" Bakura asked.

"I don't know, I think she absorbs it from the air," Joey frowned.

"Huh, I remember when I was that age," Mai commented. "I'd like to think I was better behaved."

Tim, who had overheard this conversation, began to open his mouth.

"No." Brian cut him off.

"But I…" Tim started.

"No," Gold shook his head.

"Just one…" Tim begged.

"NO!" Mako shouted. "The last we need is more of your jokes."

"Okay, I did not deserve that; everyone loves my jokes, right?" Tim asked, turning to the others.

"No comment," Brian sighed.

"It's been a long day," Celeste answered.

Gold just remained silent, but that spoke volumes. Zeffie seemed too distracted to try and answer the question.

"Yeah, if I turn emo, I blame all five of you, got it?" Tim asked.

"_Even when he loses, he wins,"_ Brian thought, nearly falling to the ground at Tim's latest crack.

"Yugi!" Joey shouted from nearby.

Joey, Mai, and Bakura ran over to their shorter pal. Joey immediately pulled his buddy into a hug, almost crushing Yugi's spine.

"That was best win yet! I almost couldn't believe it when you beat that dragon!" Joey gushed.

"Joey…I can't breathe…" Yugi gasped.

"Maybe that's a little too friendly," Mai commented as Joey released Yugi. "Nice work Yugi, I bet just kicking himself over losing to you again."

"Here's your chance to ask him," Bakura commented as Kaiba walked to the group.

Joey was the first to step in front of the young business man, a smug grin on his face.

"Oh yeah, what do ya say to that, Kaiba?" Joey challenged. "You sic your best monster on Yugi and he beat ya anyway…"

Kaiba walked past Joey, completely ignoring him. Joey grit his teeth and spun around to tell Kaiba off for ignoring him only to find he was speaking with Yugi.

"Seems I've lost to you again," Kaiba muttered as he met Yugi's eyes.

"It was a good match Kaiba, I couldn't have asked for a better opponent," Yugi said, holding his hand.

Kaiba looked at the handshake offer, and then turned away, looking up at Roland.

"Let's just bring this to a close, shall we?" He asked.

Roland nodded, and Yugi gasped as he was pulled into the air on a floating disk made of gold. The audience watched in awe as Yugi rose over their heads.

"And now for your prize, Yugi," Roland announced. "In addition to protecting your right to be called the King of Games, I'd like to present you with this…"

A large sheet of paper, trimmed with gold and written in silvery ink appeared in front of Yugi. On it was a picture what seemed to a duel disk, but with a sleeker design, the tray in one piece resting against the main hub of the system.

"This certificate entitles you to receive one of the newest models of Duel Disks to be released later this year by Kaiba Corp." Roland explained. "You'll be the proud owner of the next generation of Duel Disk at least five months before they go public, and there reverse compatible with all other Kaiba Corp systems to boot!"

Down on the floor, Joey cast a glare at Kaiba.

"Okay, now you're just showing off," He grumbled.

"Business is as business does," Kaiba pointed out. "I had expected to win of course, but anyone that can beat me deserves some sort of prize. Besides, my next Duel Disk is all anyone will talk about for the next six months, at least."

"That's pretty clever," Bakura commented.

"Don't encourage him, please," Joey growled.

Yugi took the paper, and smiled to Roland as the audience and most of the remaining finalists began cheering again. Yugi seemed a touch embarrassed from all the attention, but nodded to Yami as he projected next to him, applauding.

-----------------------------------------------------

In the back halls, Noah was tearing through the area, heading for the exit and shouting up toward the ceiling.

"Mokuba, the door is gone, they've escaped!" Noah shouted.

Over the radio came the sound of something being spat out of Mokuba's mouth, followed by the youngest Kaiba's shocked voice.

"Wait, what!? You mean the Big Five?" Noah shouted as he began typing furiously.

"No, I meant the injured eliminators...Of course I mean the Big Five!" Noah shouted. "Something ripped away…No vaporized the firewalls we set up without triggering the alarms. _I _didn't even notice anything."

"We need to evacuate everybody from the Virtual World, who knows what those might do!" Mokuba called out to the technicians. "Everyone, emergency evacuation and shut down now!"

All the techs looked at Mokuba, who shot an ugly look.

"When I say now, I mean yesterday! Go!" Mokuba yelled.

"There's one more thing Mokuba, I think I know who must have busted them loose." Noah voice warned as his robotic body sprang back to life with him in it. "There's only one person who knows all of the override codes for the security, and I'll bet he was responsible for the glitches during the finals."

Mokuba looked up at the screen, his face filled with worry as he realized who Noah was referring to.

"But why…" He asked.

In the arena, Roland paled slightly as he received his orders from Mokuba.

"Uh…Okay folks, that's all the time we have for today," Roland called out over the cheers as Yugi was lowered back to the ground at a speedy pace. "Now then, it's time to bid you all farewell…"

"Now why would we do that?" A voice with a noticeable southern accent asked over the speakers.

"Yes, the fun is just starting," Chimed in another voice.

"And I calculate a one-hundred percent chance of us having a good time!" A third voice called out.

"_Oh boy…"_ Roland thought.

"Those voices…" Joey gasped as Yugi landed next to him.

"Yeah, I recognize them too," Yugi nodded. "But, they can't be…"

"Oh can't we little Yugi?" A gruffer asked.

"Maybe we weren't as gone as you and your little friends wanted to think," Said a fifth voice with a robotic tone.

In the audience, Serenity seemed pale as she heard the fifth voice. She sunk into her seat, John patting her hand.

"Miss Serenity, are you okay?" He asked. "What's going on?"

"It can't be, not him…" Serenity muttered.

"Um, Yugi…I don't mean to be rude but what's going on?" Brian asked, the other five following him as he walked over to Yugi's group.

"I'm hoping you won't need to find out, they'd better get us out of here fast…" Yugi worried.

"So it is them, I was wondering," Kaiba muttered.

Five pulses of light fell into the arena's center, and from them emerged a group of strange figures.

"We're back…" All five called out together.

The forms slowly came into focus, and the audience was left stunned at the appearance of five Duel Monsters standing before them.

The first was easily recognized by many as the much-feared Jinzo. Next to him was lanky character, part man, part lizard, wearing white and blue armor and carrying a spear. The third was a penguin, dressed in a tuxedo jacket and top hat, while a robot that seemed to have been design after a French Soldier unsheathed a sword made of glowing energy. The last one was taller than all except the Jinzo, a hulking ogre wearing a purple cape and carrying a pair of heavy maces.

"No way…Those guys were completely wiped out!" Joey gasped.

"Apparently, they weren't…" Celeste commented. "Um…who are they anyway?"

"So glad somebody asked," Said Jinzo (this monster was the one with the accent). "A pleasure to meet all you fine people today. Allow me to introduce the Big Five."

Jinzo paused, its eyes flashing as it glared toward Kaiba.

"That's really all you folks to know about us," He finished. "We're here to attend to another small matter of making our way in the business world."

"Rei, please say the eliminators have glitched or something," Roland begged into his earpiece.

"Can't talk, activating emergency measures," Rei whispered.

"I assure you, we're not one of your silly programs," Growled the ogre. "Now then, if you folks would just hold still for a moment, you're all about to take part in the largest takeover of all time."

"And we're not talking about corporate takeover either," Said the lizard-man.

Without another word of explanation, all five jumped into the air, heading right toward the audience. The people panicked, running to get of the way. Serenity was still paralyzed in fear, John attempting to pull her to her feet.

"Serenity, it might be a good idea to move," John advised, tugging on her arm.

"You're not going anywhere, flesh bag," The robot droned as it drew close, hovering on a pair of rockets from its back. "Hmm…This girl looks familiar…"

Serenity seemed to snap out of her shock, and screamed. She ran off, John breathing a sigh of relief before following her. The robot was quick to give chase, when something suddenly jumped into his path. Before the machine could swerve to avoid the obstacle, the intrusion had plowed a fist right into its face, sending its sprawling to the ground.

"Remind me again, what was your name?" Joey asked, rubbing his sore knuckles as he stood over the robot.

"Nesbit," Responded the automaton as it got back up.

"Yeah, you tried to catch my sister the last time," Joey nodded.

A solid clang echoed from that section of the seats as Nesbit went back to the ground.

"What makes you think I'd let you try again!?" Joey shouted talking the robot.

While Joey was trying to dismantle Nesbit, Yugi flagged down Serenity, leading her and John back toward Mai, Bakura, and Victor (who had grouped with the other two when the chaos started.)

"Okay Yugi, I want an explanation," Mai ordered.

"I think we all need one," Mako reminded her as he and the other five came up.

"No time for the full story," Yugi pointed out as Jinzo and the penguin flew past chasing a group of screaming people. "After Duelist Kingdom, Kaiba imprisoned five treacherous employees of his in the Virtual World. They tried to get revenge during Battle City, but we beat them off and they got deleted, or so we thought."

The others all looked stunned at this. Tim cleared his throat.

"Did you just try to explain two seasons worth of conflict in two sentences?" Tim asked. "That sounds like something out of a bad soap opera…Or a good sci-fi flick."

"You're serious?" Gold asked.

"Serenity, Joey, and Kaiba were there too," Yugi nodded. "And if the Big Five are back, chances we're all in trouble."

"Zeffie doesn't like this game anymore," Zeffie moaned. "Where's the restart button?"

Before anyone could answer, a voice chimed in, "You're going to be my restart button little girl…"

Zeffie screamed as the lizard-man suddenly swooped down and snatched her off of Gold's shoulder.

"Once I've taken over your body, I'll have a second chance at my life!" The monster shouted triumphantly.

_BAM!_

The lizard-man suddenly found himself on the ground, clutching his stomach where Gold had punched him. Zeffie scrambled back onto her guardian's shoulder, and stuck her tongue out at the floored threat.

"Do not…touch…the girl," Gold warned. "Come on Zef, I'm gonna find Mary and Ruby."

Gold took off into the chaos around them, while Serenity had fallen to her knees, Mai placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Serenity, are you alright?" Mai asked.

"She started panicking when the robot showed up," John explained.

Celeste kneeled in front of Serenity, looking right into her eyes.

"Serenity, is something wrong?" Celeste asked.

"That robot…Nesbit," Serenity panted out.

"The one Joey's trying to recycle, you mean?" Bakura asked, watching as Joey and Nesbit fell back into the arena, wrestling one another as the ogre chased a group of civilians waving his clubs.

"That robot…I dueled him when we faced these guys before…Tristan and Duke helped…And Tristan sacrificed himself so Duke and I could escape…" Serenity choked out.

"Relax, it's going to be okay, look Joey's turning that gear head into scrap metal," Mai assured the girl.

This was true; Joey had now succeeded in pinning Nesbit against the wall and was grinding him against it.

"Wow, who needs Duel Monsters when you're a whupping machine?" Brian commented, watching the spectacle.

"Joey, behind you!" Yugi shouted, running toward his friend.

Joey and the others were so focused on the vicious beating that none of them spotted the ogre hovering over Joey's head. Yugi managed to close the gap just in time, tackling Joey just as the beast came down where the teen had been standing.

"Oof! Yug, what are you…" Joey started, just before he noticed what he had avoided. "Oh…Hey, you're Johnson, aren't you?"

"Glad you remember me, Joseph," The ogre smirked.

"I'd be happier if you'd get off me…" Grumbled Nesbit from under Johnson's foot.

Johnson moved his foot, and Nesbit got up, looking mad (as near as anyone could tell seeing as he had no face). A duel disk suddenly extended from Nesbit's arm, a deck of cards loaded in it.

"Oh, I'm going to reformat the hell out of you…" Growled Nesbit as he pulled loose a card and slapped it down. "Attack programs activate, safeties disengage! Arise, Machine King!"

The world seemed to slow down again, then snap back to normal speed. In front of Nesbit rose a giant robot, colored blue and red. Were it not for the evil glare in its red visor, it would have looked amazingly like an oversized toy robot.

"Attack, destroy that annoying human that the gall to attack me!" Nesbit ordered.

Machine King fired off one of its fists, and Joey and Yugi both scrambled out of the way. The fist struck the ground, leaving a hole at the point of impact.

"They can summon monster without starting a duel?" Yugi gasped.

"Can we do that?" Joey asked.

Machine King took aim again, and Joey and Yugi started running.

"Now's not the time to try and find out!" Yugi shouted as they ran.

"_Where the heck is Yami? Is he taking another nap?" _Yugi wondered. _"Yami, if you can here me, help!"_

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Deep in the recesses of the Millennium Puzzle, Yami stirred a bit on his throne, where he had, indeed, fallen asleep after Yugi's award ceremony.

"Yugi?" He asked, sitting up. "I sense something is amiss…"

Yami stood up, a door appearing before him. As he opened it up, he could the screams and sounds of people running from outside the puzzle.

"Oh no, Yugi!" Yami shouted, vanishing in a burst of golden light.

------------------------------------------------------------

Outside the Millennium Puzzle, Yugi smiled as his trinket began to glow. In a flash of light, the boy's countenance became much more serious, he seemed to be carrying himself with more dignity even while running, and he spun toward the Machine King with a look of justified anger in his eyes.

"What's this?" Yami gasped out, looking around.

Joey suddenly pulled the Pharaoh out of the way, while Yugi summarized the situation from within their shared mind. Another fist flew by, slamming into a wall right behind Ruby and Mary, who were following Gold as he led them toward the arena's exit.

"The Big Five again?" Yami muttered as he got up. "I'd hoped we'd seen the last of them. Where are the others?"

Joey pointed toward Mai and Bakura, who were helping Serenity to her feet. Victor had gathered the other finalists around him, and was leading them toward the exit and trying to shout for the rest of the crowd to follow suit. All over the arena seating, the panicking crowd was scrambling toward the exits, only for one of the Big Five to swoop down on them and herd them back toward their seats.

"We need to do something, who knows what they might be planning," Yami shouted.

Machine King's fists slammed to the ground behind Yami and Joey, forcing them to start running again.

"First we need to figure out how to ditch gruesome back there," Joey yelled.

Mai and Bakura, in the meantime, were carrying Serenity as they tried to follow Victor, only for the Jinzo that had been terrorizing the arena to suddenly drop down in front of them.

"My, my, where do you think you're going?' Asked the machine.

"Leave us alone!" Serenity yelled, looking very frightened.

"Hmm…No, Ah don't think Ah will," Chortled the wicked monster in his southern drawl. "Former Kaiba Corp. Vice President will not be denied so easily."

As Jinzo closed in on the three, a pulse of light fell around their feet. Lector pulled back, confused, as Serenity, Mai, and Bakura all vanished into thin air!

---------------------------------------------------

"Emergency ejection programs are back on line!" Rei reported as the duelists on the monitor began vanishing in small groups of three or four at a time.

"They aren't going fast enough," Mokuba shouted.

"We never expected having to make perform a complete evacuation," Sota responded. "Plus, these programs haven't been online since Bandit Keith was removed from the tournament; these 'Big Five' people must have disabled them immediately after to prevent escapes."

"Tell us something we didn't already figure out," Johnson said as another group vanished. "But still, for them to do so much damage…"

"I don't think it was all them, they had help," Mokuba muttered, looking forlorn.

Rei, Jackson, and Sota all looked frightened, but Mokuba shook his head.

"I'm not talking about you three or anyone else in this room. I don't want to believe it, but it's the only thing that explains all the glitches with Seto's duels," Mokuba sighed. "Seto must have been working with them, but I can't figure out why…"

---------------------------------------------------

Back in the arena, Lector was growling as a duel disk appeared on his arm. All around him, he could see flashes of light indicating escaping duelists.

"The emergency ejection programs are back up, box in as many duelists as you can!" Lector shouted out as he played a card. "Go Injection Fairy Lily!"

In front of the Jinzo appeared a nurse with large angel wings, carrying a giant syringe. She giggled as she started flying circles around the arena, waving her weapon about in an attempt to spear anyone that got close.

Seeing this, the penguin, the ogre, and the lizard-man each produced a disk of their own and played a card.

"Fine, we'll just do this the hard way," Shouted the reptilian monster. "Go, Ruklamba the Spirit King!"

A strange lizard with tangled, black hair falling down its back appeared next to Lily.

"I pick, Empress Judge!" Shouted the ogre.

A tall women with red hair, tan skin, and purple tattoos across her face appeared. She wore purple robes, and carried a pair of silver balance scales in one hand, a sword in the other.

These three monsters swiftly chased down the duelists that were cowering in the audience, forcing them closer and closer to the arena walls. The penguin chortled as he held up one of his own cards.

"And now for a little cool down. Go Defender Iceberg!" Shouted the bird.

A chilled wind blew around the arena, and everyone to shiver. Even as more people vanished, pulled to safety by the technicians, a giant made of solid ice rose up in front of the audience, its chilling aura causing all the doors to immediately ice over.

"Looks like we still have quite a selection," commented the penguin as he joined the other four hovering over the center of the arena.

"Indeed we do," Lector nodded.

"And I'll be the one that gets that Wheeler brat that tried to scrap me," Promised Nesbit.

"Gentlemen, shall we begin?" Asked the lizard-man.

"I'm ready when you are," Chuckled the ogre.

"Well then folks," Shouted Lector, raising his arms overhead. "I hope you're ready for a trip that you'll never forget!"

In the center of the arena, all the remaining duelists were staring up at the five figures. Of the finalists, only Mai, Bakura, Pegasus, and Weevil seemed to have been pulled to safety, leaving the others stranded amongst the crowd.

Before Lector could finish whatever he was doing, though, a massive blast of fire shattered one of the doors that Defender Iceberg had frozen. The crystallized giant seemed confused, right up until the moment that a second blast of fire melted it into a puddle of slush!

"What in tarnation!" Shouted Lector.

Four more fireballs smashed through the walls, incinerating Injection Fairy Lily, Ruklamba, Machine King, and Empress Judge before they had a chance to move. Then another five fire balls slammed into the Big Five, sending them flying into the unoccupied seats in the audience.

From the holes the flames had made emerged eight giant snake head, with Noah riding on one of them, a smug grin plastered to his face.

"Honestly, if Seto fired you, imprisoned you in a video game, and tried to delete you, one think that he doesn't want you five around anymore," Noah shouted down to the antagonists.

"Noah!" Yami shouted.

"Boy am I glad to see him!" Joey sighed. "Well, that monster at least, seeing as it…Hey wait, he can summon monsters too?"

The audience was cheering as Noah jumped down, a few more prisoners vanishing during the ruckus.

"Everyone, listen! These five hackers have been attempting to corrupt the tournament! I've no clue what they have planned, but I have noticed that their presence has disrupted our duel parameters," Noah turned toward the Big Five with a grin. "In other words, we can fight back using our monsters like these five were."

"Hey, wait a minute…That wasn't in my calculations!" Squawked the penguin as he got up.

"Krump, you're an idiot," Lector scolded, reaching for his cards.

"We just need to fight them off until everyone is out of here," Noah instructed. "So either stay out of the way, or go on the attack!"

"Noah, I like the way you think," Joey grinned as he reached for his deck. "What do you think, Yugi?"

"I say we give these five a taste of their own medicine." Yami nodded.

Both young men held up a card, and Dark Magician appeared standing next to Flame Swordsmen. Both monsters nodded to one another, then dashed forward, the Big Five quickly flying back into the air to avoid them.

"Is this just some weird publicity stunt?" Brian asked, noticing Kaiba was standing nearby.

"Yeah, let's go with that," Kaiba answered.

Kaiba reached for a card, and then stopped as he spotted Noah heading toward him through the crowd. He sneered and then turned and ran toward the back of the group. Brian looked at the others and shrugged, reaching for his deck.

"Well, whether or not these guys are just actors, we may as well help out," Brian said. "Who's with me?"

"I like this game," Zeffie grinned. "I'm gonna playing, 'kay Goldie?"

"You go ahead Zef, I already hit one of them," Gold nodded.

"I'm always up for taking a shot at something new," Mako agreed.

"It only seems fair after they scared everyone like that…" Celeste mused.

"I get use fire? I'm in," Tim smiled.

"Well, I should definitely help," Victor chimed in. "If these five are hackers, then I'll need to help bring them in. Go Manticore of Darkness!"

The bipedal lion roared into being behind Victor, and flew toward the fleeing villains alongside Zeffie's Roc from the Valley of Haze and a multitude of other flying monsters that people were calling in.

The Big Five scattered, but not before the ogre found himself plowed into the wall by Roc, with Zeffie giggling below as she watched.

Krump swooped down into the crowd of duelists, playing a new card as he did which caused a torpedo with a penguin design painted on it to start flying along side him. The pair of penguins tore around, causing folks to scatter as they attempted to get out of the way. Krump was laughing hysterically, up until the point that a large wall made of flesh with a face in the center appeared right in front of him. Krump slammed right into the obstacle, his missile followed and exploded, sending the normally flightless bird soaring back through the air.

"Wall of Illusion, never got use it in a duel today, but still fun," Brian explained to the people around him.

Nesbit had called in an entire armada of machine monsters, which were raining down lead and lasers on the people below as they attempted to take cover while even more of them were pulled out. A massive wall of flame shot upward, melting two of the monsters while a spear lanced through the other three. Nesbit reached for his deck only for both the spear and a fireball to slam into him and pin him to the ground, where the duelists he had been attacking proceeded to summon their own creatures.

"Hey, the Robotic Knight was mine!" Tim shouted at Mako as Thestalos cracked his knuckles.

"Yeah? You should have put your name on it," Mako retorted as Legendary Fisherman retrieved his weapon.

"I was gonna have Thestalos melt it onto his chest," Tim said. "Then you and your twin card there messed it up."

"Excuse me, I messed it up? I'm the one that hit him!" Mako argued.

Tim and Mako began exchanging verbal blows, while Lector was charging an orb of black energy overhead.

"Say goodnight fools," Chortled the Jinzo.

A beam of light suddenly struck him in the chest, causing the energy ball to explode right in his face as his concentration broke. Coughing and sputtering, Lector looked down and spotted Celeste, with her Soul of Purity and Light hanging over her shoulders and Agent of Judgment: Saturn standing beside her.

"I don't know what you're trying to do, but you're not gonna finish it!" Celeste warned.

"Like some little g..." Lector began.

"Fire two!" Celeste ordered.

Both of the angels fired their beams of light again, this time managing to drop Lector to the floor with the energy.

As all this had been going on, more and more people had vanished. Now only Kaiba, Noah, Yugi/Yami, Joey, Victor, and the Elemental Duelists remained in the area, along with the Big Five who were trying to get back to their feet.

"Hold it right there Seto!" Noah yelled.

Seto stopped where he was at the back of the arena, near one of the exits. He turned around slowly, and Noah's voice came in.

"Seto, why were you helping the Big Five?" Mokuba asked, his voice shaking like he was about to cry.

"Don't worry Mokuba, you're brother isn't the one that helping them," Noah growled. "At least, not really."

"What do you mean?" Yami, Mokuba, and Joey all asked at once.

"What are you guys talking about?" Gold asked, the others looking equally confused.

"So, you think you pegged me, Noah?" Challenged Seto.

"Let's see…Somehow, the Big Five were released back into the Virtual System without our knowledge. I've worked with them before, and can say with confidence that none of them have the computer skills to do that by themselves," Noah explained. "Of course, who ever did it never showed themselves, or attempted to fight alongside them at any point. They tried to make it look like the Big Five were working by themselves, but they must have had help getting the access codes. Add to that the fact that only Seto would know them, but that he would never just let a lackey do anything for him…There's only one explanation, and its accounts for a lot."

Noah took a deep breath, saying all that had left him winded. He then pointed right at Seto with an accusing glare.

"Why not show yourself…Father?" Noah asked.

"Very clever Noah," Seto said in a voice that was definitely not his own.

Before them, 'Seto' began to change. His suit turned red, and he became older with a much stockier build. His hair turned gray, and he sprouted a matching mustache, and soon a much older man stood before the others.

"Gozubora Kaiba!" Yami and Victor both gasped.

Both duelists looked at one another, while the Elemental Duelists still seemed lost.

"What's taking them so long to get us out of here?" Brian asked.

"The ejection program froze again," Mokuba reported.

"Well that's just…Hey!" Brian shouted.

Krump had leapt up behind the young man and landed on his back. In a burst of cold wind, both Brian and Krump vanished.

"Bro!" Tim yelled.

"Where did he…Aggh!" Mako screamed.

Nesbit was up as well, and grabbed both Tim and Mako roughly by the back of their necks. In a burst of flame, the three had disappeared.

"No!" Yami shouted. "Dark Magician, defend the others!"

"Don't bother Mr. Mutou, I've already taken the liberty of freezing all of your monsters, as well as Mr. Wheelers and everyone else's," Gozubora explained. "The whole summoning monsters without a duel was Krump's dumb idea, he never thought anyone would figure out folks could do the same to defend themselves."

As Gozubora was talking, the ogre had wrapped Zeffie up in the folds of his cape. All the other monsters had vanished, not that Gold seemed to mind the lack of obstacles between him and Zeffie's latest aggressor as he ran toward the mace wielder with both fists raised. Gold tripped suddenly, as the reptile-person grabbed his ankle. Both ogre and lizard-man sank into the ground and vanished.

"Oh no!" Celeste shouted. "My friends!"

Celeste started to run to where Gold and Zeffie had been, only for Lector to grab her wrist.

"I'd be more worried about myself if Ah were you," Lector commented as he and Celeste both shattered like crystals, the pieces vanishing.

"What have you done Gozubora?"

Surprisingly it wasn't Yami that had shouted, but Victor.

"Ah yes," Gozubora sneered. "You I remember. I should have figured you'd have recognized my handiwork."

"What is he talking about?" Joey asked.

"That's not important; you all need to get out of here!" Noah called out.

"Mokuba, the time we discussed is now," Victor shouted toward the ceiling. "I'm staying here to arrest Gozubora!"

"On what, a floppy disk?' Gozubora challenged.

"If necessary," Victor sneered.

"I get the feeling Victor hasn't told us enough about himself," Joey realized.

With that comment, Joey vanished.

"Joey?" Yami asked.

"We've got the ejection programs up again; we're pulling you out, Yugi!" Mokuba shouted. "Noah and Victor can handle this."

Yugi was lifted about three feet off the ground, only to be dropped right onto his rump.

"Action aborted," Chimed an electronic voice.

"Hmm…Seems Seto was right to include that emergency program," Noah commented as he began to lift into the air.

"What, emergency program?" Gozubora asked.

"Yugi and I can guess what you have planned," Noah declared. "You want to unite the computer systems of the world and trap the entire planet in a virtual universe that you can control."

"It's a solid business plan, and it's not like there'd be much difference from the real world," Gozubora retorted.

"Well, Seto was worried after his previous experiences with Virtual Technology," Noah explained as he began to fade away. "If a threat was found that could spread across Kaiba Corp Systems or beyond, then a program hidden in one duelist when they entered the Virtual World would go active, cutting the Virtual World off from the rest of the computer systems once everyone else was clear."

"WHAT!" Gozubora roared.

"And you can only deactivate in one way: you have defeat the carrier of the program in a duel. No more Big Five to do your dirty work for you, it seems," Noah chuckled. "I don't know where they are, but you can bet that once I find them I'll be rescuing those duelists they took hostage. Good luck taking on Yugi."

"Wait, I'm the carrier?" Yami realized.

"_Well, we are practically undefeated,"_ Yugi pointed out.

Yami reached for his duel disk, but Gozubora had a worried look.

"_If that program prevents me from spreading across the world, what else might it do if he beats me?"_ Worried the former business tycoon. _"I'd better stall…Seto is still locked away from when I took his body after he first tested the Virtual World, I just need to pick his brain a bit…"_

"Sorry Mr. Mutou, I'll need to reschedule. If you want to stop me and save Seto Kaiba though, you'll need to come to me…If you can!" Gozubora laughed.

In a flash, Gozubora had vanished. Yami grit his teeth together, and Victor stepped forward.

"This is bit more complex than I realized," Victor stated.

"Yes, and it seems you and Gozubora have met?' Yami asked.

"That's a long story I don't have time for right now," Victor said. "Let's just say that I'm a very important person in law enforcement. Now then, it seems Gozubora has Seto hostage, so we can't wait, who knows what might try with him."

"Agreed," Yami nodded. "But where do we start looking?"

-------------------------------------------------------------

"Whoa!" Brian screamed as he fell from above and landed up to his waist in snow.

Digging himself out, the teen could see nothing but frozen, lifeless trees around him, piles of snow, and a frozen beach with icebergs floating off the coast.

"And my mom laughed at me for wearing a jacket today," Brian said as he tromped down toward the beach. "Better get to the beach, could be a boat or something…Where am I anyway?"

----------------------------------------------------------------

Celeste was asking herself the same question as she stood up after her rough landing.

She seemed to be in a forest of some kind, but all of the plants and tress were clear. Gently tapping on one, Celeste frowned.

"It's made of…Glass, or crystals," she realized, drawing back. "I'm not sure I like it here…Even if it is pretty."

Turning a full circle in place Celeste stopped as she spotted something off in the distance through the crystal trees. She began racing toward it, stopping just before she ran into a near invisible bush.

"This could get old fast," Celeste realized as he held her arms in front of her and began to pick her way through the crystal forest.

----------------------------------------------------

"Goldie, where are you?" Zeffie shouted as she wandered the halls of an abandoned mall.

Bright neon sign flashed from the otherwise empty windows, while smells of non-existent food wafted from the pretzel and popcorn stands. All the smells of the mall, as well as the sound of shopping music was present, but none of the products were visible.

"This is boring now," Zeffie complained as she past a large sign.

She stopped and read the poster, her eyes going wide as she read it aloud.

'Free toys?" She cheered, looking around.

She didn't need to look far, a toy store was nearby with dolls, teddy bears, action figures, and board games lined up in the window, all under a sign that said 'FREE' in bold letters.

"Free toys!" Zeffie shouted, immediately forgetting all of her worries like the child she was.

------------------------------------------------------

Gold found himself in a rather bland cavern, with only a single exit tunnel. The entire thing seemed to be fairly rough around the edges, a close look at the walls and rocks showed them to be made completely of polygons.

"Eh, I've woken up in worse places," Gold commented. "Zeffie! Zeffie!?"

Gold looked around, but could see no sign of his young charge.

"Uh oh," Gold gasped. "Zeffie, come on! If you're parents…Or worse, your uncle find out I lost ya twice in one day…I don't wanna think about what'll happen!"

-------------------------------------------------------

"Well, this is a fine mess you got us in to," Mako commented.

Tim and Mako were sitting on separate, metal platforms, with at least twenty feet between them. Neither looked exceptionally pleased, since there was no off of said platforms.

"Hey, you should have just let me blast that robot. Then you wouldn't be here, and we could be happy," Tim retorted, getting to his feet.

As he did, Tim stepped on a slightly discolored patch of metal, which creaked under his weight. A bridge immediately extended from Mako's platform off into the distance, linking to another platform. Tim looked at his feet, While Mako smiled.

"Well, you're good for something after all," Mako commented as he ran down the bridge.

He smiled as he stopped as the end, finding a large button on the wall the platform was up against. He pressed it, and heard a loud clank…

As from below rose a bridge which connected to Tim's platform and curved off into the distance. Mako smacked himself as Tim ran along the bridge stopping halfway.

"Guess we'll need to work together to get out of here," Tim scowled.

"Then hurry up and find a button," Mako responded. "I don't want to be here all day."

----------------------------------------------------------

In the real world, Mokuba was looking over a set of papers that had just been faxed to him from other Kaiba Lands. He sighed as he began to type in commands, a search appearing on his screen.

"We've got six duelists still trapped in the Virtual World," Mokuba ordered. "Along with Yugi, Victor, and my brother. I can't see this getting much worse, so I'm running an emergency search for the hostages. The minute anything comes up, we pull them out, got it?"

"Yes sir!" All the technicians shouted.

"If we can…" Jackson muttered.

_**Mokuba here, what a mess! We need to find Seto, but those six Elemental Duelists got pulled into more trouble than I usually get into!**_

_**Next time, Yugi and Victor begin there search, you'll get an insight into how Gozubora made his return, and Celeste will need to defend herself from Lector of the Big Five, who hasn't given up hope of escaping the Virtual World in a new body.**_

_**  
I call our next chapter**_

_**Atmospheric**_

_**Really, this can't get any worse.**_


	41. Atmospheric

My name is Noah Kaiba, but now is not the time for introductions

_**My name is Noah Kaiba, but now is not the time for introductions.**_

_**This tournament was supposed to be fun, and a chance for Seto to show the world what Kaiba Corp is capable of.**_

_**Now, the whole thing has gone right to Hell, as the Big Five, led by my father, have risen up in an attempt to seize control of the company, and more than likely the world.**_

_**Yugi is the only thing stopping them, thanks to an emergency program written into him by Seto when he was placed in the Virtual World.**_

_**Until he manages to bring this to an end, I need to stay to the side and do my best to keep things from getting out of hand.**_

_**But the Big Five have hostages now, I'm going to need to hope for the best…**_

Atmospheric

The Virtual World Arena was barren and empty, all except for two duelists standing in the center.

The first was Yugi Mutou, currently holding himself proudly with a serious look, indicating that Yami was in control.

The second was Victor Greenstone, who was currently the one that Yami was giving the serious look to.

"So Victor," Yami said, calmly, "How exactly do you know of Gozubora Kaiba?"

Victor seemed troubled, but sighed, relaxing his shoulders a bit.

"I can't give you all the details. Suffice it to say that I'm not just some average Seattle cop," Victor explained. "I work for a higher authority in the American Government than local police. I've been following some strange Kaiba Corp financial activity that's started to affect American businesses. The signs all pointed to something I dealt with in one of my early cases, corrupt dealings by Gozubora Kaiba."

"So you were investigating him," Yami realized. "And it led to a confrontation between the two of you."

"Correct, unfortunately there was never evidence to bring him in, and by the time I could gather more, he'd vanished and Seto Kaiba was in charge," Victor stated. "Not that Seto seemed to mind the information I'd gathered. He wanted to use it to help shred his father's reputation so he could a smoother appearance in the business world."

"Officially, the original case was dropped when Seto turned Kaiba Corp into a game company," Noah's voice broke in. "But Victor came to us a few months ago when he noticed the similar trends. Stuff was happening that not even Mokuba and I were aware of. Looking at the records, it all dates back to one of Seto's early tests of the Virtual World."

"Then Gozubora must have done what you did, Noah," Yami concluded. "He copied himself into Seto's mind somehow, more than likely during their duel, and the copy emerged when Seto reentered this virtual plane."

"Then he imprisoned Seto somewhere inside it, and left posing as the real thing," Noah confirmed. "Probably with a copy of Seto's mental data so he could fool everyone, even in dueling."

"Doesn't that sound a tad farfetched?" Victor asked.

"It would if I wasn't capable of the same thing," Noah said. "But what's important now is finding Seto, he must be trapped somewhere in this world. If you two can get him out, then I can launch a program that will delete Gozubora for good!"

"Why not just launch it now?" Victor questioned.

"It could put Seto at risk, especially since Gozubora is the only one that knows for sure where he is," Noah explained. "For all we know, killing Gozubora now could cost us any chance of finding Seto. There's no way I'd put Mokuba through that."

"Then how do we find Kaiba?" Yami asked.

"I can open your access to the random jump program," Noah instructed. "Just leap from anywhere, and you'll wind up somewhere new. But I can't guarantee where. Still, it's the only travel method open to anyone who isn't a Kaiba Corp. Employee. I'll leave Jackson in charge of keeping an eye on you two while I prepare my deleter program for when you save Seto."

"What about those others that got grabbed?" Victor asked.

"Mokuba and the other programmers are hard at work as we speak, trying to track them down and rescue them," Noah stated. "Once they're free, I'll unleash more deleters to target the kidnappers."

Noah's voice cut out, replaced by a young man's. He sounded somewhat nervous, but was doing his best to stay calm.

"Mr. Mutou, Mr. Greenstone? I'm Jackson and I guess I'll be your operator for this…Darn it, Rei, I know I've 'The Matrix' one time too many, shut up!" The voice declared. "Whenever you're ready, just jump. I'll try to lock onto Gozubora so you're going in the right direction."

"_Seems that we've got our work cut out for us,"_ Yami thought.

"_But still, we can't just strand Kaiba in here,"_ Yugi declared. _"He doesn't deserve this, no one does."_

"_Agreed,"_ Yami.

"Ready Yugi?" Victor asked.

"As I'll ever be," Yami responded.

Both duelists jumped into the air, phasing out of sight in a blur of pixels and numbers.

--

_Crash!_

Celeste let out a cry of frustration as she fell to the ground again, tripping over a bush that, until a moment before, she had been unaware of due to the fact that it was made of transparent crystals. She picked herself up off the ground, grumbling in a most un-ladylike manner.

"That's the fifth bush I've tripped over since I got here," She said as she got to her feet. "At least this time I didn't stumble into a tree. What's with this crazy forest?!"

Celeste looked around, discovering that no one was nearby to answer her.

"And why am I talking to myself?" She wondered out loud.

Still seeing that there was nobody to talk to, Celeste firmly shut her mouth. She cast her gaze up to the top of a nearby hill of rolling, white grass and more crystal trees and squinted. She could just barely make out someone standing at the top of the hill, hiding in the midst of a grove of crystal that distorted any detailed view of him.

"_I don't know who you are, but you're the only lead I've got to get out this place,"_ Celeste thought to herself as she scrambled up the hill. _"You'd better not be a mirage…"_

After about ten minutes of climbing, scraped knees, and several cuss words that should never be repeated (or spoken in the first place), Celeste had managed to reach the top of the hill with minimal injuries.

The top of the hill was surprisingly bare compared to the rest of it. Only a few columns of crystal which Celeste assumed were trees fringed the crown, and the rest was covered only with the white grass. There was no sign of anybody around.

"_Great, now I'm hallucinating."_ Celeste lamented. _"I've hit my head so many times I'm seeing things. Tim will never let me live this down…"_

As she turned back around to descend the hill though, something did come into her line of sight.

It was a creature most duelists fear. A tall, bald cyborg, wearing green armor, with red lenses for eyes. Despite the fact that its mouth was covered by a plate, Celeste couldn't help but feel that it was giving her a sick smile.

"Hey there little lady," spoke the Jinzo.

Celeste screamed and started to run away, only to take a spill over another bush. She fell to the ground, and as she started to pick herself up she could see more crystals appearing around the clearing. They towered over her, effectively blocking any escape from the hill top.

"Leaving without saying a word to your host? That's just rude," Jinzo commented as he closed in on Celeste.

--

Out in the real world, Mokuba had managed to get the attention of everyone except for Jackson, who was otherwise occupied.

"Okay everybody, we have reports of six duelists that have yet to awaken after the evacuation," Mokuba ordered. "Zeffie Gale, Julius Gold, Celeste Hikari, Brian Hokage, Tim Hokage, and Mako Tsunami."

"Sir, weren't those names on the list we received at the start of all this?" Asked a technician.

"Yes, which means that we have a full registry of their decks," Mokuba nodded. "So here's the deal. Wherever they are, I'd bet their trying to use their cards to try and escape. So we are going to search every pixel of the Virtual World, with key points of their strategies as the basis for the search. And when we're done, none of you are to talk to the press, or anyone else about this."

"Probably because it's a PR nightmare," Sota whispered to Rei.

"I heard that!" Mokuba shouted, causing Sota to tremble. "Now get started, we've got a rescue mission!"

"He has very good hearing," Rei muttered to Sota.

"Yes, I do," Mokuba responded, causing Rei and Sota to jump.

"_Wire-tapping their hands-free sets doesn't hurt,"_ Mokuaba thought with a smirk.

--

Back on top of the hill, Celeste was backing away from Jinzo, stopping as her back came up against the wall of crystals behind her.

"Who are you, what do you want?" Celeste asked. "And why me?"

"Allow me to answer your questions in order," Jinzo spoke in a smooth southern voice. "My name is Lector, former Assistant to the President of Kaiba Corp, until that brat Seto saw fit to imprison me inside a computerized dungeon. As for what I want…I want out of this nightmare, and your body will be my ticket to freedom once I've transferred my mind into it."

"What!" Celeste gasped.

"As for why you…I didn't appreciate those angels of yours blasting the heck out of me," Lector growled. "So pardon me if I'm a bit vindictive!"

The mechanical man jumped forward, but as he got close to Celeste a wall of force suddenly sprang up in front of her. Lector screamed as he was pushed back, Celeste seeming confused, but relieved, by this turn of events.

"What…No!" Lector gasped out. "I thought copying myself from the first Virtual Program would erase that, but I'm still bound by the rules that were set down before! I can't take another's body until I defeat them in a fair contest…"

Lector's red eyes fell on Celeste's duel disk, a motion that did not go unnoticed by the young woman. Celeste's eyes went wide as she could only guess what her foe might be thinking. Albeit, it was pretty obvious.

"Hold on, do you think I would honestly get into a duel where I could lose my body?" Celeste asked, shaking her head. "No way, if I just refuse…"

"Then we both remain stuck here until the end of time," Lector declared. "Because I've no intention of letting you leave, and there is zero chance of you being found. Either we duel and one of gets your body, or neither of us does!"

Celeste clenched her fists, taking Lector's words into account. She sighed, holding up her duel disk.

"It seems I have no choice," She admitted. "But if I win, you're telling me where my friends are and leaving us alone for good."

"I assure you that if you win, and you won't by the way, I won't have a choice about leaving you alone," Lector declared. "You see the area around us? It has a special feature, one that you'll know about soon enough, now feel free to select your deckmaster, and let's begin."

Celeste watched as an array of cards appeared before her. She looked over it, and immediately reached for her Asura Priest. As she touched it, a red 'X' appeared over the card, and the word 'INVALID' flashed over the grid.

"What?" Celeste asked. "Why can't I use Asura Priest?"

"I'm afraid that this area runs under a slightly older set of rules. Spirit monsters are invalid choices for deckmasters," Lector explained.

"_That rules out Otohime as well,"_ Celeste realized, looking over her cards again.

Her eyes landed on one card in particular, one with a blue border. A smile came to her face as she selected it.

"I choose…Shinato, King of Higher Plane for my deckmaster!" She called out.

A burst of glorious light appeared behind Celeste, and from the light emerged the massive angel, all eight wings extended, a peaceful look on his blue face. Lector drew back a bit at the sight of the creature.

"A most interesting selection," he growled. "Seeing as I'm Jinzo, I'll serve as my own deckmaster for this duel. And just so you know, as long as I'm a deckmaster, you can't activate traps."

"_Drat!"_ Celeste winced.

"Now let's begin, I'll take the first move," Lector demanded as he turned on his disk.

"Now who's being rude?" Celeste mocked as she flicked her disk into position.

Lector stared at Celeste in silence, before firing a beam of red energy from his eyes. Celeste gasped as the bolt struck near her feet, leaving scorch marks on the ground.

"Care to repeat that?" Lector asked, drawing six cards.

"Nevermind," Celeste said quickly as she drew five.

**Lector: 8000**

**Celeste: 8000**

Lector looked over his hand, his face showing no change in emotion (mostly due to the fact that he was a machine.) He took two cards and set them into his disk.

"I'll open with a facedown monster, plus one facedown card," Lector explained as the pair of cards appeared before him. "Your move, little girl."

Celeste drew her own card, giving both of Lector's a wary look.

"I think I'll start with Absorbing Kid from the Sky (1300/1000)," Celeste stated, playing the monster.

The crystals around her shimmered for a moment as Shinato raised one arm. A beam of light shone down from above, and a child with white wings descended before her. He pouted as he looked around the area, unimpressed by the crystals or the white grass.

"Okay Kid, attack his facedown monster with heavenly hissy-fit!" Celeste ordered, pointing at Lector's facedown monster.

The child looked at the brown card, and scrunched his face up. He began to scream at the top of his lungs, the force of his voice shaking the card and causing it to turn over, revealing nothing. Lector just laughed a bubble of green energy formed around his body, blocking the attack. Both Celeste and her monster seemed confused by this outcome.

"You didn't think it would be so easy, did you?" Lector challenged.

"No, not really, but what did I attack?" Celeste asked. "I've never seen a card like that before."

"Let me give you a closer look," Lector offered, gesturing toward one of the crystals behind him.

The crystal shimmered, then an image appeared in it as though it were a television. The picture showed what seemed to be a space station with two rings around a central column. A green light was projecting from one end of the column, shining down on the planet the space station orbited.

"This is my Satellite Base (0/0)," Lector announced. "And though its defense score may be non-existent, it can not be destroyed in battle by any monster with fewer than six stars. It doesn't seem like your kid qualifies."

The child angel seemed dejected, looking down at the ground. Celeste was looking over the rest of her hand, but lowered it with a sigh.

"In that case, I'll end my turn," she declared.

"And I'll activate my Solemn Wishes card as soon as you do," Lector declared, his facedown card lifting.

"Excuse me?" Celeste protested. "I seem to remember that Solemn Wishes is a trap, you're Jinzo. Shouldn't you negate it?"

"My deckmaster power only applies to your traps, I can use as many as I want," Lector said. "Now I believe it's my turn. So I draw and gain 500 life points from Solemn Wishes."

"_He can use traps but I can't?" _Celeste thought with a pout. _"How unfair is that?"_

Lector pulled the top card from his deck, a shimmering rain of light falling around him and bolstering his score.

"Next, I'll summon my Cure Mermaid (1500/800) in attack mode," Lector went on.

His eyes began to glow, and a portal of swirling energy appeared by his feet. Out of the portal swam a mermaid with a shiny red tail, wearing a pink top as her blond hair flowed behind her. She giggled, casting a mischievous wink at Celeste's monster.

"Mermaid, attack her Absorbing Kid from the Sky with siren's surge," Lector instructed.

The mermaid smiled, and let out a high pitched shriek. The noise was accompanied by a blast of high pressure water that flew from nowhere as she swung her tail. Both the noise and the water struck Celeste's monster, causing him to fall to the ground with damp feathers falling from his wings before he broke apart with a sad cry. Shinato gave a sympathetic look to where the kid had been, before returning to his stoic position.

"That's quite enough for one turn, so you may move," Lector invited.

As he said that, the force field around him suddenly grew brighter, the image of the Satellite Base showing the intensity of the light increasing.

"What's happening to your satellite?" Celeste asked as she drew.

"Exactly what will happen every turn until I declare an attack," Lector said. "It gains 1000 defense points at the end of each of my turns. Once I attack though, it drops back to nothing."

"_So if I don't get a high level monster soon, I won't be able to destroy it anyway,"_ Celeste realized as she looked over her cards.

**Lector: 8500**

**Celeste: 7800**

"I summon my Hysteric Fairy (1800/800)," Celeste declared.

Once more, Shinato raised one arm. This time, a book fell from above, landing on the grass before Celeste. It opened, releasing a gentle light, from which formed the bookish young angel. The winged woman scooped up her tome and adjusted her glasses, giving Lector's mermaid a disdainful look as she did.

"Doesn't look like Hysteric Fairy likes your mermaid very much," Celeste noticed. "Well, let's do something about that. Since she can't destroy your Satellite Base anyway, I'll let her attack your Cure Mermaid with ocu-beam!"

Hysteric Fairy grinned as her eyes shone with white light, which promptly fired out at Cure Mermaid. Her glasses focused the light into a pair of thin beams, both of which struck Cure Mermaid in the chest and vaporized her before she could scream. Shinato pointed at Celeste, who smiled a golden aura flared over her.

"Plus, since you lost life points in a battle, Shinato's life transference power gives them to me," Celeste pointed out. "So I just closed the gap by 600 points.

"Indeed, but you're incapable of passing my Satellite Base," Lector reminded her.

"I can wait, time makes all things possible," Celeste said. "End turn."

**Lector: 8200**

**Celeste: 8100**

Lector drew, another rain of light shining down on him from Solemn Wishes. He swiftly took one card from his hand, and placed in his disk. It appeared next to Solemn Wishes, and he nodded.

"That's it for my turn, so I end and my Satellite Base increases by another 1000 defense points," Lector declared. "Your time is running out."

The shimmering barrier around Lector grew brighter still, and now started to obscure Celeste's view of him. The Satellite Base showing in the crystal had increased its beam intensity so much that the end of the station's column was starting to glow green as well.

**Lector: 8700**

**Celeste: 8100**

Celeste picked up her next card and looked at it.

"_One more card and I'll be able to ground that base,"_ She thought.

"I'll set a defense monster and end my turn," Celeste announced, the back of another card appearing next to Hysteric Fairy.

Lector drew, the light shining again, only now it was much dimmer compared to the force field. He placed another card onto his tray, and a monster appeared in front of him, hiding in facedown defense mode.

"I'll just mimic you and set a defensive monster this turn," Lector decided. "And by ending my turn, my satellite…"

"Grows stronger, I get it," Celeste sighed, watching as the shield brightened to (0/3000).

"Precisely," Lector said from behind the wall of light.

It was now incredibly hard to see Lector, and Celeste was starting to squint from looking in his direction.

"Could you maybe turn that light down a bit?" She asked.

She couldn't see what Lector did, but the light did dim quite a bit, giving her a clear look at her opponent.

"I'm a gentleman young lady, but consider the only favor I'm going to do for you this duel," Lector warned as Celeste drew her card.

"I'm fine with that. I activate Polymerization, fusing my facedown Forgiving Maiden…" Celeste declared, holding up the spell.

Her facedown monster lifted, showing a crying woman in dark robes. Tears stained her face as a swirling light appeared over her head.

"…With the Marie the Fallen one in my hand," Celeste continued.

From out of the portal emerged a young woman with pitch-black skin, extending a clawed hand to the Forgiving Maiden. The crying fairy took the other woman's hand, and both of them were pulled into the vortex. Shinato clapped his hands together behind Celeste, causing the entire vortex to begin to spin in the opposite direction.

"Together, they'll summon St. Joan (2800/2500)!" Celeste shouted.

From the vortex was lowered a beautiful young woman with short red hair, dressed in shining silver armor and carrying a broadsword. As she appeared though, Lector's facedown card lifted up.

"A noble effort, I've no doubt you planned to increase her strength somehow," Lector guessed. "But I shall cut your plans short with my Royal Oppression trap card! This lets me give up 800 life points to put a stop to your special summon and destroy the monster."

From the card emerged an armored soldier, who roughly grabbed St. Joan and pulled her to the side. Celeste's eyes went wide as she watched the guard tie her monster's hands behind her back and push her into his trap. The guard then pulled out a torch which he lit before retuning into the card himself, and smoke began to rise from the card.

"That seemed a bit graphic," Celeste commented.

"But it was so historically correct," Lector chuckled.

"At least someone's having fun…" Celeste muttered under her breath before speaking up again. "Hysteric Fairy, attack his facedown card!"

The angel nodded, looking somewhat distressed over her partner's death, but she still fired her eye beams at Lector's field. As they struck the facedown monster, a flying squirrel sprang from the back of the card and dove into Lector's deck, emerging a second later with two cards between its teeth.

"That would be my Nimble Momonga (1000/100) you just attacked," Lector laughed. "When it dies in battle, I gain 1000 life points, and I get two more momongas to summon in facedown defense mode."

Two more of the sugar gliders landed on Lector's field as Hysteric Fairy fired her attack again and vaporized the first. Seeing this, the other two squeaked in terror and turned into facedown cards, which trembled a bit as Hysteric Fairy scowled at them.

"Ugh…I can't do anything else, so I end my turn here," Celeste frowned.

**Lector: 8900**

**Celeste: 8100**

Lector simply pulled off the top card of his deck, Solemn Wished bathing him with light once more.

"I activate my Graceful Charity card," Lector declared, his deck shining with golden light. "Not only will I get to draw three cards then discard two, I'll also gain more points from Graceful Charity."

Lector snapped the top three cards from his deck, looked them over, then shoved two into his grave. More light fell over him, boosting his life points as he prepared his next card.

"I'm equipping my Satellite Base with Raregold Armor," Lector declared.

In the crystal behind him, the Satellite Base shimmered brightly for a moment. The light faded, and a fresh coat of glossy, golden paint now covered the entire station.

"With this card, my Satellite Base is now the only monster you are permitted to attack, which means I can safely summon my White Magician Pikeru (1200/0)." Lector continued.

Out from the field of crystal emerged the tiny, child spellcaster, adjusting her hood and wiping dust from her white robes. She ran onto the field, almost dropping her scepter, and gave a polite curtsy to Celeste.

"That concludes my turn, young lady," Lector finished, the base's light increasing in intensity once more as it rose to (0/4000). "I don't think you'll be getting to my life points anytime soon."

**Lector: 9900**

**Celeste: 8100**

Celeste drew her card, and behind her appeared the black-winged spirit of Marie the Fallen One. It raised one hand over her head, casting sparkling dust over her.

"You're not the only that can restore life points," Celeste said. "As long as Marie is in my graveyard, she'll give me 200 life points each turn."

Celeste switched the monster card on her disk with one from her hand, smiling as she did so.

"And that's not all. I tribute my Hysteric Fairy to summon Agent of Judgment, Saturn (2400/0)!" Celeste called out.

Shinato began to shimmer with holy light once again, as Hysteric Fairy flapped her wings and took off into the sky. The bookish angel vanished from sight, and in her place descended a new angel with purple skin and wings. Her robes seemed Egyptian, as did the headdress she wore, and her face was deadly serious.

"Very pretty, but while she is a high enough level, she lacks the attack power to destroy my Satellite Base. Pity you didn't draw her earlier," Lector taunted.

"Then I'll just have to end my turn here," Celeste admitted.

Lector drew, and Pikeru began to chant as light rained from her controller's trap.

"Well let's see, this turn I gain my 500 points from Solemn Wishes, but I also get 400 points for each monster I have from Pikeru," Lector stated. "All told, that's an extra 1600."

Lector's body lit up with a blinding aura, forcing Celeste to look away as energy flowed from Pikeru, the Satellite Base, and both of the facedown Nimble Momongas.

**Lector: 12000**

**Celeste: 8300**

The aura faded, leaving Lector chuckling once more as he lowered his arms.

"I really can't think of anything else I want to do this turn, so I'll hand it over to you," Lector offered.

The base powered up once more, its golden sheen overpowered by the green energy as it rocketed to (0/5000). Celeste seemed unworried as she drew her own card.

"Your Satellite Base may have strong defense," Celeste declared. "But it seems to lack anything in the offensive category. I summon Otohime (0/100)!"

A shimmering cloud of sparkling light rose in front of Celeste, and from it emerged a young woman with bright red hair, wearing a purple and silver dancing outfit. She began to twirl and spin, causing the transparent bubble of energy around Lector to waver and fade.

"What is going on?" Lector asked.

"When summoned, Otohime can change the battle position of one face up monster," Celeste explained. "So I move your base from defense mode to attack mode."

"Uh oh…" Lector said.

"I think you mentioned that I'm only allowed to attack Satellite Base at the moment," Celeste mused. "No arguments here, Saturn, attack with your light of judgment!"

Saturn flapped her wings, taking off so fast she blurred out of sight. On the crystal, she appeared in front of the Satellite Base, an orb of silver light appearing over her head. She waved one arm toward the base, causing the light to fly forward and consume the machine in a blinding burst. If Lector could have changed his facial expression, he would have been scowling as the light removed his monster from existence along with 2400 of his life points.

Saturn swooped back to Earth, alighting in front of Celeste as Shinato extended one hand over her head. The golden aura flared around Celeste once more, boosting her score by an extra 2400 as a rush of energy flooded her body.

"And now, I end my turn and let Otohime return to my hand since she's a spirit monster," Celeste finished.

The dancer spun around once before vanishing from the field, her card appearing in Celeste's hand.

**Lector: 9600**

**Celeste: 10700**

Lector drew, his life points bolstered once more by Pikeru and Solemn Wishes.

"I'll set one card facedown," He began, a hidden card appearing behind his monsters. "That's all for my turn."

Celeste clicked her tongue as she drew her card.

"Did someone panic and forget to move Pikeru to defense mode?" Celeste asked as Marie appeared behind her and showered her with sparkling dust.

"On the other hand, I can use traps, you can not," Lector pointed out. "Perhaps my facedown card is quite powerful."

Celeste seemed concerned for a moment, but placed another card onto her disk.

"I think I'll call that bluff," she said. "I summon Dunames the Dark Witch (1800/1050) in attack mode."

Next to Saturn materialized a young woman wearing bright red armor, with metallic white wings attached to her back. She smiled as she nodded to Celeste, and Lector took a step back.

"Saturn, attack Pikeru now!" Celeste ordered.

Saturn began to charge her energy, and Pikeru trembled in fear. Lector's hand flew to his trap, and it lifted to reveal a silver shield which Pikeru swiftly ducked behind.

"This trap isn't a complete bluff, go Draining Shield!" Lector called out.

Saturn's light flew forward, reflecting of the polished shield and creating a clear, bell-like tone. Green waves of energy flowed into Lector's body as Pikeru wiped some sweat from her brow.

"Well…I still have Dunames," Celeste pointed out. "Dunames, attack Pikeru with shadow flux!"

Duanames waved her arms, casting a glittering orb of black energy at Pikeru. The young sorceress cried out in pain as the orb hit her in the chest and she fell over, shattering into shards of crystal. Shinato cast the shining light over Celeste once more, boosting her score with Lector's lost points.

"I guess that ends my turn," Celeste said, double checking the life points.

"_And he ends this turn with more points than he started it with."_ She thought.

**Lector: 13100**

**Celeste: 11500**

Lector drew, the now familiar light of Solemn Wishes pouring over him as he did.

"Well now, it's an old friend of mine," Lector said with a smile in his voice. "I think I'll let her stretch her wings a bit. Go Injection Fairy Lily (400/1500)!"

From over the crystals leapt a winged woman dressed as a nurse, carrying a massive syringe under one arm. Celeste had a confused expression as Lily giggled and landed in front of Lector, who pointed at Celeste's side of the field.

"Just in case you aren't aware, Lily here can increase her attack score by 3000 points during battle, and it only costs me 2000 of life points," Lector declared. "So I'll pay those points so she can take down your Agent of Judgment. Stabbing syringe strike!"

Lector shimmered with red energy, which poured off his body and over Lily (3400/1500). The nurse's syringe suddenly tripled in size, and she hefted it into the air as she fluttered her wings to gain altitude.

"Say 'ah!'" Lily giggled as she swooped down with her massive weapon.

Saturn screamed as the needle plunged into her chest, and she vanished in a burst of light. Celeste stumbled back from the blow, her life points dropping as she did.

"I thought anesthetics were supposed to numb pain," Celeste commented.

"Lily more believes in euthanasia," Lector declared, a facedown card appearing in front of him. "Now I'll set this card facedown and end my turn."

Lily's syringe reduced back to its regular size, and with it the nurse returned to (400/1500).

**Lector: 11100**

**Celeste: 10500**

Celeste drew, a suspicious look on her face as she did.

"_I don't know anything about this monster,"_ She thought. _"So I can't afford to run into any nasty surprises. The best way to deal with this is to ask."_

"Sir? Does Lily's effect work only when she's attacking?" Celeste asked politely, hoping it would inspire some honesty in her opponent.

Lector growled a bit, looking at the card's effect.

"_I'd love to say yes, but I don't know if the old boss is still watching. If he catches me cheating, the consequences could be unfavorable,"_ Lector thought.

"No, I can activate her effect whenever she's in a fight, no matter who attacked first," Lector answered with a snarl.

"_There goes that plan,"_ Celeste thought as she set a card facedown.

"In that case, I move Dunames to defense mode and set a monster facedown," Celeste responded.

Dunames fell to one knee as a hidden monster appeared by her side. Lector didn't seem to worry as he drew his own card with light falling over him.

**Lector: 11100**

**Celeste: 10700**

"I have no intention of waiting to see what that facedown monster might do," Lector growled. "So I activate my Spell Absorbing Life trap card."

Lector's facedown card flipped over, and right after it so did all three of the facedown monsters on the field. The two Nimble Momongas (1000/100 X2) squeaked nervously, while on Celeste's field a very young child wearing a crown and carrying a bow and arrow set.

"My trap negates any flip effects our monsters may have, then grants me 400 life points for each effect monster on the field," Lector elaborated. "I believe Dunames is a normal monster, so that makes a total of four, for a bonus of 1600 life points to me."

"_Plus, I can't use Skelengal's (900/400) effect now,"_ Celeste grumbled in her head.

All of the monsters on the field except Dunames began to shimmer, and blue light flowed from each of them to Lector, who laughed as his life points increased yet again.

"I'm hardly finished by the way," He stated. "I move both of my Momongas to attack mode."

Each of the flying squirrels got up on its hind paws and bared sharp, tiny teeth. Celeste was quite shocked by how ferocious they were acting.

"Okay, if you really want to go to the trouble to deal me 1000 damage," Celeste said, looking over the field. "Lily is the only monster you have capable of beating Dunames."

"Not for long," Lector replied. "I grant one of my Momongas a boost from my Rush Recklessly card, raising its attack score by 700 points for this turn."

The Momonga on Lector's right began to glow with green power as its score rose to (1700/100). Celeste gasped as she realized just what this meant.

"Stronger Momonga, attack Dunames!" Lector ordered. "Weaker Momonga, you take that cupid thing."

The boosted squirrel lunged forward with reckless abandoned, scratching Dunames all over her faces with its tiny claws as it tried to chew at her throat. The other Momonga tackled Skelengal, wrestling the smaller angel to the ground before chomping on its shoulder. Both of Celeste's monsters were blown to pixels by the attacks.

"Lily, I give up another 2000 life points for your effect," Lector said. "Attack her directly!"

"This is why I hate going to the doctor…" Celeste moaned as Lily's syringe swelled along with her attack strength (3400/1500).

Celeste screamed as Lily's weapon lunged down at her, plunging into the ground at her feet. Celeste looked up, wondering why the monster missed, until a blast of green energy shot up from under her feet and enveloped her. Celeste grit her teeth in pain in the midst of the attack until Lily finally pulled her needle back and returned to her field.

As Celeste tried to shake off the last attack, she heard a cracking sound beneath her. Much to her surprise, a razor sharp shard of crystal shot from the ground to her right, forcing her to the left more. She could also hear a cracking sound over her head, forcing her to look directly above herself as another crystal appeared their.

"I believe you just found out about my little penalty game," Lector chuckled. "As our life points fall we'll be trapped inside a cage of crystals, and once one of us loses, the crystal over our heads will fall and…Well you can guess the rest."

"Seems like a lot of trouble…" Celeste stammered out. "Why bother with all of this?"

"I already told you, I need another's body to escape this place thanks to Kaiba. Yours just happened to be the best one I could grab thanks to your earlier interference," Lector shouted. "It's true what they say you know: No good deed goes unpunished. Once I've smashed your mind under that crystal, I'll be free to take your body. I promise I'll take good care of it…"

"Over my dead…" Celeste began before pausing. "You know what, never mind that."

**Lector: 9100**

**Celeste: 7400**

"I'm ending my turn by the way," Lector declared.

"Then I'm starting mine," Celeste said as she drew, Marie scattering more sparkles over her head. "I'll start by summoning my Asura Priest (1700/1200)."

Shinato seemed happy as Celeste said this, the lights dancing off the crystals as the blue-skinned, multi-armed, oriental spirit appeared before him. It raised its many hands, a dagger appearing in each one.

"Asura Priest can attack as many times as I want, so I'll have him attack the two Momongas, but not Lily," Celeste declared. "Attack with daggers of demise!"

Asura Priest nodded, tossing two of his knives toward Lector's field and pinning the sugar gliders to the ground. Both of them shrieked before vanishing, and Lector clenched a fist as his life points fluctuated wildly while Celeste's went steadily upward, shattering the crystal that had appeared next to her.

"Next, I'll activate the spell card Creature Swap," Celeste stated, placing another spell into her disk. "You may borrow my Asura Priest, but you need send me Lily in return since she's the only monster you have."

"No!" Lector shouted.

Lily and Asura Priest both faded away, then an instant later each reappeared on the other side of the field.

"And with that, I end my turn, so now Asura Priest comes back to me since he's a spirit monster," Celeste concluded.

Lector watched as Asura Priest faded away, Celeste holding up his card as proof. Lily seemed a bit dizzy after the switch, obviously unable to tell whether she was with Lector or Celeste.

"I don't need to beat Lily if I can just take her away," Celeste commented as Lector took his card and his life points from Solemn Wishes.

**Lector: 9700**

**Celeste: 9000**

"I'm getting a bit tired of your little games missy," Lector growled.

"Hey, you started it. If I recall, I didn't even want to duel you," Celeste argued.

Lector paused for a moment, then nodded as he held up a card.

"True, I started this. I'll also be the one to end it," He announced. "I use Premature Burial to revive a creature I discarded with Graceful Charity earlier. Arise my Satellite Cannon (0/0)!"

"More satellites?" Celeste asked.

One of the crystals behind Lector began to glow red, and inside it was projected the image of another satellite orbiting the planet. This one didn't have the rings of Satellite Base though. It did have a rather nasty looking gun attachment mounted on the end pointed toward the planet, with a series of solar collectors on the other end.

"Plus, since I special summoned a monster with less than 1500 attack points, I can use my Infernal Reckless Summon card to bring in two copies of it," Lector went on, holding up another card. "Of course, you can summon any extra copies of a monster you have on the field, but I doubt have any Lily's of your own if you needed to ask about her."

Two more crystals behind Lector lit up, revealing two more satellites just like the first. These ones seemed to be newer, their metallic hulls glistening in the light of the stars around them (0/0 X2).

"None of them have any attack points," Celeste observed. "But I'd bet they're like your Satellite Base."

"You'd win that bet," Lector nodded. "With two major differences. First, they can only be destroyed by a monster with more than seven stars. Second, they each gain 1000 attack points at the end of my turn instead of defense points."

"Then I have three turns before they're a threat," Celeste said.

"No, you have one turn," Lector declared. "I activate Charge, which grants each of my Satellite Cannons an instant boost of 2000 attack points!"

Celeste gasped as each satellite began to draw in energy from its solar collectors, gathering it in the tip of its weapon. All three were now preparing to fire (2000/0 X3) as a mechanical voice from above chimed in.

"_Fusion cannon at twenty percent power,"_ The voice declared.

"When you worked with satellite weapons as much as I did, you learn the best ways to use them," Lector explained. "And if it weren't for Kaiba, I'd still be watching over and making my glorious satellites. Well, soon you'll get see just how powerful they really are. I end my turn, so each of them gets another boost."

All three Satellite Cannons (3000/0 X3) began to glow brighter as the voice announced, _"Fusion cannon at thirty percent."_

**Lector: 10200**

**Celeste: 9000**

"_Even if I attacked with Lily, I would only deal him 400 damage at the cost of 2000 of my points,"_ Celeste realized. _"Plus, I wouldn't even destroy the monster."_

Celeste drew her card, Marie blowing more dust over her as she did.

"I use my Graceful Charity card," Celeste stated, an angel appearing over head and scattering light over her deck.

Celeste drew her three cards, and immediately frowned. She took her two spirit monsters and slid them into the grave, and then she reluctantly turned the card on her disk to its side.

"I'll move Lily to defense mode," Celeste continued. "Plus I'll set one monster in defense mode as well."

Lily crouched down with her needle planted in the ground next to her, while a hidden monster appeared to her right.

"Then, I end my turn," Celeste said, bracing herself for what was to come.

**Lector: 10200**

**Celeste: 9200**

Lector was laughing as he drew his new card, ignoring the lights from his trap.

"My, this will be fun," Lector said with a smile in his voice. "Satellite Cannon one! Attack that traitorous Lily!"

In the crystal, the image of the satellite began to gather an orb of light at the tip of its weapon. With a thunderous blast, the energy fired into the atmosphere of the planet, streaking downward, while in the sky overhead a point of bright light appeared, growing larger and brighter…

_BOOM!_

Celeste was shaken off her feet as the laser attack slammed into Lily with a massive explosion, vaporizing the nurse.

"Satellite Cannon two, get rid of her facedown monster!" Lector continued.

Celeste got up just in time for the second blast to knock her off her feet again. She fell over as her Spirit of the Harp appeared in the center of the explosion before vanishing into particles.

"Ready for the last one?" Lector taunted as Celeste got up for the second time and braced herself.

Celeste nodded, looking grim despite realizing knowing she had had no way to avoid this.

"Then attack, Satellite Cannon three! Orbital devastation beam!" Lector shouted.

In the sky appeared a third light, this one homing in directly on Celeste. She screamed as the column of energy plowed down around her, her entire vision going white.

Celeste pulled herself up without even realizing she had fallen over again. Behind Lector, all three of the cannons had stopped glowing, their attack score at the base level (0/0 X3). Celeste noticed that she had used a newly risen piece of crystal on her left as support to get up. Looking to her right and over her shoulder, she could see more of the prison rising around her.

"Heh, heh, heh…" Lector snickered. "Shocking, ain't it, how much power they pack. I hope you enjoyed that as much as I did, because in a few turns we'll get to do it all over again."

"Not if I can help it," Celeste said as reached for her deck. "My turn?"

**Lector: 10700**

**Celeste: 6200**

Lector nodded his head, all three cannons charging behind him to (1000/0 X3). Celeste drew her own card, Marie's spirit granting her another dose of star dust to boost her score.

"Okay, I start by using Mystical Space Typhoon to finally get rid of your Solemn Wishes," Celeste began, playing the spell.

Lector didn't seem bothered, even as a blast of powerful wind flew from nowhere and tore the trap on his field to shreds.

"Next, I activate my favorite field spell," Celeste smiled, her field zone opening as she slid a card in. "Go, Sanctuary in the Sky!"

"Never heard of this one…" Lector mused as the area began to grow brighter.

Mist swirled about the feet of both duelists, thickening into clouds which were solid under their body weight. Behind Celeste rose a magnificent marble and silver palace which glowed with its own light in addition to reflecting the light around it. The sweet perfume of roses and vanilla filled the air, and the crystals that had bound the arena descended under the clouds. The large crystals overhead still remained, as did several shards of diamond that were attempting to box Celeste into place.

"Now that I don't need to worry about battle damage with my fairies, I'll summon Agent of Creation, Venus (1600/0)," Celeste went on.

Shinato appeared, flying over the palace behind Celeste with another familiar face in tow. It was the peaceful, golden winged form of Venus, looking serene and calm even in the midst of a battle. Shinato came to rest behind Celese, while Venus alighted on the field.

"Next, I equip her with Cestus of Dagla," Celeste smiled, the golden blades appearing in Venus's hands. "These give her 500 extra points, and allow me to gain any life points you lose when she attacks."

"She can't destroy my cannons, she's only level three," Lector observed.

"She can't scrap them, but she can still deal you some damage," Celeste pointed out. "Venus, attack one of the cannons with orbs of creation!"

Venus (2100/0) nodded, and a large hole opened in the clouds in front of Lector. Lector appeared shocked as he looked down through the hole to see his own Satellite Cannon. Venus swooped into the air, hovering over the hole, and pointed down toward the weapon with her blades. Three spheres of golden light appeared around her body before plummeting down the gap and striking the machine at terminal velocity. Despite the battering, the cannon remained in place, though the orbs did ricochet off the satellite and up through the clouds again, smashing into Lector's chest and knocking him to the ground.

"Now I get 1100 points from the Cestus," Celeste smiled, noticing Shinato glowing behind her. "Pardon me, my deckmaster makes that 2200 all together."

The three orbs of light circled once each around Celeste before vanishing, leaving a golden light around her body. Venus returned to her original position as Lector picked himself up, growling as the crystals around Celeste shattered once again.

"I suppose you thought that was funny?" Lector growled.

Celeste just gave Lector a smile before pointing to Venus.

"Oh, by the way, Venus has a special ability that I'll use right now since I've got points to spare," Celeste declared. "For every 500 life points I give up, she summons a Mystic Shine Ball from my deck. So I give up 1500 and…"

Venus began to glow once again, and three crystal balls, each blue as sky, coalesced on the field around her (500/500 X3). A few shards of crystal reappeared around Celeste, but they were much shorter than the previous set.

"Since I have a choice, I played them in defense mode," Celeste explained. "That doesn't really matter with the sanctuary in play, but a little extra caution can't hurt. Your turn."

**Lector: 9600**

**Celeste: 7100**

Lector drew, pausing for a moment as he did.

"Right, I don't have Solemn Wishes anymore," He realized with growl. "Never the less, I set one card facedown and end my turn."

A single card appeared between Celeste's monsters and Lector. Below the clouds, three points of light appeared, signaling the cannons each rising to (2000/0 X3).

Celeste drew, and a huge grin came to her face.

"Good card?" Lector guessed.

"Very," Celeste nodded. "I summon Warrior of Zera (1600/1600)…"

A new hole opened in the puffy ground, and a tan warrior with a blue sword was lifted through it by a silver-lined cloud. He seemed quite pleased with the arena, giving it a smile as he raised his weapon overhead.

"Then I tribute him to summon Archlord Zerato (2800/2500)!" Celeste called out.

The cloud that held Zera moved back, turning so that the warrior now faced Shinato. Celeste watched with great interest as her monster handed his sword to the deckmaster, then fell to one knee. Shinato held the blade, which shimmered and turned to silver in his grasp. He then gently tapped the blade on each of Zera's shoulders, causing a pair of powerful wings to burst from his back as his skin turned lavender while his armor also changed to silver.

The cloud Zera once stood on vanished; the newly christened Archlord Zerato took his sword back from Shinato and gave him a gracious look before returning to Celeste's field.

--

"Hey, what's this?" Asked a programmer named Megu.

Her neighbor, Keiji, looked over at her screen to see a small file appear in the search box.

"Did we find one of them?" Keiji asked.

"I'm not sure…" Megu answered. "I think this file is somewhere in the recycling bin."

"Huh?" Keiji asked.

Megu double-clicked on the file, and a picture appeared on her screen. It showed a massive field of trees made of all different colored crystals, with a few clearing filled with gem-like flowers and bushes.

"Oh, the Crystal Forest area," Megu remembered. "I remember working on this. Kaiba finally decided that it would be too much trouble since we could never stabilize the colors or the layout. All the plants and stuff would keep moving and changing color, so we never got past creating the outlines for it and making the diamond-colored grass."

"Harsh, how long would it have taken to fix?" Keiji wondered.

"Another month, if we were lucky," Megu explained. "But why did it come up on our search…"

Looking through the search protocols and lists of potential eliminators, and comparing them to the data on Megu's screen, Keiji pointed at something on the list.

"Here it is, this area was supposed to be where they would originally hide the Warrior of Zera/Archlord Zerato eliminator," Keiji pointed out. "It still has that listed somewhere in the data I'll bet."

"Should we tell Mokuba?" Megu asked.

"I can't think of why it would activate…" Keiji wondered. "But Zerato wasn't one of the rogue monsters we're supposed to be tracking, and I don't think you're picking up any of the other search cards. Must just be some glitch that we can sort out after this."

"I'm making a record of it anyway," Megu stated, typing in some commands.

--

Back at the duel, Celeste was quite impressed with the summoning of her monster.

"Now that, was totally cool," Celeste smiled. "And the best part? Zerato is a level eight monster. So even thought I don't have any cards to use for his effect…"

Celeste showed her empty hands for emphasis.

"He's still gonna recycle one of your cannons. Zerato, attack with the shining blade of Heaven!" Celeste ordered.

A new hole opened to Lector's left and Zerato dove into it posthaste. From above, all those on the field watched as Zerato's sword lit up with holy energies before he plunged it into the side of the Satellite Cannon, slicing it cleanly in two. Zerato flew back up through the hole, while Lector began to chuckle as both halves exploded into a rain of scrap metal and glass.

"Did I miss something?" Celeste asked as Lector continued laughing even as Shinato boosted her life points and the crystals around her fell away again.

**Lector: 8800**

**Celeste: 8100**

"My dear, I not only thought you would find a way to destroy my cannon, I prepared for it," Lector chortled. "Trap activate, Debristation!"

Two explosions echoed from below, and Celeste looked down to see two more holes opening up. Both of the remaining Satellite Cannons had exploded, their remains now mingling with the first one in orbit over the planet.

"Now you destroyed the other two?" Celese asked. "Why?"

"I'm getting to that part," Lector said. "You see, Debristation can only be use when I lose a Satellite Cannon in battle. Then I need to destroy two other Satellite Cannons on my field. However, it's worth it to bring my ultimate monster…"

Celeste watched as, in a flash of green light, a much large space station appeared near the wreckage. It opened a hatch, and all of the components that were floating around flew inside. The larger ship began to glow, opening not one, but two trios of solar mirrors, which began to soak up sunlight. Between the two sets of mirrors were three large rocket units, and in front of the machine extended another cannon, this one three times as long as any of the previous satellites. From this new contraption was fired a ring of smaller mirrors, which began to float in the space before it.

"It is my pleasure to introduce the ultimate in orbital weapons technology," Lector laughed. "Behold! Satellite Laser X-06S Balsam (3000/0)! And since I summoned with Debristation, it instantly gets it attack point boost, giving a total of 3000 attack points from the get go, plus it gains 3000 points at the end of each of my turns."

"Oh…" Celeste gasped, looking slightly nervous. "That's…Some monster."

"Anything else you want to do to help me this turn?" Lector challenged.

"I end my turn here," Celeste said.

"Good," Lector chuckled as he drew. "Then I'll use my Heavy Storm card, say goodbye to Heaven, child!"

A massive wind rushed over the field, ripping the Cestus of Dagla out of the hands of Venus (1600/0) and blowing the clouds out from under everyone's feet. With the clouds gone, the crystal prison reappeared around them and the grass was back under their feet. The castle faded away from behind Celeste, as did the calming odor as all five of her monsters and Shinato looked somewhat dejected.

Over Lector's shoulder, Celeste could see one of the crystals project an image of his new, giant satellite.

"Now then, since I can't risk the chance that Zerato might get any stronger, I'll have Balsam attack him with orbital bombardment!" Lector shouted.

The massive machine charge energy in the tip of its gun, firing it at the circle of smaller mirrors in front of it. As the beam entered the ring, all six of the mini-mirrors began to glow, and the attack doubled…Then tripled…Then quadrupled in size until it filled the entire circle before lancing down toward Earth. A huge column of energy fell over Celeste's entire field, obscuring all in a veil of blue light…

When the light faded, Celeste and her monsters were all trembling. A single scorched feather was all that remained to mark the passing of Archlord Zerato.

"Of course, like any of my satellites, attacking reduces its score back to zero," Lector mused. "Then again, it charges back to 3000 at the end of my turn, so why dwell on the negatives?"

"_Of course, any level of monster can destroy it, but why tell her that unless she asks?"_ Lector wondered. _"Then there's the other effect that makes up for that…"_

"I end my turn," Lector said, the cannon recharging to (3000/0).

**Lector: 8800**

**Celeste: 7900**

Celeste drew, trying to ignore the new crystals that were rising up behind her. Marie appeared, seeming nervous herself as she sprinkled more light over Celeste to boost her score.

"I'll…" Celeste dragged out the word, looking at her lone card as she did. "I'll move Venus to defense mode and end my turn…"

Venus floated to the ground, taking to one knee and folding in her wings as she did.

"Exactly what I wanted you to do," Lector taunted as he drew. "One thing I forgot to mention about Balsam is that it does damage to you, even if the target is in defense mode."

"No!" Celeste shouted.

"Such a tempting target too, no defense points," Lector nodded. "Balsam, obliterate her Agent of Creation, Venus now!"

Celeste stared up into the sky, a pool of blue light falling toward her field as the weapon fired. She quickly fell to her knees and curled up, folding her arms over the back of her head.

Lector laughed as the massive attack surged over Celeste's field once again, amplified by the crystal handing precariously over her head. The light slowly faded as Balsam's laser cooled down to (0/0), and Celeste lay flat on the ground, unmoving.

"Oh dear, maybe that was a bit much all at once," Lector said with sarcasm in his voice. "Too bad, I doubt you have a monster as strong as Balsam in your whole deck, even with the all the little bonuses you give your fairies."

Shinato reached down and offered a hand to Celeste, who push herself back up to her knees. She took the angel's hand, getting back on her feet with some difficulty still.

"And still you're able to get up and fight," Lector said, this time sounding genuinely impressed. "That is quite a body you have little girl."

"I hope you still mean that in the 'I want to take it over' sense," Celste growled. "And the name's Celeste!"

"I don't care, I set a card facedown. Now just take your turn," Lector demanded.

Overhead, Balsam began to shine like a star as it rose to (3000/0) once more.

**Lector: 8800**

**Celeste: 5100**

Celeste snapped the top card off her deck. Marie appeared, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder as more sparks fell off her wings and onto Celeste.

"Oh, Lector, I do have one monster that can beat yours without any boosts," Celeste pointed out. "I move my deckmaster onto the field! Shinato, King of a Higher Plane (3300/3000)!"

Shinato spread his mighty wings, ascending overhead for a moment before lowering to Celeste's field. Lector's eyes narrowed to red dot as he stared at the mighty angel-lord.

"I see…" He intoned.

"Shinato, attack that over-hyped laser pointer with divine ring!" Celeste commanded.

Shinato raised both hands, six orbs, each marked with a different kanji appearing in front of him. They began to spin, blurring into a ring of gold, which Shinato then grabbed hold of and cast into the sky.

"I'm unimpressed, activate Limiter Removal!" Lector shouted, his facedown card lifting. "I thought you might try to use your deckmaster to save yourself. So now, Balsam's attack power will double, Shinato will be destroyed, you'll lose, and I'll have a one way ticket out of this dump!"

Celeste stared in horror as the light overhead suddenly grew brighter. In the crystal, Balsam (6000/0) was preparing its counter attack…

"_Ack!" Noah squawked waving a hand to Shinato, "Shinato! Activate reversal NOW!"_

_Shinato vanished in a pulse of light, and the hole slammed shut. Noah breathed a sigh of relief as his deckmaster reappeared behind him._

Celeste blinked as the lines above flashed through her mind.

"Of course!" She shouted. "Shinato, use reversal!"

Shinato shimmered with a strange light as the attack closed in…

_KRACK-BOOM!_

"And that, as they say, is that," Lector chuckled an explosion double the size and intensity of the previous one cut off his view of Celeste.

As the light faded thought, Lector gasped in horror. Celeste was okay, leaning back in the arms of Shinato, who had apparently caught her when the explosion knocked her over. Around her were the long forgotten Mystic Shine Balls, which seemed to be trembling in fear.

"What happened?! Your deckmaster should be dust right now!" Lector screamed as Shinato released Celeste.

"Any other deckmaster would have been," Celeste agreed. "But Shinato has two abilities. The first is life transferal, which you know about. The second, which I just remembered, is reversal. I can pull Shinato off the field at a moment where he would be destroyed. He's saved, but I can't summon him for the rest of the duel. That won't be a problem however, since your Limiter Removal will blow up that galactic trash bin you're so proud of."

Celeste had a smug grin, even as Lector stared at his field.

"No…No that can't happen, there's no way…" Lector stammered. "I…I can't do anything to stop it…"

"Then I'd say my turn is over," Celeste said, jabbing her thumb down.

**Lector: 8800**

**Celeste: 5300**

Lector numbly nodded his head, and the crystal behind him was filled with a massive explosion as Balsam was destroyed. Lector numbly drew his card, looking at it as he did.

"Oooh…Don't think you've won yet! All you have are some pretty little toy monsters," Lector roared. "I summon Fire Princess (1300/1500) in attack mode."

Before Lector appeared a young woman dressed in blazing red robes, carrying a wooden scepter. She spun her weapon once, a determined look in her eyes.

"Attack one of those little bubbles with heat flash," Lector ordered.

The princess lifted her staff and a beam of red light shone from it. It fell over one of the Mystic Shine Balls, causing it to glow red hot before shattering into dust. Celeste frowned at the loss of the little fairy.

"Anything else?" She asked.

"Just move!" Lector barked.

Celeste drew, Marie once more appearing with more life points for her. Celeste smiled brightly at the image on her new card.

"I tribute both of my Shine Balls," Celeste intoned, the two crystals fading away as she removed them. "To summon Guardian Angel Joan (2800/2000)!"

The sparkling dust left behind by the Shine Balls swirled into a luminescent cloud which began to solidify into a humanoid shape. Shinato nodded solemnly as the light formed into a glowing, white gown, worn by a strawberry-blond woman, a golden sash trailing over her shoulders to the ground. The last of the dust formed into a pair of translucent on her back, and a look of peace shone on her face.

Lector made a sound much like he was choking. He seemed to be trying to speak, but the words wouldn't come out.

"I've had enough of this creepy duel," Celeste declared. "Joan, attack his Fire Princess with the light of Heaven!"

Joan shone even brighter, light gathering in her hands before she tossed an orb of it forward. Fire Princess gasped as the light hit her in the stomach, and she was absorbed into it. Shinato had a proud look on his face as Celeste burned with more golden flames from his deckmaster power.

"Plus, in addition to my deckmaster, Joan gives me life points equal to the attack of the monster she just destroyed," Celeste smiled. "Your move."

**Lector: 7200**

**Celeste: 8300**

Lector was visibly sweating as he drew his card (how a machine could sweat was anybody's guess). He looked at the two cards he held, and set both into his disk without a word. A facedown monster, with a facedown card behind it appeared in front of him, and he waved to end his turn.

Celeste drew, smirking at Lector as she did.

"Don't feel like taunting me anymore?" She asked, her life points rising due to Marie. "Okay then. I play my second copy of Sanctuary in the Sky…"

The clouds began to gather once more, but Lector's facedown card lifted.

"I will not allow to play that card again!" Lector shouted. "I've no idea what you plan to do with it, but for a duelist to keep more than one copy it must be important. My Solemn Judgment will negate and destroy that card as you play it!"

"For half your life points," Celeste reminded him.

Behind Lector appeared a tall man in white robes with a long beard and two young maidens by his side. The bearded man pointed at the sky, and with a flash of light the effects of Celeste's field spell vanished, the card transporting itself to the graveyard. At the same time, the crystals around Lector shot up in size, almost obscuring any view of him.

"_I could have ended the duel this turn, but not without my sanctuary,"_ Celeste thought, looking at a certain monster in her hand.

"Joan, get his facedown monster," Celeste ordered.

Joan nodded, firing off another orb of light from her hands. This one struck a gaggle of tiny, giggling fairies, who continued to laugh as they were absorbed by the light one by one.

"Were those the Dancing Fairy (1700/1000)?" Celeste asked, her life points rising again.

"So? They recover a lot of life points," Lector retorted.

"I'll just end my turn now," Celeste sighed.

**Lector: 3600**

**Celeste: 10200**

Lector's draw was revealed to be his Pot of Greed, which he promptly played. As he drew his two cards, he couldn't but smile in his head.

"_My Mirror Force trap card, that should by me some time,"_ Lector thought. _"Once I get rid of that monster she has, I can safely summon myself. I highly doubt she'd have any monsters with more than 2400 attack points left in that deck."_

"I set another monster facedown, followed by a facedown card," Lector declared, the cards appearing. "Your move."

Celeste drew, and held up her own Pot of Greed as Marie's lights fell around her. Drawing her two cards, she immediately place one into her disk.

"I'll start with Giant Trunade, sending the spells and traps on the field back to our hands," Celeste stated. "In other words, just yours."

Lector seemed to lose his voice again as his Mirror Force was blown back into his hand by a onrush of wind and water. At the same time, Celeste's field zone opened again, and clouds began to gather once more.

"Oh yeah, I have three copies of the Sanctuary in the Sky, just so you know," Celeste smiled as she took of whiff of the rose and vanilla scented air, the castle looming up behind her. "And now for a monster that loves this place as much as I do. I summon Agent of Force, Mars (0/0)!"

The sky around the area turned a fiery red as from the palace behind Celeste emerged a large, muscular angel carrying a hefty looking hammer on a long pole. The opposite end of the pole had been sharpened like a spear, and his red wings extended behind him. A look of righteous anger etched across his face.

"No attack or defense points?" Lector wondered, his voice coming back.

"Don't cross your wires, I'm getting to that," Celeste explained. "You see, when Mars is in his home turf, the Sanctuary in the Sky, he gains attack and defense points equal to the difference in our life points, as long as I'm winning. You have 3600, I have 10400, so that's a difference of…"

"That's a difference of 6800 life points…" Lector gasped.

Indeed, Mars (6800/6800) was shining with an almost unbearable red light, lifting his hammer over head and crying out in anger.

"Joan, take care of his facedown monster," Celeste ordered.

Joan cast forth her light one last time, obliterating a wispy woman in a green dress who seemed to asleep. Most duelists wouldn't recognize Spirit of the Breeze (0/1800) right away, and neither did Celeste, who only noticed that it had no attack points.

"No, you can't do this!" Lector screamed.

"I…Don't see anything can stop me," Celeste observed. "Mars, attack directly with Heaven's wrath!"

Mars' aura flared up, and the clouds under Lector turned gray and stormy as the mighty angel lifted his weapon and smashed into through the ground. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen…

Then Lector screamed as a huge blast of lightning fired from under his feet, consuming him in a massive column as more crystals rose and magnified the light. Celeste was forced to cover her eyes as she heard the attack die down. An ear splitting crack, followed by a mighty crash, signaled the end of Lector as a massive crystal plunged into the center of the ring he was trapped in.

"Yikes…" Celeste muttered as her monsters and the clouds vanished, leaving her alone on the hill once more. "Much as I'm glad that wasn't me…I can't help but feel sorry for him. Nobody deserves that…"

Celeste looked around, and noticed something odd. The crystal columns that had enclosed the arena before had all faded away, leaving her path off the hill unimpeded.

"Well, no where to go but down," she noticed. "Sorry, Lector."

As she was about to start down the hill though, a light shone behind her. Turning around, Celeste was surprised to see a door appear, floating at the center of the hill about two inches over the ground. Curious, she moved closer to the door and walked a full circle around it.

"This is weird," Celeste noted as she gently pushed the door open. "On the other hand, it can't be any worse than dodging trees that I can't see."

Having no better ideas, Celeste stepped through the door. It clicked shut as she did, then vanished, leaving the hill bare and empty.

--

Elsewhere in the Virtual World, as Celeste had been dueling Lector, Yami and Victor had been fruitlessly searching the virtual Kaiba Land.

"It's no good, I guess that Gozubora wouldn't hide Kaiba somewhere this close to the arena," Victor called out to his partner.

"We need to try somewhere else then," Yami agreed.

"Ready to jump then?" Jackson's voice asked.

"All set," Victor nodded.

The two ran forward, then jumped, vanishing in mid-air.

"This is gonna be a long day," Jackson moaned.

_**That was close, but Celeste handled herself well against an unfamiliar strategy.**_

_**Unfortunately, that's just the tip of the iceburg, and speaking of cold things, Brian's in for an experience that won't be so n'ice.'**_

_**Trapped in the frozen wastes that Krump rules over, its duel or freeze for the Duelist of Darkness in a chapter we call**_

_**Freeze Play**_

_**Make you sure you catch it, you wouldn't want to be left out in the cold…**_

--

Original Cards

--

Satellite Base

Machine/effect

LIGHT  
Four star

0 attack

0 defense

This card can not be destroyed in battle with a monster of level five or lower. At each of your end phases, increase the defense of this card by 1000 points. When you declare an attack with any monster on your field, reduce the defense of this card to 0.

--

Satellite Laser X-06S Balsam

Machine/fusion/effect

LIGHT

Eight star

0 attack

0 defense

_Satellite Cannon + Satellite Cannon + Satellite Cannon_

This card can only be special summoned via fusion summon. At each of your end phases, increase the attack of this card by 3000 points. After you've declared an attack with this card, reduce its attack to 0 after damage calculation. When this card attacks with an attack score higher than the defense score of an opponent's defense position monster, the difference is dealt as battle damage to your opponent's life points.

--

Charge

Spell

Image of a satellite in orbit, the sun rising over the Earth below it.

Increase the attack of all "Satellite Cannon" monsters on your field by 2000.

--

Debristation

Trap

Image of a massive space station floating through space

This trap may only be activated when a Satellite Cannon on your side of the field is destroyed in battle and sent to the graveyard. Send all Satellite Cannons on your side of the field to the graveyard. You may then special summon one Satellite Laser X-06S Balsam from your fusion deck in attack position (this counts as a fusion summon). The summoned monster gains 3000 attack points immediately.

_The above four cards were first used on Yu-Gi-Oh GX by Prince Orgene during various episodes. All credit for their creation goes to the writers of those episodes._


	42. Out in the Cold

_I can't believe how long it took to finally get this new chapter ready, but wait no longer faithful readers!_

_We have returned, and will post as much as we can before the next semester starts mid-January._

_So without further ado, here's the long awaited new chapter! Hope you find it worth the wait._

**AH-CHOO!**

**Sniff…**_**Brian Hokage here, rapidly catching a nasty cold as I sit on piece of permafrost.**_

_**I have no clue what happened during the tournament. One minute we're all watching Yugi, then some guys that look like eliminators break in and attack everyone.**_

_**I tried fighting back against one, but once everyone else was clear I got grabbed by him and yanked into what looks like the Arctic Circle.**_

_**I'd like to think things can't get any worse, but I have a feeling they will.**_

_**I've had some experience when it comes to chilling people with fear…**_

_**But it's nothing compared to my opponent's skill to freeze me solid.**_

Out in the Cold

Far from the prying eyes of the programmers lay a beautiful, but dangerous landscape.

The entire ground glittered white under the virtual sunlight, looking like diamonds scattered across the area, with only one set of footprints disturbing the pristine image of fallen snow. The tracks led across the frozen tundra down to the edge of the ocean from which the ice that made up the ground had formed. The water was a dark blue, sitting so peacefully that one would assume it was frozen solid.

Standing at the end of the footprint trail was Brian Hokage, who was looking out over the perfectly still ocean as he shivered in place. His lightweight jacket, though it did help keep some of the cold out, was not designed for the weather conditions it was in at the moment, and the teen could feel his body heat slipping away.

"Virtual glacier…" Brian said through chattering teeth. "Who's the genius that thought of this?"

Looking around, Brian could see no other signs of life and, other than his breath which appeared as white clouds in front of him due to the cold air, not even a breeze ruffled the area. Other than the sound of himself shaking, there wasn't a single noise.

"_Feels so empty around here,"_ Brian thought, rubbing his arms in an effort to keep warm.

"Hello?" Brian shouted, his voice carrying into the distance. "Is anybody there?"

Not even an echo responded. Brian sat down, ignoring the sting of the ice on his rear end, and curled his legs up to his chest. He let out a small sigh as he buried his face in his knees and wrapped his arms over the back of his head.

"_Well, I'm not as cold now…"_ Brian thought. _"I'm also not getting anywhere like this."_

Peeking out from the fetal position, Brian could see no indication that anything was approaching.

"_On the other hand, staying put is probably the best idea,"_ He reasoned. _"If someone's looking for me, I'll be easier to find them…Man this is one time I wouldn't complain about Tim being a pyromaniac if he were here."_

Rubbing the back of his neck in an effort to keep warm, Brian stopped as a sound reached his ears.

It sounded like a low groan coming from nearby. Looking up, the duelists saw nothing back the way he came. A glance to either side, however, revealed the source of the noise.

Cracks were beginning to appear in the ice on either side of him, stretching away from the water and back toward the packed snow. Brian gasped, scrambling to his feet only for them to fly out from under him on the slick surface.

"Crap…" Brian swore, trying again to get up and failing once more.

The cracks spread, the groaning giving away to loud snaps as Brian tried stretching out his body as flat as he could, attempting to distribute his weight and avoid breaking the ice further.

This failed, as he noticed when the cracks began to widen, and he quickly pulling himself along the ice back toward the thicker section covered with snow. Unfortunately, his hands weren't able to get any traction, even as he dug his fingernails into the surface beneath him. He stared in horror as the cracks curved in front of him, and a large circle of ice, the one he was occupying, pulled itself away from the rest of the shore and began to float away.

"No…Nonononononononononononononono!" Brian panicked, trying once again to get up only for his makeshift raft to tip threateningly beneath him as he floated further away. "Okay, okay, don't panic. You'll get out soon, just lay here for a minute and take deep breaths."

Brian tried to follow his own advice, remaining spread out and taking in lungful after lungful of cold, crisp air. He noticed that his face was beginning to chill again pressed against the ice, prompting him to lift it and stare forlorn at the rest of the ice/land as it floated away. Before he could try and assess the situation any further though, a splash of water came up in front of him.

"What the heck!" Brian shouted, covering his face to avoid the freezing water.

Peeking out from between his arms, he stared at the black and white face, complete with beak, that was now looking at him from the water. It was a penguin, a normal one unlike the one Brian had attacked back in the arena, and it bobbing on the water's surface made a small series of ripples that flowed off into the distance.

"Um…Hello there," Brian said, unsure of what to think of this new turn of events.

The penguin let out an odd squawking noise, then dove underwater again. Brian tried to get back up, only for his makeshift raft to tremble threateningly under him. Wiping away the snow that coated the top of the ice flow he lay on, Brian found a clear patch of ice through which he could see his black and white visitor. It was directly underneath him, back pressed against the ice as it kicked its feet. Brian noticed that his ride was moving a much faster now, though it was still moving away from the mainland.

"_Now where is this thing taking me?"_ Brian wondered.

He got his answer as the ice came to a stop with a gentle bump. The penguin dove deeper into the cold, dark water, leaving Brian to attempt to get up again. Much to his surprise, he found the ice no longer tried to tilt under his shifting weight and, by bracing his knees to the ground first then pushing up carefully, he managed to get on his feet and turn around to see why he had stopped.

His ice platform, it seemed, had collided with another, larger chunk of ice, this one apparently much thicker (More than likely a small iceberg) and with a small army of penguins standing on it. Several of the penguins were supporting Brian's impromptu boat by lying on one end of it while digging their feet into their own iceberg. Confused, but relieved to no longer be adrift, Brian stepped over the helpful water fowl with a grateful look to them as they released his former raft.

"Huh, saved by penguins," Brian commented. "That's a first. Thanks everyone."

The penguins all gathered around Brian, and began pushing him toward the center of their ice platform.

"What, is this part of the rescue?" Brian asked as he stumbled along on the ice. "Okay, no need to push…I said no need to…Whoa!"

Brian let out a shout of pain and surprise as he slid to the ground, landing on his back and knocking the wind from his lungs. He choked and gasped for air for a moment before finally managing to get back to his feet. By the time he did, he could see the penguins had all rushed past him, and the last of them were diving into the water and swimming away.

"Penguins are weird…" Brian muttered hoarsely as he caught his breath.

"But they're oh so delightful," Said a voice that sounded like it would belong to a bird, followed by what sounded like a mix between squawking and laughter.

"Huh?" Brian gasped, looking around. "Who's there!"

The still water began to tremble, and Brian felt a vibration run along his new icy stage. He quickly dropped to one knee and braced himself as, with a massive roar of running water, a huge mountain of ice suddenly rose up behind him. He turned to stare at the phenomena, and watched as from the mountain extended a massive outcropping of ice near the bottom, connecting to Brian's iceberg.

Another roar of water caused him to spin around again, almost sending him onto his back once more, as anther ice pile rose from the sea no more than thirty-five feet away. More ice solidified in the water, another iceberg connecting itself to the second mountain. From the top of the second mountain slid an entirely new figure, causing Brian's eyes to widen in surprise.

The new creature was the short, tuxedo-wearing penguin that had attacked the arena. Strapped to one flipper was his Duel Disk, and as he came to a stop in the iceberg he got up chortling and squawking as he picked up his top hat and put it back on.

"Welcome my young friend, to your final, frozen resting place!" The penguin laughed.

"It's you!" Brian gasped. "The guy that helped attack the arena!"

"That's right, Krupp is the name, former Chief Accountant of Kaiba Corporation," The bird declared. "And also, the one you saw fit to slam into a large wall!"

The penguin was growling (Something Brian was unaware penguins could do) as he glared at Brian, who took several steps back, stopping as he reached the edge of the water.

"Don't think that you're going to get away kid," Krupp growled. "I've been trapped here in this virtual freezer for too long to let my last chance escape! If I had it my way, I'd have just possessed your body right now and left you here to turn into a popsicle!"

"Then why didn't you?" Brian challenged.

"Because, some annoying code written into my virtual self stops me from doing just that," Krupp explained. "So since I'm a busy man…Or penguin as the case may be, I'll cut right to the chase. I can only leave here if I beat you in a duel, or if you willingly surrender your body to me. I'd prefer the second one…"

"Surrender my body…That sounds kind of wrong…" Brian grimaced. "Wait, what am I doing going over some stupid demands at a time like this? I should be trying to get out of here."

"Oh sure, go ahead. There's only about fifty miles of below freezing temperature water between you and the nearest way out," Krupp taunted. "Of course, if your mind thinks you've died in here, that's it. There's no going back."

Brian clenched his teeth as he looked down at his Duel Disk.

"What if I beat you, what happens then?" Brian asked.

"Ha! If you beat me, which you won't, then you're free to go of course," Krupp explained. "So did you just accept my challenge?"

"I guess I did, seeing as I don't have a choice," Brian responded, turning on his disk.

"Smart kid," Krupp applauded. "All you need to do is choose your deckmaster, and I'll be serving as my own seeing as I'm a Nightmare Penguin."

"Fine then," Brian declared, reaching for Ha Des as the grid appeared in front of him.

He stopped as he realized that Ha Des's card wasn't amongst his choices though.

"Oh, one more thing," Krupp chuckled. "I've got a special rule in this domain. You aren't allowed to use a deckmaster that you've used more than once already."

"What! That's not fair!" Brian protested.

"My domain, my rules," Krupp laughed. "Unless you'd rather just give up."

"_Oooh…That's it, it's penguin stew time,"_ Brian thought, looking over his cards. _"But without Ha Des, this might be tougher than I thought…Hey, this guy helped me out before…"_

Brian paused for a moment before tapping another card on his grid.

"Okay, hope this makes it up to you for the duel with Yugi," Brian whispered. "I choose Vampire Lord for my deckmaster!"

A chilling laugh echoed across the ice, as a flock of bats soared from nowhere and coalesced into a human figure. The merged together into a black silhouette, which fell away to reveal a rather pale-skinned gentleman in a black tuxedo with a matching cape folded around his body.

"My, it is colder than the grave here," The vampire said with disdain.

"You're telling me," Brian said, rubbing his arms. "Listen, the stakes are high here Vampire Lord. Think you can help out?"

"I can try," Vampire Lord offered. "Allow me instruct you on my deckmaster power, it might catch your opponent off guard."

The vampire's eyes shone red for a moment, meeting with Brian's as they did. Brian shook his head as a blur of words and images entered his thoughts, before he finally sorted them out.

"That works," Brian nodded. "Okay Krupp, let's do this."

"I thought you'd never ask," Krupp said, raising his own disk.

**Brian: 8000**

**Krupp: 8000**

Krupp started to reach for his disk, but Brian snapped a sixth card from his own deck first.

"Since you made the challenge, I think I'll take the first move," Brian declared, sliding a card onto his tray. "I'll open with one monster in defense mode."

A brown card appeared, floating over the ice between Brian and Krupp. The penguin growled once more before shaking his head.

"Fine with me, that raises your chances of victory to a mere 0.4 percent, in case you were wondering," Krupp declared.

"More than enough," Brian smirked. "Make your move."

Krupp drew his own card, letting out his squawking laugh again as he placed down his own move.

"I'll open with Ice Knight (1300/1200) in attack mode!" Krupp called out.

A column of ice rose from the ocean between the two, shattering apart as it reached seven feet. A section of frozen water remained, and standing on it was a warrior in ice-blue armor, complete a helmet that obscured his face, carrying a lance with two points (one on either side of his grip). The monster assumed a battle stance, turning its gaze to Brian's field.

"Next comes his special ability," Krupp chuckled. "For every Aqua-type monster on the field, including himself, he gains 400 attack points."

A shimmering aura of blue formed around the knight as his armor seemed to grow outward, sprouting several sharp spines of ice along the shoulders and back. His weapon also gained a frosty coat, which solidified it into a double-sword rather than a lance (1700/1200).

"Oh boy…" Brian muttered.

"Oh, and before I forget, my deckmaster power also kicks in." Krupp went on as he started to glow blue as well. "As Nightmare Penguin I grant any Water monsters I command an extra 200 attack points on top of everything else. Now those are numbers you just can't argue with!"

The blue aura around Ice Knight flared up further, boosting its stats to (1900/1200) as it pointed to Brian with its sword.

"You don't find that to be overkill at all?" Brian asked.

Krupp seemed thoughtful for a minute before waving one flipper nonchalantly.

"Nope. Ice Knight, attack his monster with frozen frenzy!" Krupp shouted.

The blue knight dove forward, driving his weapon into the back of Brian's card. From it flew a small treasure chest, which burst open as it landed at Brian's feet. From the top of sprang a row of teeth along the rim as eyes opened all over its surface.

"You just hit my Dark Mimic (100/1000), and when you flip it over I'm allowed to draw one more card," Brian declared as he took his extra draw.

Ice Knight seemed unimpressed as he closed in on his target once more. He swung his weapon, separating the top of the monster box from its bottom, causing it to shrill with pain before shattering apart.

"Do I look like I care? Make your move kid," Krupp ordered.

Brian drew his next card, and smiled as he saw it.

"_Bark of Dark Ruler, huh? That should be a nasty surprise for him."_ He reasoned as he set the card into his disk. _"Why couldn't I draw this during the tournament?"_

"I'll set that card facedown, Krupp." Brian explained. "Plus I'll summon my Archfiend Soldier (1900/1500)."

"Not a bad choice," Vampire Lord grinned as a portal of black energy appeared on the ground next to Brian.

From the portal leapt a purple figure, sporting demonic armor and a pair of ram horns. He landed on the ground in front of the opening, and drew forth a sickly yellow blade with a serpentine edge.

"That's all from me," Brian announced.

"_And as soon as you attack, I'll put that frozen freak of yours down for good,"_ Brian told himself as Krupp drew.

"Hmm, a facedown card and a monster, I'm not impressed." Krupp criticized as he checked his cards. "The chances of this being a trap seem to be one-hundred percent to me, so why bother running into it when I can stop it cold?"

Krupp played a card, and a cold wind began to pick up around the duel. Brian shivered, zipping up his jacket in an effort to conserve body heat, while the chilly water surround the duel was stirred up by the growing gale. With a mighty howl, the wind send a wave sloshing over Brian's facedown card, freezing it over with a coat of ice, effectively sealing it in the iceberg under the teen's feet.

"What did you do?" Brian shouted, trying to ignore the cold water seeping into his shoes.

"I played my Cold Wave spell card," Krupp explained as he held up another card. "Now neither one of us is allowed to use any spells or traps until my next turn. Since your facedown card has been removed the equation now, I'm clear to add in my Aquarian Alessa (1500/500) in attack mode!"

The water, which had calmed since the wind stopped, began to ripple once more. From the center of the rings rose a see-through young woman dressed in the get up of a shrine priestess, with a white robe and a short, blue skirt. Her hair was ice blue, along with her lips, and she carried a pair of damp lilies in one hand. She stood on top of the water, seemingly unfazed by the cold just under her feet as the blue light rose around her (1700/500).

At the same time, Ice Knight's armor began to shimmer, undergoing a dramatic change. The spine withdrew into the armor, and his weapon became fused to his hand with a coating of ice. A shield formed in his other hand as his double-bladed sword transformed into a massive broadsword which he hefted across his shoulders (2300/1200).

"Attack that Archfiend my knight!" Krupp ordered.

Ice Knight jumped high into the air once more, raising his weapon over head. Archfiend Soldier lifted his own weapon in an attempt to guard himself, only for the icy blade to smash through his sword and carve him in half. Green ichor dribbled onto the ice just before the monster shattered apart, much to Brian's disgust as he grimaced.

"Alessa, you attack too with drowning ritual!" Krupp went on.

"Huh? Drowning…" Brian started.

Alessa waved her flowers, and Brian was cut short as a column of freezing water appeared around his body. He clapped both hands over his mouth and nose in an attempt to avoid inhaling the liquid as he gasped in shock. The water remained around Brian for several moments, and his lungs began to burn before it finally dissipated, splashing his feet as he choked for air.

**Brian: 5900**

**Krupp: 8000**

As Brian coughed and gasped, he noticed a rather disturbing factor arising. He could no longer feel his legs from the knees down. With a moment of hesitation, he hazarded a glance and immediately ceased his choking.

From the knees down, his legs were frozen solid in a large block of ice that seemed to be growing from the glacier itself!

"What in the world!?" Brian screamed as he looked to Krupp. "Is this some sort of sick game, Krupp?"

"Actually, yes, one that that pesky Kaiba brat forced me to play a long time ago," Krupp explained.

"Seto Kaiba?" Brian asked, a shocked expression on his face.

"No, Noah, but I don't have time to tell you my life's story," Krupp elaborated. "Suffice it say, as you lose life point in this game, your body will slowly become coated in ice. When they're all gone, you're a frozen sculpture and I'm out of here!"

"What about you," Brian asked, trying to stop his teeth from chattering.

"Hmph, I'm bound to the same rules, don't worry." Krupp assured him, tapping one webbed foot. "In my case though…Well, I'm a penguin. I like ice! Now are you gonna make a move or what?"

"_Not like you said you were done yet…_" Brian thought as he drew.

Wincing as he looked over his cards, Brian reluctantly took one of them and set it into place. A facedown monster appeared in front of him, and he waved one shivering hand before tucking it under his arm to avoid frostbite. As he did, the ice around his facedown card finally shattered, allowing the trap to rise back up from the glacier.

"_Great, I'm still soaking wet from that last attack,"_ Brian said to himself as Krupp drew. _"Forget my life points, at this rate I'll go hypothermic!"_

"Problems kid? Let me make 'em worse," Krupp laughed. "I give up my normal summon for this turn to double summon my Aquarian Alessa…"

"D-double summon?" Brian asked.

"Oh, you wouldn't know huh?" Krupp asked, rubbing his flippers together. "Thing about hanging around in a computer all day is that I can build my deck of cards that haven't even been released yet. Consider this a sneak peek, Alessa is what's known as a Gemini monster. Before you ask, that means I can choose to give my normal summon on any turn that she's on the field for, and she gains a powerful special ability."

As Krupp was explaining that, Alessa had gone from translucent to solid, her lilies still dripping water. Despite appearing to be flesh and blood though, the young woman still remained stoically standing on the water's surface.

"Now where were we…Oh yes," Krupp grinned. "Time to subtract your facedown monster, then a few life points! Strike his monster now Alessa, drowning ritual!"

Alessa swung out her flowers again, this time causing the water to slosh over Brian's monster. From the card came the snappily dressed Witty Phantom (1400/1300), who at first seemed rather perturbed that his good suit was getting wet. The gravity of the situation set in quickly though, Brian watching helplessly as his monster grasped its throat before slumping to the bottom of the water column and vanishing.

"Oh, one more thing, remember the effect I mentioned?" Krupp asked as a card in Brian's hand began to glow blue. "It works like this. Whenever Alessa destroys one of your monsters, she also destroys a card in your hand."

Brian swiftly stuffed the glowing card (His Great Maju Garzett) into his graveyard slot as ice began to form over it. Alessa seemed pleased as Ice Knight readied his sword.

"Attack him directly!" Krupp squawked.

"Brian, he's coming!" Vampire Lord shouted as the arctic warrior closed in.

"Not if K-k-kuriboh has anything to say about this!" Brian responded, stuffing the furry fiend's card into his graveyard.

Much to everyone's surprise, a large ice block suddenly fell from above and knocked the soldier under the water. Brian and Krupp both looked confused as the ice cube surfaced, a Kuriboh frozen inside with little "x's" in its eyes. Ice Knight burst back out of the water on Krupp's side, obviously un-amused even though his controller was laughing his head off. Brian seemed a touch demoralized as his monster's frozen tomb sank beneath the waves again.

"That was…distressing, to say the least." Brian muttered.

"At least the effect still worked." Vampire Lord pointed out.

"I don't care if my attacked fizzled, that was hilarious!" Krupp roared as he rolled on the ground with mirth.

"Um…Are you done with your turn?" Brian complained.

Krupp wheezed for breath as he slid one last card onto his disk.

"One facedown card, go on." Krupp offered.

Brian drew, taking a moment to switch which hand was holding his cards as he tucked his numb fingers under his other arm.

"Okay, I'm sick of this game." Brian declared. "I summon my Opticlops (1800/1700) now!"

Vampire Lord waved one hand, sending a bat diving into the freezing ocean around them. It flew out a moment later, the orange skinned Cyclops leaping out behind it. It grumbled at Brian for a second, who cast the demon a sharp glare in return. Opticlops seemed cowed by the gaze, and turned toward Krupp.

"That what I thought, whatever you were doing down there can wait." Brian ordered, trying to sound tougher by suppressing his chattering teeth again. "Attack that Ice Knight with opti-laser!"

"Ha! You must have gotten straight F's in math kid!" Krupp mocked. "Anyone can tell you that 1800 is less than 2300."

"You didn't let me finish, I activate the card that you iced over earlier, the one that could have saved my Archfied Soldier." Brian declared. "Go, Bark of Dark Ruler!"

The trap lifted, and from it emerge the regal demon known as Dark Ruler Ha Des. He cast a pitying gaze upon Opticlops before turning to Brian with a bemused expression.

"Think fast Krupp, if I can pay life points in increments of 100 to lower the attack of any monster that battles a fiend this turn by the same amount, how many points does it take to turn your Ice Knight to slush?" Brian challenged.

"Wha…" Krupp shouted, looking worried as Ha Des began to glow.

"Sorry, that's wrong," Brian interrupted. "By the way, I get an A in math every year. The correct answer is 600, so your knight drops to 1700 points!"

Brian's legs stiffened as more ice crept up his thighs. Ha Des pointed at Ice Knight, who began to pant as though he were overheating. Black flames appeared around the soldier, causing its weapon and armor to begin melting under the heat (1700/1200). Seeing its opening, Opticlops fired a bolt of black energy from its eye, piercing the knight's chest and shattering it to ice chips.

Krupp began to turn red in the face as he felt a thin layer of ice form over his flippers.

**Brian: 5300**

**Krupp: 7900**

"Now, before I end my turn, I'll set this card facedown." Brian announced as Ha Des strolled back into his own trap and vanished. "That's all from m-me…"

Brian swayed in place for a moment, his vision blurring.

"_Ah geeze…I'm starting not to feel the cold…"_ He realized. _"Got to focus…Can't drift off now…"_

Krupp seemed oblivious to Brian's plight, not that he would probably care. He drew his card and snarled as he began shifting the pieces of cardstock about his disk.

"I'll move Alessa into defense mode," he decided, the young woman falling to her knees on the surface of the water. "Then I'll set another card facedown and a monster to go with it. That's all."

Two facedown card appeared in front of Krupp, who nodded in satisfaction.

"Great…" Brian said, drawing as he attempted to focus on the duel. "My move…"

"_Think!"_ Brian shouted in his head. _"He set a new facedown…It's gotta be a trap…"_

"I use my Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy the card you just set," Brian announced, a blast of icy wind flying from behind him as he slid the spell into place.

Brian braced himself, drawing his sopping wet jacket around his shoulders while Krupp squinted into the wind. His facedown card lifted, revealing a Torrential Tribute trap card, and then shattered apart.

"Nice…Nice try Krupp…" Brian slurred out as he rubbed his shoulders in an effort to warm up.

"Better than you think, I activate my other facedown card," Krupp grinned, the older of his two hidden cards flying up. "It's called Driving Snow, and when you destroy a trap on my field, I can destroy a spell or trap card on yours!"

A second blast of wind, this one originating from behind Krupp, tossed Brian's facedown Waboku high into the air. It never came back down, much to Brian's displeasure as he struggled to place another card on the disk with his numb finger.

"Summon La Jinn (1800/1000)…" Brian groaned.

A wisp of green smoke rose over the ocean surface, and the wicked djinn appeared from it, floating just beyond the iceberg his master stood on. He gave Brian a concerned look, while Vampire Lord draped his cape over the young man.

"Brian, I don't think I need to tell you this is a bad situation," the undead monster warned.

"Relax V-Lord…I've got this…" Brian said. "Opticlops, attack Alessa!"

The orange demon glared right at the water spirit, who seemed nervous for the first time since she had hit the field. A blast of dark energy confirmed her worries, and then erased her from existence.

"La Jinn…His other monster…" Brian commanded, his voice fading.

La Jinn took aim with one hand, and snapped his fingers. A bolt of black energy shot down from the sky, and pierced through the back of the card. Krupp grinned a wicked grin as icy mist gathered around the feet of Brian's monsters.

"Big mistake brat! That was my Penguin Soldier you just flipped over," Krupp admonished. "When you do that, two of your monsters get a free trip back to your hand."

The mist rose up, consuming both of the fiends. Brian eyes fluttered as the two cards placed themselves back between his fingers.

"I'll take that as the end of your move?" Krupp asked, clicking his beak impatiently.

Brian looked over his cards, barely registering them as his body heat continued to leech away despite Vampire Lord's efforts to shield him from the cold. The teen nodded, and Krupp drew his own card.

"This is almost too easy," Krupp yawned. "I summon another of my favorite, flightless waterfowl. Although this one breaks the formula a bit…Go Flying Penguin (1200/1000)!"

A spray of water flew up, and out of it soared a penguin with oversized, purple feathers extending from its head drifted down through the icy air and landed with a squawk in front of Krupp. The blue aura of Krupp's deckmaster power flared around it, boosting its score to (1400/1000).

"Uh oh…" Vampire Lord gasped.

"You're about to become a permanent addition the frozen food section, kid," Krupp chortled. "Attack, Flying Penguin! Jetstream surge!"

The penguin flapped its 'wings' and flew higher into the air. Brian groggily lifted his head to watch it as it began to descend toward him, picking up speed as it went. It came low over the water, flying right at Brian, only to turn at the last second before striking its target. A massive splash of freezing sea water followed in the penguin's wake, however, saturating Brian's clothes further, along with Vampire Lord's cape. The water immediately froze and the weight of the newly formed ice crystals covering his clothes nearly pulled Brian to the ground. Vampire Lord caught him, and pulled him back up with a worried look.

**Brian: 3900**

**Krupp: 7900**

"And to finish, one card facedown," Krupp ended, a new card appearing as his monster returned to him.

"_Anything he tries to attack with won't stand a chance once I've pumped my penguin up with Rush Recklessly,"_ Krupp thought with glee as he rubbed his flippers together.

Brian seemed almost completely out of it, barely able to draw his card even with Vampire Lord supporting him.

"Brian, snap out of it!" Vampire Lord shouted, shaking the young man.

"Summon…Giant…Orc (2200/0)," Brian said weakly between shakes.

The lumbering gray giant fell from above, landing on the ice with a loud _thud_. He got to his feet and looked around, confused, just before his bone club fell down and bounced off his noggin. Giant Orc didn't seem to notice the head trauma, only the fact that its weapon now sat on the ground before it.

"Then..Demo…nic…Tri…Tribute…" Brian went on, Vampire Lord helping to guide his card into the disk. "I can't…play…anything…else…If..Orc..de..stroys…Flying…Penguin…I get…life…points…"

"What!" Krupp gasped. "Wait a second, you're about to pass out, you can't just…"

Dark mist began to rise over the field, and a nasty-looking dagger appeared over Flying Penguin. Both penguins gulped nervously as Giant Orc raised its club.

"_I know this one…If I use Rush Recklessly, I'll just give him more life points!"_ Krupp realized.

"A…tt…tack." Brian stammered out, his eyes closing.

Giant Orc charged forward, and leapt high over the water. Brining his club down, the massive fiend smashed the helpless waterfowl over the head, causing it to burst into a cloud of black fire. The flames flew from Krupp's field to Brian, surround the young man in a raging, black inferno and melting away a large chunk of the ice.

Krupp was chewing on the end of one of his flippers in rage, as Vampire Lord looked toward the flames as they died down. Brian looked up, his expression now much more aware, and his clothes and body dried out by the intense heat. He was still frozen to about his knees in ice, but it was clear that he was no longer fading in and out of consciousness. Krupp in the meantime, sneered as more ice began to grow up his own body.

"Man that feels better!" Brian shouted, stretching out his arms in his, now unfrozen, clothing.

**Brian: 6700**

**Krupp: 7100**

Giant Orc jumped back onto Brian's field, slipping on the ice as it did so and landing on its large behind. It rubbed its sore back with an embarrassed look, while Brian glared at Krupp.

"I bet you thought you could win easy if I froze to death here," Brian growled.

"No, that was just a side bonus," Krupp responded. "So much for the easy method, but I can still beat you the old fashioned way…To death!"

"Try it, flipper boy!" Brian taunted with a smile. "My orc…"

"Is in defense mode, and has no defense points," Krupp interrupted.

Brian paused for a moment, his confidence fading slightly as he replied, "Um…Good argument. Guess it's your turn…"

Krupp drew, and his own smile widened as he played his new card.

"Since you've got a monster that's weak on the defense, I think it's time I went on the offense. I summon Familiar-Possesed Eria (1850/1500)," Krupp declared.

A large bubbled surfaced as the card was played. Inside of it was a young woman in simple, brown robes, with blue hair, carrying a staff topped with a glittering sapphire. A large shadow swam around her bubble as she began to channel Krupp's deckmaster power into her own (2050/1500).

"Okay, out of the frying pan and into the fire, huh?" Brian asked.

"More like out of the icebox and into freezer in this duel," Vampire Lord corrected.

"Attack with reptilian summon!" Krupp roared.

Eria waved her staff, and the shadow that had been circling her burst out of the water and landed on Brian's field. It was a large reptile, to be sure, but stood on its hind legs like a human and even wore a set of leather bracers and anklets. Giant Orc seemed frightened as Eria nodded to her monster. The reptile-man grabbed Giant Orc with one clawed hand and dragged the fiend into the water with it. A patch of black blood floated to the surface, and the shadow returned to circling Eria.

"My, that was graphic, wasn't it?" Krupp laughed.

"You need professional help," Brian quipped.

"You're gonna an ice pick by the time I'm done with you," Krupp responded.

"As much fun as it is to exchange one-liners with a crazy penguin that's trying to kill me…" Brian grumbled under his breath. "Is it my turn yet?"

Krupp checked his cards, and shrugged, then nodded to Brian.

"Alright then, draw!" Brian called out as he picked up his next card. "To start off, he comes a familiar face. Remember Opticlops (1800/1700)?"

With a mighty roar, the orange demon burst from the water again, landing in front of Brian. He growled at the young sorceress before him and pounded one fist into his open palm.

"Next, I'm giving him a little boost with my Dark Energy spell card," Brian went on, an orb of purple light appearing over his shoulder. "This gives any fiend I want a bonus of 300 attack and defense points."

The energy flew into the back of Opticlops, whose body began to twitch as his skin darkened to a blood red. His eye began to glow with purple energy as a cruel grin split his face (2100/2000). Eria held up her staff in a defensive position, while the shadowy figure under the water stopped directly in front of her.

"Attack Eria, now!" Brian ordered.

Opticlops began to charge its attack, lightning crackling over its body, but Krupp pointed to his facedown card.

"Oh no you don't! Go Rush Recklessly, power up my monster, now!" Krupp responded.

As the spell appeared behind her, Eria (2750/1500) smiled, and pointed at her aggressor. With blinding speed, the reptile monster under her command sprang forth from the water and sliced across Opticlops' chest with its talons. The demon roared in pain before shattering apart, and Brian gasped as more ice began to climb up his legs.

**Brian: 6050**

**Krupp: 7100**

"Shoot…" Brian muttered.

"And next turn, you'll get another direct attack," Krupp chortled. "Unless you have another Kuriboh, but I calculate the odds of that to be…Carry the one…2.43."

Brian looked to his deckmaster, who gave him a quick nod.

"I still have one monster to protect myself with," Brian corrected, waving a hand toward the field. "I move my deckmaster onto the field, defense mode!"

Vampire Lord (2000/1500) grinned his fanged grin as he swept past Brian and settled into a kneeling position between him and Krupp's monster. Krupp seemed confused by this, rubbing his head with his flipper as Eria's attack points faded back to (2050/1500).

"Did your brain freeze or something?" He asked. "You know what happens when your deckmaster gets destroyed, right?"

"My turn, my choice," Brian retorted. "Go ahead, Krupp."

Krupp shrugged, and drew his card. He pointed at the monster ahead of him with a smile as Eria prepared her staff.

"Fine then, it's your funeral," Krupp admitted. "You gave a good try, but the numbers were never in your favor! ATTACK!"

Eria cried out, and her familiar leapt forward once more, digging his claws into the vampire. The reptile grinned…

Up until the point where Vampire Lord suddenly burst into a cloud of blood-red mist. Krupp and his monsters all stepped back as the mists flew over Brian, who began to pant heavily as they swirled about him, reforming into the Vampire Lord, who had his teeth sunk into the teen's shoulder.

"What the…You got attacked by your own monster!" Krupp gasped. "Wait, didn't I just destroy that thing?"

Vampire Lord removed his fangs from Brian, who watched with disgust as the punctures healed over immediately.

"It's Vampire Lord's deckmaster power, immortality of the night," Brian explained as his monster returned his previous position. "Vampire Lord can't be destroyed, at all. Anytime he would be removed from the field, I lose 500 life points instead."

"What!" Krupp squawked. "But, that wasn't…I didn't calculate…That's not fair!"

"Oh, and boosting every one of your monsters, and being able to turn me into an ice sculpture is?" Brian argued, not noticing a bit more ice growing up his thighs.

"End…turn…now…" Krupp wheezed out, grinding his beak.

**Brian: 5550**

**Krupp: 7100**

Brian drew, looking at the two cards that now occupied his hand. He set one into his disk, and it appeared behind Vampire Lord.

"End turn," Brian declared.

"Are you sure about this?" Vampire Lord asked, looking at the lone card.

"Trust me, I have a…" Brian reassured his monster.

"Will you shut up, it's my turn!" Krupp ordered, drawing his card. "And I summon Penguin Knight (900/800)."

The water in front of Krupp was disturbed by another splash as a penguin covered in purple feathers, with a pair of shoulder guards and carrying a sword, jumped out of the ocean and landed in front of him. The penguin squawked as Krupp's power extended over it, raising its stats (1100/800). Eria smiled and waved to the marine bird, and the penguin returned the greeting with a polite bow.

"Now I equip my Penguin Knight with Penguin Sword," Krupp went on, his monster's blade grew longer and thinner, with feathery flippers extending around the hilt. "This'll give my give my little friend an extra 800 attack points, for a total of 1900!"

The Penguin Knight (1900/800) waved his new sword in the air, his power grew. Chilling winds began to blow over the field once more, as Krupp pointed to Brian's monster.

"Attack, take down his deckmaster!" Krupp ordered.

Penguin Knight pointed directly at Vampire Lord, causing the freezing wind to fall over the zombie as a tornado of ice and frigid water. Vampire Lord screamed, but was quickly silenced as his lack of body heat caused him to be frozen over relatively quickly. Eria pointed her staff once more, and her familiar jumped from the waves and smashed one clawed fist against the frozen deckmaster. Brian grit his teeth together as the ice shattered apart, and his monster turned into red mist once more which gathered around his body.

"I may not be able to kill your deckmaster," Krupp observed as the vampire appeared behind Brian and began to feed once more, "But he seems to be doing a good job of taking you out for me."

Krupp began to laugh once more as Brian's life points dropped for the cost of the double revival. Vampire Lord looked apologetic as he settled back on the field, while Brian clutched at his tender neck

**Brian: 4550**

**Krupp: 7100**

"I take it that it's my move…" Brian said as he drew his card.

Krupp nodded, and Brian jammed a card into his duel disk.

"Alright then, I'll start with Pot of Greed, trading in for two extra cards," Brian began.

The giggling green jar floated up from the water, with a tiny, green spirit using an oar to paddle the jar up to the iceberg Brian stood on. The spirit grinned up at the teen as he reached shore, and leapt from his boat, which sank beneath the waves, before breaking into particles of light that shone over Brian's deck. Brian drew his two cards then pointed to his facedown, which swung up to release a cloud of purple mist.

"Next comes my Call of the Haunted, to bring back the Witty Phantom (1400/1300)," Brian went on.

The mist fell away, displaying the dapper fiend, who took a bow to Krupp and his monsters. Brian held up another card, and Witty Phantom smiled at him before strolling back into the trap he had risen from and vanishing.

"Too bad he can't stay, I'm tributing him to summon the deckmaster you denied me," Brian grinned. "Dark Ruler Ha Des (2450/1600)!"

A massive burst of black flame shot up around the duel, causing Krupp and his monsters to sweat slightly in the midst of the firestorm. The flames fell away, and the royal demon once more stood on Brian's field, a goblet of wine still clutched in his clawed hand. Vampire Lord flashed a toothy grin as Brian turned his card, allowing him to stand up.

"Vampire Lord goes to attack mode, and I finally get to go on the offense!" Brian smiled, pointing at Eria. "No Rush Recklessly to save her this time, Ha Des, attack Eria with dark flames of Purgatory!"

Ha Des took a swig of wine from his goblet, and then spat out a stream of black flames. Eria screamed as her familiar emerged from the water to attempt to stop the blow, but all that resulted in was both summoner and monster being reduced to charred bones which sank into the sea.

"Vampire Lord, feed on his Penguin Knight and his deck with children of the night!" Brian commanded.

Vampire Lord hissed at the trembling penguin as he opened his cape, unleashing a storm of bats which latched on to Krupp's monster with glee. The penguin let out a shriek as the bats gorged themselves on its blood, before the poor bird finally collapsed under the weight and vanished. Krupp seemed frustrated as one of the bats landed on his deck and sank its teeth into his duel disk, and even more so as ice fully covered the lower portion of his body and his coattails.

"Fine, I know about that blood sucker's ability: I need to get rid of a spell, trap or monster, so which is it?" Krupp asked.

"I think, trap card," Brian declared.

"Then I'll get rid of my spare Driving Snow," Krupp responded, a single card shimmering in his deck before it faded away.

"And with that, it's your move," Brian nodded.

**Brian: 4550**

**Krupp: 6600**

Krupp drew, and trembled nervously as he saw his card. Brian crossed his arms (partially from smugness, but mostly to keep warm) as he noticed this.

"What's wrong, I thought you liked being cold," Brian teased.

"Shut up!" Krupp ordered, placing a card down. "I set this monster facedown, now move!"

The facedown monster appeared before Krupp as Brian drew his card.

"What's wrong, no fun if it's a fair fight?" Brian asked, holding up another monster. "I spent a good chunk of the duel with half a brain, don't tell me…"

"Are you going to move, or lecture me all day?" Krupp shouted.

"_Funny, I never heard of anyone interrupting Yugi when he's on a roll like that,"_ Brian wondered to himself as he played the monster he held.

"Have it your Krupp…Or better yet, let me have mine. I summon La Jinn, the Mystic Genie of the Lamp (1800/1000), back to the field!" Brian announced.

The plume of smoke rose once again, as the green djinn hovered over the ocean water. He bowed to Ha Des with a look of respect, then smiled to Brian.

"Ha Des, take out his facedown!" Brian ordered.

Ha Des looked to his near-empty glass, and swirled the last bit of the red liquid in it. He shrugged, then splashed the wine toward Krupp's field, landing it on the back of Krupp's card. A small penguin carrying a sword emerged, its feathers stained by a splotch of wine, and the bird pointed at Brian's field as Krupp laughed.

"Remember your old pal Penguin Soldier?" Krupp asked. "When you flip him over…"

Penguin Soldier suddenly screamed as the wine stain on its body ignited in black fire. Ha Des laughed cruelly as the bird jumped into the water to extinguish the flames and never resurfaced.

"Nothing will happen this time, because Ha Des negates monster effects, including flip-effects," Brian explained. "La Jinn, Vampire Lord, attack directly!"

"Oh n…ARGH!" Krupp screamed as a blast of dark magic, courtesy of La Jinn, shot down from the sky and smote him in the chest.

Vampire Lord's cape once more opened, and the group of bats burst forth once more, landing all over Krupp and mercilessly biting every part of him they could reach. Krupp yelled in pain and shook his flippers, causing several of the winged mammals to fly for safety. Only one was left soon, perched directly on top of his duel disk.

"You…Ergh…" Krupp growled at the bat.

"I say trap again," Brian decided, the bats all winging back to their master's cape.

"Then I'll get rid of…Mirror Wall," Krupp responded, a single card vanishing from his deck once more. "My turn?"

The last bat released Krupp and returned to Vampire Lord, who grinned and looked toward Brian.

"Make a move Krupp, I've almost finished this," Brian smiled. "Maybe you should give up now, my finishing blows tend to be…overzealous."

Ha Des chuckled as black flames dance from his fingertips.

**Brian: 4550**

**Krupp: 2800**

Krupp sneered and glared at Brian and his monsters. Ha Des gave and the other monsters gave Krupp a strange look as he began waving his flippers in an agitated manner (rather impressive since the ice covered to about his armpits).

"Don't you get it you little brat! Forfeiting is the same as losing down here, and I'd get this frozen Hell hole!" Krupp shouted. "So since it's you or me, you'll excuse if I decide to back myself, draw!"

Krupp drew his card, sliding open his field spell slot and placing a card within. The waters around the duel began to swirl and shift as pillars of white marble rose from below, and an eerie green light illuminated several buildings just below the surface of the water.

"Let me guess, A Legendary Ocean?" Brian asked.

"No water deck is complete without a copy or two," Krupp grinned. "Plus, I'm laying one more card facedown."

The new card appeared before Krupp, who crossed his flippers with a smug grin. Brian seemed confused as he reached for his deck.

"That's all?" He asked.

"That's all," Krupp confirmed.

"_This feels almost disturbingly familiar,"_ Brian thought as he drew his card.

"Well, here goes nothing," Brian said, taking a deep breath. "Attack!"

Ha Des whipped up one hand, and a storm of black flames roared forth. Krupp just laughed as the ocean water around him suddenly burst up into a column of waterspouts, which extinguished the flames as they drew close. Brian slapped his forehead and grumbled under his breath as the water fell still again, Krupp laughing in his face.

"_I saw Mako use this combo just today. He used when we were trained by Needlez. He's used almost since he began professional dueling,"_ Brian said to himself. _"So why, oh why, did I run straight into a Tornado Wall!"_

"End turn…" Brian muttered, trying to hide to his red face as Krupp drew.

The penguin was silent, but still smiling as he showed Brian his own Pot of Greed. Playing it, a sparkling trail of golden dust flowed out of the undersea castle and around Krupp's platform, allowing him to draw two more cards.

"Well now, no need to get all upset over running into a trap that just negates all your damage as long as I have it," Krupp mocked as he put down another card. "Here, how about some company? I summon the Cure Mermaid (1500/800) in attack mode."

With a light splash, the red-tailed mermaid surfaced before Krupp, a smile on her face as Krupp's deckmaster power and the power of the field spell flowed into her (1900/1000).

"Attack La Jinn now!" Krupp shouted.

The mermaid giggled as she blew a kiss to the genie. La Jinn's eyes turned to hearts as he smoothed out his mustache and floated toward the water nymph. As he drew close though, the mermaid giggled again and grabbed La Jinn by his smoky tail. With a gasp, the djinn was yanked underwater by the mischievous sea woman, and vanished into a puff of smoke.

"Now that that's over with, I'll equip my monster with the spell card Mist Body, and end my turn," Krupp stated.

Cure Mermaid seemed to fade from view for a moment, before snapping back into focus. She waved to Brian and his monsters as the teen drew, glaring at his cards.

**Brian: 4450**

**Krupp: 2800**

"Well, I may not be able to hit your life points," Brian admitted, looking down at Krupp's monster. "But I can still keep your field clear! Ha Des, attack!"

Ha Des laughed as more flames rushed from the palm of his hand toward Cure Mermaid. The nymph continued to smile, even as the attack caused her to burst into gray smoke which hung over the surface of the water.

"Take…" Brian grinned.

The smoke suddenly began to swirl around, and gathered back into the shape of the destroyed monster. The plumes of mist fell away, leaving Cure Mermaid fresh as a water lily on Krupp's field and Brian slack-jawed.

"Oh, one thing I didn't mention," Krupp explained. "So long as she's equipped with Mist Body, Cure Mermaid can not be destroyed in battle. Normally I'd still take damage but Tornado Wall handles that, so I have nothing to fear from your attacks."

Vampire Lord turned toward Brian, and carefully shut the young man's mouth. Brian shook his head, shivering at his monster's lifeless touch, before waving a hand to Krupp, who took that as a sign to move.

"Very well then, I draw, and Cure Mermaid gives me 800 life points," Krupp began.

The mermaid began to sing, and sparkling dust flew from the ocean and scattered itself over Krupp. The ice began to melt and break apart around his flippers, freeing up much more room for his arms to maneuver.

"Now that she's served her purpose, I'll tribute her to set one monster in defense mode," Krupp smiled as Cure Mermaid dove underwater with a wink.

In place of the previous monster, a card appeared floating just over the surface of the water. Krupp nodded to Brian, who drew his own card with a grimace.

**Brian: 4450**

**Krupp: 3600**

"_Urgh…He used a tribute to summon that so it must be strong," _Brian worried. _"Or he could have summoned something that's good on the attack hoping I'd think it's a bluff…But what would be the point of that if he's got a perfectly good barrier up already…Unless he knows I'd think that and he's trying to trick me…"_

Brian grit his teeth as he pointed to Krupp's card.

"Oh…I've got the life points to spare, so what's the worst that could happen?" Brian called out. "Ha Des, dark flames of Purgatory!"

Ha Des, who looked to be a bit tired of his recent chain of unsuccessful attacks, merely snapped his fingers. Black flames flew at the facedown card…

And much to his surprise, they bounced off the card and flew back at his face. Ha Des ducked under the incoming flames, only for them to wash over Brian who screamed as he was simultaneously burned in the face and frozen near his waist.

On Krupp's field a massive statue made of ice rose from the ocean. It towered over the field, its arms crossed over its chest as the last of the black fire on it died out.

"Meet Defender Iceberg (0/2450 à 200/2650), a monster that certainly lives up to its name," Krupp chortled. "What's even better is that it's the only monster you're allowed to attack now!"

"One monster facedown…End…Turn…Ouch…" Brian moaned as he pressed his cold duel disk against his face after setting a card on it.

**Brian: 4250**

**Krupp: 3600**

Krupp drew, and swiftly played the newest of his two cards. Light poured down from above as feathers dropped from the sky onto his disk.

"Graceful Charity," Krupp smiled.

"Draw three, drop two, who doesn't use that card?" Brian interrupted.

"Oh, look who's so smart," Krupp growled as he pulled his three cards.

With a quick glance, the penguin placed two into his graveyard. He then placed another card into his disk, causing it to appear just to the left and behind the iceberg.

"One facedown card to end my turn," Krupp stated.

"Okay then," Brian said as he drew. "Time to take down that titanic eyesore then. I flip-summon my Night Assailant (200/500)!"

The facedown monster in front of Brian flipped over, and a shadowy figure dove under the waves, dispersing like a school of fish as it fell in.

"Huh?" Krupp asked, looking confused.

"Simple, this monster kills one of yours as soon as he flips over, and there's only one target," Brian grinned. "Take down his Defender Iceberg and open the path to his life points!"

A shadow leapt from the water and alighted upon the ice giant's shoulder. Now that it held still, the figure could clearly be seen as a humanoid one wreathed in black robes, with arms made of blue flame clutching a wicked dagger. The demonic assassin plunged its weapon into the side of Defender Iceberg's head, and the blue flames of its arms extended down the blade into the cracks.

Night Assailant vanished into a dark mist, reforming on Brian's field as the fire spread over the wall monster like a web. The iceberg began to slump over, large chunks of it melting off as the fire burned deeper and deeper despite the lack of burnable material. With a final groan, Defender Iceberg toppled into the ocean and shattered apart into chunks of floating ice.

"Now that he's taken care of…" Brian ordered, raising one hand.

"I can activate my trap card!" Krupp shouted jabbing at his duel disk. "Call of the Haunted!"

Purple smoke poured from the ocean on Krupp's field, and a chilly mist began to descend over both duelists. Brian trembled a bit as Krupp pulled a card from his graveyard.

"Now presenting the one monster that no ice or water strategy is complete without…" Krupp carried on as he played the card.

Brian stood stock-still for a moment, before slapping his forehead and groaning.

"You have to be kidding, not that thing…" He moaned, staring at Krupp.

"I assume you mean Mobius the Frost Monarch (2400/1000)?" Krupp laughed as the smoke whirled away and an icy blast coated the surface of the water.

In an instant, the city and pillars of the Legendary Ocean were coated with thick frost. The buildings could barely be seen under the ice that had formed between the two duelists. Standing on Krupp's field was a ten-foot-tall giant in white armor, ice crackling from his knuckles and feet and a chilling fog emitting from under his helmet as he breathed. The blue aura of Krupp's power extended over the giant and, despite the fact that it was now frozen, the field spell still granted its bonus (2800/1200).

"Oh boy…" Brian muttered, looking over his field before shifting his cards. "Crud…I shift all my other monsters to defense mode and end my turn…"

Ha Des and Vampire Lord each fell to one knee, while Night Assailant seemed quite frightened of the giant, obviously not used to the idea of facing down its opponent in direct battle.

Krupp either didn't notice or didn't care about the fiend's worries as he drew his own card with a nasty smile.

"Heh heh heh…Here comes the big hit! Go get him Frosty, ice age assault!" Krupp ordered, waving one flipper to Brian's field. "Take down his little assassin!"

Mobius turned an angry glare toward Krupp, before facing back toward Brian. The icy mist began to blow across the field once more, Mobius directing it with his hands. Night Assailant began to tremble as the winds picked up, turning from a breeze of smoke to a massive gust of frigid fog. Brian wrapped his arms tighter around his body as he felt the ice creep further up his body, all the way to his chest!

As the fog cleared, Night Assailant was left frozen in a massive block of ice, which shattered along with the monster, while Brian was shivering, once more feeling the early effects of hypothermia trying to set in.

**Brian: 1650**

**Krupp: 3600**

"I think that's enough damage for now," Krupp said to Mobius. "Your turn."

Brian uncurled his arms from his frozen body, causing a small crack to appear across his chest and stomach as he reached for his duel disk and drew.

"One…One m-m-m-monster faced-d-d-down," Brian responded through chattering teeth as the new monster appeared next to Ha Des. "All I c-c-c-can do."

"Pathetic, I can't believe I was losing to you a minute ago," Krupp admonished as he drew with a shrug. "Ah well…Mobius, take out Ha Des!"

Mobius pointed toward the demon king, and a blast of icy wind came forth once again. Ha Des roared in anguish as the freezing mist covered him for a moment before vanishing, leaving the once proud ruler as an ice sculpture that quickly crumbled to shards.

"Be glad he was in defense mode, now make your last move," Krupp challenged.

Brian drew, his teeth now chattering too hard to talk as he set one monster facedown onto his field. He then managed to place four more cards into his disk, which appeared facedown behind his monsters one at a time. He nodded to Krupp, who only laughed cruelly as he drew.

"Please, you expect me to honestly think that you have four traps that can stop me and you were saving them for right now?" Krupp taunted. "That is the worst bluff I've ever seen! Especially…"

Krupp jammed another card into his disk, and a blast of wind flew out over the ice and shattered all four of Brian's cards like glass. At the same time, Call of the Haunted burst apart, and Mobius into a purple cloud, while the pillars of marble sank beneath the ice once more and the city vanished.

"…Especially had a Heavy Storm right here in my hand," Krupp went on. "Oh, and I also have my Premature Burial, ready to revive Mobius for just 800 life points."

Red light poured from under the ice, and the frost monarch's hand burst froth from under it. Mobius pulled himself out of the frozen tomb, his armor scuffed and dented as he proudly took his place back on the field.

"Then, a little spell called Salvage," Krupp smiled as some of the ice behind him melted and two card flew from the water into his hand. "This little beauty brings two water monsters from my grave to my hand, as long as they have less than 1500 attack points a piece. Next I remove Aquarian Alessa and Defender Iceberg to summon Fenrir (1400/1200)!"

A howl echoed across the frozen ocean as a massive grey wolf with red eyes bounded onto the field. It stopped, and shimmered with blue light as its power rose to (1600/1200). At the same time, a familiar knight in blue armor strode out onto the field as Krupp played his last card.

"And last, but not least, you remember Ice Knight (1300/1200) don't you?" Krupp laughed.

The frozen warrior unleashed a battle cry as the presence of Mobius on the field sent its attack score flying to (2300/1200)! Brian could only watch as Krupp's three monsters glared down at him and Vampire Lord while his fingertips and lips turned blue.

"Hmm…Better not risk the facedown monsters," Krupp realized, rubbing his beak. "Everyone attack his deckmaster now!"

"No…" Vampire Lord gasped as the arctic threats bore down on him.

Ice Knight slammed the vampire with a massive punch, sending him skidding back across the ice. Fenrir pounced upon him, sinking his fangs in deep, causing Vampire Lord to burst into a cloud of bats that attempted to escape into the air. A huge blast of air from Mobius, however, sent the bats falling to the ground and shattering to bloody mist as ice cubes.

Brian screamed as the mist gathered him, and Vampire Lord appeared to drink his fill. The ice quickly snake up the teen's body, freezing all but his arms and head like a massive overcoat. Vampire Lord reluctantly returned to his spot on the field, while Krupp laughed his feathered head off.

"Oh…that was rich!" Krupp roared with laughter. "Face facts kid, you've had it! Now take your turn…If you can even move that is!"

Krupp's laughter continued to ring out until he heard a loud 'Ahem…'

Looking up, Krupp saw that Brian had strained his arms close enough together to reached his disk. Krupp's eyes went wide as he looked at the score.

**Brian: 150**

**Krupp: 2800**

"One more attack and you're part of the permafrost, just what do you think you can do?" Krupp challenged.

"Win," Brian growled from his clenched teeth. "I tribute my facedown Newdoria and Melchid the Four Faced Beast…"

For a brief moment, both the quartet of masks and the emaciated orange demon appeared on Brian's field. Both shattered apart as a frightening growl trembled from beneath the ice.

"I summon the Masked Beast Des Guardias (3300/2500)!" Brian shouted.

_**SMASH!!!**_

A massive hole was smashed through the ice, and the hideous demon warrior leapt from the arena floor. Des Guardias dug its clawed feet into the frozen ground below it, leaving deep marks along the surface. Krupp seemed a touch nervous as Vampire Lord got to his feet.

"You know, it is good that I am immortal, and that you decided to attack me," Vampire Lord pointed out. "Had you attacked either of the others with Fenrir, it's ability would have prevented Brian from drawing Des Guardias!"

"Not to mention I wouldn't have had the tributes," Brian agreed.

"No way…" Krupp worried. "The odds of this were…"

"Forget the odds, Krupp, your number is up!" Brian shouted. "Des Guardias time to break the ice, destroy Mobius with wrath of the masked!"

The masked fiend roared and stampeded toward its prey with claws outstretched. Mobius raised both arms to defend itself, only to impaled by the demon's massive hand claws. A thin trickle of red seeped out from under Mobiu's helmet before he shattered to bits.

"Vampire Lord, you take out Fenrir!" Brian cried out.

"With pleasure!" Vampire Lord shouted, opening his cape toward the trembling wolf. "Grisly wing!"

The camp of bats swept out once more, latching onto both the monster and Krupp's duel disk. As Fenrir fell under the weight of the bloodsuckers, Krupp winced as he heard Brian call out, "Trap!" and his final copy of Driving Snow vanished from his disk.

"End turn, now get out of this if you can," Brian challenged as the ice formed its way back up to Krupp's shoulders.

The penguin was visibly shaken as he drew his card, and almost swallowed his tongue upon seeing the monster he had drawn (Gogiga Gagagigo, and eight star monster). Krupp gulped as he nervously reached for his disk and turned Ice Knight to defense mode. The holographic version of the monster fell to one knee (1900/1200) and was sweating under its helmet.

"You…you wouldn't really leave me here to freeze, would you?" Krupp asked as Brian drew his card.

"Sorry Krupp, you're the one that said it's you or me," Brian grimace, closing his eyes. "Pardon me if I back myself….Vampire Lord, attack!"

A blast of bats later, and all that was left of Ice Knight was his helmet, which shattered apart. Krupp was staring up at Des Guardias, who seemed to be chuckling at the bird's plight.

"Okay Krupp, you tried to trap innocent people in here, fought dirty by trying to freeze me, and have shown little incentive for me to show mercy," Brian winced. "But I doubt even your twisted soul is a match for this…Des Guardias remove your mask!"

Des Guardias slowly turned to Brian, and tilted its head quizzically. Brian nodded, and took a deep breath.

"This needs to be a lesson he'll remember…" Brian stated. "If he gets out, that is…"

Des Guardias nodded slowly, and turned back to Krupp who looked confused.

"What…You're just gonna make me look at its face?" Krupp wondered.

"I heard online that this is so hideous it can even kill other demons that look at it," Brian warned.

Krupp cast a disbelieving gaze at the demon before him and gave a mocking laugh as the mask began to shift.

"I'm sure it can't be…" Krupp began.

The mask hit the frozen ground with a clatter, and Krupp's voice died in his throat.

It then promptly vivisected itself as a scream too terrified for words. Krupp was staring wide-eyed into the face of Des Guardias, and merely continued to scream and scream and scream…

Above Krupp, the glacier was cracking and splitting from the vibrations caused by the horrified scream below. Soon enough, a massive chunk of ice fell away and slid down the glacier toward the cowering penguin below, crushing him under a metric ton of frozen sea water.

As Krupp was smashed, the vibrations of his voice caused the ice on Brian to shatter apart, causing the teen to fall into a fetal position in an attempt to warm himself once more. Vampire Lord quickly hovered over Brian, lowering his cape around the young man to keep out the worst of the chill.

A few seconds passed after Krupp was silenced, and Brian managed to stumbled to his feet, still cold and shivering. He slowly slipped his way over to the ice mass that had smashed Krupp, and sighed as he placed one numb hand on it.

"One villain, on ice," He muttered.

He paused for a moment, then smacked himself across the face. The stinging in his cheeks swiftly brought back his senses.

"Oh god, I'm turning into my brother," He realized, slowly turning around to look for a shelter from the cold. "Okay, time to get…SWEET ZOMBIE JESUS!"

Brian fell flat onto his behind and pressed himself against Krupp's grave, his eyes wide with terror. In turning around, the teen had wound up facing right toward Des Guardias' exposed face. The horrible visage resembled nothing less than Brain's one-hundred worst nightmares sewn into a patchwork of pain and insanity. Any further attempts to describe it were both impossible, and a possible crime against humanity.

Slowly though, Brian managed to get back up. Des Guardias carefully reached down and picked up its mask, giving the teen a curious look.

"So…I thought that part of the story was made up…" Brian said slowly, walking toward Des Guardias. "I guess it was a little exaggerated since I'm not dead."

Des Guardias nodded, then slowly bowed to his duelist. Brian nodded, and held up his duel disk as the fiend donned its mask once more.

"You can go back to the deck now," He offered. "Thanks for the help."

"Anytime," Vampire Lord said, feeling a bit awkward over his master's sudden recovery from seeing the face of terror itself.

As both monsters vanished, Des Guardias let out another low growl. Brian trembled in place, though not from cold this time.

"I think…It called me master before it vanished…" He wondered out loud. "And I don't know if that's really good or really bad."

Before he could ponder on the point any further, a door appeared right in front of Brian, standing in the middle of the ice. Brian carefully reached out and pulled on the knob, allowing the portal to open and cheerful music to pour out. Brian allowed himself to smile a bit as the smell of warm pretzels and popcorn reached his freezing nose.

"Well…I'd hate to be terrified on an empty stomach," He reasoned, stumbling through the door.

The door slammed shut behind him with a click, and vanished, leaving behind nothing but the empty ice plains.

------------------------------------------

In the real world, one of the computer technicians was pausing from his search to take a gulp of water. As he titlted his head back to drink deeply from the bottle, a file name popped up on his search screen, accompanied by an image of the frozen wastes Brian had just left.

The picture for one second before vanishing, the search program continuing on to the next part as it was unable to confirm any of its search targets present in that zone any longer. The technician put down his water bottle, and returned to watching his station, none the wiser.

_Wow…That was something else…_

_And I don't mean that in a good way._

_Um…Gold is up next against Gansly. I'm sure followers of the anime will remember that Gansly loved to take advantage of average working men like Gold._

_The title for the next chapter is_

_Raw Deal_

_See ya later…_

**See you in your nightmares, mortals**

**-Des Guardias**

---

Original Deckmasters

---

Vampire Lord

Zombie

DARK

Six star

2000 attack

1500 defense

Immortality of the Night: This deckmaster can not be destroyed or removed from the field once it has been special summoned. Everytime this monster would be removed from the field in anyway, you take 500 points of direct damage.

---

Nightmare Penguin

Aqua

WATER

Four star

900 attack

1800 defense

Water support: All WATER monsters on your side of the field gain 200 attack points.

_Nightmare Penguin was first used as a deckmaster by Krupp in the anime episode "Freeze Play." All credit for its effect goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

Original Cards

---

Ice Knight

Aqua

WATER

Four star

1300 attack

1200 defense

For each face-up Aqua-type monster on the field, this monster gains 400 attack points.

_This card was first used in the GX anime episode "Taken by Storm." All credit for it goes to the writers of those episodes._

---

Penguin Sword

Spell/equip

Image: A long, thin sword

This card may only be equipped to a monster with the word 'Penguin' in its name. The equipped monster gains 800 attack points.

---

Defender Iceberg

Aqua

WATER

Five star

0 attack

2450 defense

As long as this monster remains face-up on the field, your opponent may not select any attack target other than this monster.

_Both of the above cards were first used by Krupp in the anime episode "Freeze Play." All credit for them goes to the writers of those episodes._


	43. Raw Deal

This is Gold, As you might have guessed by now

_**This is Gold, as you might have guessed by now.**_

_**I've been wandering around in these caves for a while now, and I've got just one worry on my mind.**_

_**Where the heck is Zeffie!?**_

_**But I guess she wouldn't want me to worry about her now…**_

_**Seeing as this guy is standing between me and my exit, I've got to focus on myself for a while.**_

Raw Deal

Tucked away in the middle of the desert sat a lonely ghost town. The programmers had really gone all out on this particular portion of the Virtual World, with highly detailed buildings showing realistic aging and even a random tumbleweed rolling around the street in a wide loop before rolling out into the desert and out of sight.

It was to this place that Yugi and Victor found themselves jumping to.

"Okay…Wow some of these programmers have to much spare time for planning these places out," Victor observed, looking around the scenery. "This is gonna be as bad as trying to search that huge city…"

"True," Yami sighed, "But if we're to stop Gozubora's mad plan he must be found. At the very least, he's now running out of places to hide."

"What if he jumps to a place we've already searched?" Victor questioned.

"Then I'd hear about and send you there,' Jackson't voice chimed in from above, reminding the two explorers that they weren't alone. "Oh, and Yugi? I've got a message here from Joey who is currently being detained by security for trying to break into the control room…"

"_Sounds like Joey and the others are getting worried about us," _Yugi pointed out mentally.

"He wants you to know that everyone outside is rooting for you, and they know you're gonna…Geeze this handwriting is awful…" Jackson muttered as he attempted to interpret the note.

"That's what happens when try to write something when I'm jumped by your security goons!" A familiar voice suddenly shouted.

"What the…How did you…You're not authorized…!" Jackson shouted before some feedback cut him off.

"Joey, is that you?" Yami called out to the sky.

"You bet Yug, and…One sec, I'm talking to my friend here!" Joey shouted. "Just want you to know that we know you're gonna scrap that Gozubora jerk and if you don't, we'll get him for ya!"

Sounds of a tussle, the loud clatter of the microphone hitting the ground, and then heavy breathing sounded from above. Yami and Victor looked to each other and shrugged.

"Okay, that's enough out of you," Jackson's exasperated voice panted. "Just, uh, just sit and wait for security, okay?"

"The loyalty of your friends is astounding Mr. Mutoh," Victor said to the spiky-headed teen.

"Astounding and somewhat frightening," Jackson agreed and Victor and Yami began to scout through the town.

**00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

Meanwhile, tucked even further within the computer system, Gold was making his way through the tight corridors of the cavern he had awoken in as quickly as his size would allow. He had paused for a moment before a new opening that was much narrower than he was, and was puzzling over how to get through.

"_Huh…Great, this is only way out of here,"_ Gold grumbled in his head as he checked over the natural passage. _"Couldn't have taken a wrong turn neither, unless they maybe hid a secret door or something."_

Gold stopped, then began to chuckle.

"_Yeah, I'm in a computer game ain't I? Maybe it's like one of Zeffie's video games,"_ Gold reasoned, running his hand over the wall near the path. _"Just need to find the switch and…"_

There was a loud click as a small section of the wall sank further in under Gold's touch. The ground began to tremble as the passage pulled apart, growing wider and taller until two men Gold's size could walk shoulder to shoulder through it.

"And folks say I'm not smart," Gold smiled as he started down the path, admiring his handy work. "Hey Zeffie! Zefs, can you hear me?"

Gold continued forward, calling the name of his young charge, the only response being his own voice echoing through the cavern. The passage continued onward, deeper into the cave, which surprisingly was well lit despite there being no obvious light source.

"_Okay, as far as caves go this is the weirdest…"_ Gold began wondering before pausing to scratch his head. _"Huh…Actually I think this is the only real cave I've ever been in…And it's not even real…"_

His internal monologue came to an abrupt halt as the sound of something running came from up ahead. Gold stopped moving immediately, and the footstep continued, getting further and further away.

"Zeffie?" Gold shouted, running after the noise. "Zef, that you? Hey wait up!"

Gold didn't have far to run. After another minute he found himself exiting the passage into a large chamber. Veins of silver ran along the wall, shining slightly under a non-existent fire light shining from a ring of torch holders around the wall. The foot steps were still ahead of Gold, now coming from a new passage across the chamber from him.

"Hang on Zef! I'm coming!" Gold shouted, not even noticing the path he had entered from grinding closed behind him. "Here comes…Woah!"

Gold stopped short as his legs suddenly sank into the floor up to his knees. He faltered for a moment, barely managing to adjust his balance without slamming face first into the floor. Waving his arms frantically, he managed to right himself and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Okay…" He panted out, noticing the sound of running had stopped. "Zeffie? Can you hear me, can you get back?"

"I'm afraid Zeffie isn't here at the moment," A masculine voice declared.

Gold's eyes went wide as the armored reptile man from the arena stepped out of the other passage across the room. A duel disk was adorned on his left arm, and he smiled as he walked over to Gold. With the larger man's legs trapped in the floor, the two were now at approximately equal heights.

"The name is Gansley, former Senior Vice President for Kaiba Corporation," The lizard-human introduced himself.

"Where's Zeffie?" Gold asked.

"One track mind, eh? And I was afraid those foot steps I made wouldn't get your attention," Gansley chuckled as he moved out of Gold's reach back to the other side of the room. "Oh well, like they say, if you want to catch anything you need to bait the trap."

"So you're the one that led me here," Gold realized. "Mind telling me where that big palooka in the purple cape took Zefs?"

"If you're referring to my business associate Johnson, I'm afraid I couldn't begin to guess," Gansley responded. "But if I were in your position, which thankfully I'm not, I'd be much more worried about myself."

"What do you mean 'my position?' You talking about me being stuck in the floor?" Gold asked.

"That and the fact that after our duel, you'll be trapped here in the Virtual World until the end of time," Gansley responded.

"Uh…What?" Gold asked, confusion etching his face.

"It's a simple wager my good man," Gansley sighed. "Even one of your…Academic standing would be able to understand. We will play a game of Duel Monsters, with the deckmaster rules of course. The winner will leave this Virtual World in your body, the loser will be trapped in this cave."

"And I will agree to this because…?" Gold wondered.

"Look, I can't leave unless I win, but that doesn't mean I just have to let you go," Gansley pointed out. "If you won't duel, you can stay stuck in the ground while I think of interesting ways to torment you simply so I don't get bored…"

"Sorry I asked," Gold muttered. "Okay, okay, we'll duel. But if I win you got show me where I can find Zeffie,"

"Even if I knew I'd have no way of getting you there." Gansley retorted. "You'll have to settle for just keeping your body and be grateful for it. Now if you'd choose your deckmaster so we can get this over with…"

Gold watched as the grid of cards appeared in front of him, and he instinctively reached for the one that had done him the most good so far, his Stone Statue of the Aztecs. Gold's finger stopped in midair and hovered in front of the cards though.

"Hey, where's my Stone Statue of the Aztecs?" Gold asked, glaring at Gansley.

"I beg your pardon?" Gansley asked.

"You heard me, the monster I want for my deckmaster isn't here," Gold said, pointing to the cards.

"Then you'll have to choose something else," Gansley declared. "I'm stuck using Deep-Sea Warrior and you don't hear me complaining about it, do you?"

"Fine, fine," Gold shrugged, looking over the cards. "Then I guess I'll go with…My Labyrinth Wall."

"_If I need to summon this to the field, at least he'll have a hard time getting through it,"_ Gold reasoned.

Behind him rose a blank, featureless wall made of sandstone. Gold looked over his shoulder, and shrugged. He hadn't really expected to hear a wall talk to him. As he looked to his duel disk, though, he suddenly spotted words slowly being etched into the ground in front of him.

"_Thank you for choosing me Mr. Gold, I believe you will find me more useful for this match than your usual deckmaster,"_ The writing stated.

"_You know, if this weren't a computer, that'd be really weird,"_ Gold thought as the writing faded, then changed. _"What, this the deckmaster power? Let's see what it wrote…Oh…Hope this guy's using a burn deck…"_

"Mind if I go first?" Gold asked.

"Fine, consider that a last request," Gansley nodded. "Now let's duel!"

**Gold: 8000**

**Gansley: 8000**

Gold took his six cards and gave them a quick mulling over.

"Well, not to shabby," He nodded, taking two of the cards and putting them into place. "I'll open with a facedown monster and a spell card called Continuous Destruction Punch."

The brown card appeared in front of Gold, followed by the spell holding Des Kangaroo's image as Gold looked over the rest of his hand.

"I think that's enough," He said.

"That's all you're going to start with?" Gansley asked as he drew his own sixth card. "Pathetic, you obviously have no ambition if you're setting defenses this early. I summon Ipiria (500/500) in attack mode…"

A small section of the cave floor crumbled away, leaving a small hole. From the hole emerged a white lizard about the size of a cat with a ring of white fur around its head. It turned up to Gansley and shimmered for a moment, eliciting a smile from the reptile-man.

"And just by summoning him, Ipria lets me draw one card," Gansley went on, adding another card to his hand. "Of course it would be foolhardy to attack with such a weak creature, so I'll merely set one card facedown and end my turn."

Gold drew as the new card appeared behind Ipiria. If he had been paying attention to Gansley's 'lack of ambition' insult, he didn't seem to care much.

"Eh, I'll set this monster facedown," Gold decided, placing the card onto his field and watching as it appeared next to the first one. "That's enough for me."

"This is going to be a long game, I can tell," Gansley sighed, taking up a card of his own. "Ah well, at least I can slow you down a little…As if I needed to. I summon Yowie (500/500) in attack mode, and this one forces you to skip your next draw phase."

Gold could hear something scuttling around on the ceiling above him. As he looked up, he noticed another cat-sized lizard, this one brown with six legs, which landed on Gold's duel disk with a heavy _splat_. It ran its tongue over Gold's disk, coating the life point readout in sticky saliva and causing the entire contraption to beep and whine.

"Hey, get off, this is expensive!" Gold shouted, shaking his disk and dislodging the strange critter.

Yowie merely scampered its way to Gansley's field where it let out a strange hissing noise at Gold. Gold checked his disk, which was now alternating between his life points and a blinking red ERROR message.

"Great..." Gold said, rolling his eyes.

"If I may continue, I also activate my facedown Ultimate Offering card," Gansley went on. "With this I can summon another monster by paying 500 life points, so I'll do so now to set one more monster in defense mode."

The back of a card appeared between Gansley's other two monsters, neither of which seemed at all interested in this new companion.

"Now get going, I'm a very busy man," Gansley ordered. "Or at least I will be once I'm out of here."

**Gold: 8000**

**Gansley: 7500**

Gold reached for his deck, only to stop as he remembered Yowie's effect.

"Right, no drawing this turn," Gold remembered. "Well, I can still summon at least, so I'll start by flipping up my Moai Interceptor Cannons (1100/2000)."

The stony ground began to rumbled and shake, as from it formed a pair of stone heads reminiscent of the famous Easter Island statues. Each one's mouth was open at the moment, revealing a metal muzzle like some sort of cannon or gun.

"Now then, these guys could have an easy time with any of your monsters, but I don't have time for that," Gold went on, cracking his knuckles. "I need to find Zeffie, so I'm gonna take the fastest way possible and also flip summon my Great Spirit (500/1500)."

From the Labyrinth Wall behind Gold floated a transparent figure that appeared to be a Native American ghost complete with tribal mask. He began chanting in a low voice, causing a golden aura to flare around the Moai Interceptor Cannons.

"And this monster does what exactly?" Gansley asked, rubbing his chin.

"For your information, he reverses the attack and defense scores of one Earth monster I control," Gold explained, pointing to Gansley's monsters. "So my Cannons now have a whoppin' 2000 attack points!"

Both of the stone heads were charging energy within the cannon muzzles, and Gansley took a step back as Gold waved one hand to his field.

"Cannons, attack that Ipiria thing with Rapa-Nui waves!" Gold shouted.

Both cannons fired, launching blazing energy toward the white lizard. Gansley just grinned as he aimed one fist at Ipiria, and the other at Yowie.

"Thank you for that you fool, you activated my deckmaster power: reflector hole!" Gansley called out. "Of course I didn't expect much better from the working class…"

"You gonna tell what this deckmaster power…" Gold started to ask. "What the hell?

Gold was cut short as Ipiria and Yowie both vanished and in their place appeared a black portal. Gold watched as the energy from his attack entered the warp, which promptly closed once again. Gold scratched his head in confusion, until he heard a howling noise coming from his right…

Gansley laughed as a second portal opened to Gold's right, firing out the energy bolt that Gold had attack with and sending it slamming back into the large duelist!

"That is my power! By tributing two of my low class monsters when you try to attack one, I can redirect your attack back to your life points," Gansley laughed.

"So basically, it's like a magic cylinder huh?" Gold asked, clutching where the laser had struck. "Guess I can get lucky once in a while…"

Gold held up his duel disk, and Gansley stared at the life points in confusion.

**Gold: 7000**

**Gansley: 7500**

"What? You should have lost more than that!" Gansley shouted.

"Yeah, probably shoulda," Gold shrugged, releasing his side and sending a small shower of pebbles to the ground. "But I've got my deckmaster, and Labyrinth Wall gives me stone skin. Basically, any effect damage I take gets cut in half, and it looks like your deckmaster power counts."

Gold paused for a moment, then his forehead wrinkled in concern.

"Say, are you getting taller?" He asked.

"Not me, but you might want to take a look down," Gansley grinned.

Gold glanced down to his legs, and his eyes went wide as he saw that he was now trapped in the floor past his knees about halfway up his thighs. He tried to lift one leg only to fail miserably against a ground that seemed to have developed the consistency of wet concrete. Looking back to Gansley, he could see that his foe was in a similar predicament, but only up to his calves in floor.

"Surprise, this is my little penalty game," Gansely grinned. "And I'll explain so even a peon like you can understand. As our life points go down, the floor beneath us will slowly liquefy and, once one of us hits zero, the loser will be sucked underneath and entombed forever."

"You have a sick mind," Gold growled. "And if your buddy Johnson is putting Zeffie through something like this…"

"Are you quite finished with your turn? My feet are starting to itch so I'd like to be out of the floor as soon as possible," Gansley retorted.

"Not quite. First I'm activating my monsters' abilities and switching both of 'em facedown again," Gold stated, turning over the cards on his disk.

Slowly, both monsters sank back into the floor until nothing was left but featureless stone, over which appeared a pair of facedown cards again.

"Then I'm gonna play my Canyon field spell, so whenever one of us, probably you, hits a Rock-type monster that's in defense mode, you take double the damage," Gold finished, placing the card into his open field zone.

The color of the rock around the two began to shift, from granite and limestone grey to lines of sandstone in varying shades of red and brown. At the same time, the ceiling of the cavern faded away leaving a blue sky with sunlight beating down on both duelists. Gansley stifled an exaggerated yawn as Gold waved one hand, signaling the end of his turn.

Gansley drew, seemingly unconcerned with Gold's field spell or the fact that he was trapped in the ground.

"I know what you must be thinking. You're wondering how I can win if I'm only using small time monsters with low attack points," Gansley stated as he looked over his hand. "The simple fact of the matter is that if you want to succeed, you must have the appropriate sacrifices around to achieve your goals. That's how I ran Kaiba Corp.'s Human Resources Division, and it worked decently enough."

"And how many guys did you throw on the street after you were done with 'em?" Gold challenged.

Gansley paused, then shrugged before answering, "You know, I lost count after my first year in the position. But you know what they say, if you want to make an omelet…Anyway, you seem fond of flipping monsters, so here's one of mine."

Gansley's hidden monster turned over, and a brightly colored bird with bulging eyes squawked as it appeared.

"That's an Ashinigrai (500/500)…" Gold grumbled, selecting a card from his hand.

"Then I'm assuming you know that you must now discard one card from your hand," Gansley smirked. "And I'm hardly finished. I next summon forth Man Thro'-thro' (1000/1000)!"

Gansley snapped his fingers, and from the rocky canyons walls above dropped a hideously massive ogre carrying a squirming yellow creature in one hand. The ogre paused, looked at the critter it was carrying, then hurled it skyward where it splattered high up on the wall behind Gold.

"That's a new one," Gold commented, looking over the strange beast.

"No, just underused," Gansley corrected as he began to sink into the ground a bit more. "Oh, I'm also paying 500 life points for Ultimate Offering so I can summon Zolga (1700/1200), also in attack mode."

A silent wind blew around the two men, bringing with it a purple cape topped with a strange metal headdress. The eyes of the headdress shimmered red as the odd looking fairy hovered in front of Gansley.

"Next, seeing as it has fulfilled its purpose, I'll tribute my Ashinigrai for Man Thro'-Thro's effect. He will now deal you 800 points of direct damage…" Gansley elaborated, removing a card from his disk.

"Cut in half thanks to my deckmaster," Gold pointed out.

"You're taking damage none the less," Gansley called out. "Strike now!"

Ashinigrai let out a frightened squawk as the lumbering ogre grabbed hold of it and crushed it into a ball of feathers. It tossed the lump right at Gold, who's flesh quickly turned grey and rocky just before the attack struck. Gold brushed a few stray feathers from his shirt as the stone skin shed off him in a shower of pebbles.

"Continuing on with my turn, I'll remove the Ipiria in my graveyard from play to special summon my Rock Sprit (1700/1000)." Gansley went on.

The rocky ground trembled as from it formed a large humanoid statue dressed in the armor of a Roman hoplite. He hoisted a spear in one hand, testing its weight before swinging it around to battle-ready position.

"And since I know which of your hidden monsters is which, I'll have Zolga attack the facedown monster on the left with its cloak of destruction!" Gansley called out. "Can't have you flipping attack and defense all day you realize."

From the targeted card emerged the Great Spirit once more, who suddenly found himself wrapped under the folds of Zolga's cloak. The spirit let out a low moan as it was blown back into the ground by a strong wind and vanished beneath the Earth.

"And with that, I'll cut you a break and let you take a turn," Gansley finished.

**Gold: 6600**

**Gansley: 7000**

Gold was silent as he drew his own card, setting another one onto his disk and watching as it appeared before him.

"I'm settin' this monster facedown, and sendin' it to you again," Gold declared.

"Relying on your defenses to save you? Don't you realize that won't work against me?" Gansely challenged as he drew.

"You really like listening to yourself talk, don't you?" Gold asked.

Gansley grit his teeth before placing another monster onto his disk. Another Ipiria scuttle out of the ground, and Gansley drew another card thanks to it.

"I'm going to ignore that for now, and pay for my Ultimate Offering one more time," Gansley declared as a shadowy serpent rose behind him. "I offer Ipiria and Zolga as the tribute to call for my Rainbow Snake Eingana (2200/2800)!"

The shadowy snake struck down, swallowing both of the tributes in a flash and showering Gansley with sparkling dust as it did so. He smiled as he was slowly lifted from the floor, and was soon standing on solid ground again. He rubbed the tip of one of his boots against the back of his heel with a sigh of relief.

In the meantime, the massive snake shade had been undergoing a change. The shadows fell away, leaving a giant snake with glittering scales reflecting a multitude of brilliant colors.

"Of course, when I use Zolga for a tribute, it's kind enough to restore 2000 of my life points," Gansley grinned. "First time an employee ever had to pay me for severance…"

"Oh, funny," Gold said with unenthusiastic applause. "Are you're going attack or bore me to death?"

"_Maybe I'm too used to dueling Zeffie…"_ Gold thought. _"On the other hand, she usually doesn't make me wait thirty minutes before I can take a turn!_

"Eingana, crush his newest facedown monster!" Gansley ordered.

The snake dove ahead, and Gold's Stone Statue of the Aztecs (300/2000) rose from the ground just in time to be crushed into pebbles by the massive constrictor's coils.

"Finally, I'll remove Yowie from play and summon forth Gigantes in attack mode," Gansley finished. "Seeing as none of my monsters can beat your facedown cannons yet."

From the Earth (once again) rose another monster. This one was a red-skinned giant dressed in metal armor including what seemed to be an iron kilt. It jumped high into the air after appearing, landing on the top of the canyon wall behind its master, and then jumped back down hefting a massive tree over one shoulder and nearly knocking its fellow monsters senseless with its new found weapon.

"End turn," Gansley declared.

**Gold: 6600**

**Gansley: 8500**

Gold drew his card, bringing his hand to three. Looking them over, he frowned before removing one and switching it for the monster already on his disk.

"I don't have time to play around, so I'm tributing my Moai Interceptor Cannons for Hieracosphinx (2400/1200)!" Gold announced.

The facedown cannons appeared one last time before slowly sinking into the ground. From the canyon walls above dropped the majestic form of a lion with tawny, golden fur. A pair of grayish-blue wings extended from its back, revealing the head of a hawk on its body as it glided into place on Gold's field.

"_Alright, either I get hit again and he wastes two monsters, or I hit his life points and get that much closer to finding Zeffie,"_ Gold reasoned.

"Hieracosphinx, attack his Gigantes with riddle rush!" Gold called out.

The lion/bird hybrid pounced forth, and Gansley just smiled as his orange skinned monster was knocked to the ground and crushed into powder by the beast's weight. The earth beneath the two began to tremble, and Gold braced himself as rocks and dust began to shake loose from the canyon walls.

"Now what?" Gold asked.

"Gigantes's special ability destroys every spell and trap on the field once he has been destroyed in battle," Gansley explained, casually brushing a bit of dust off his shoulder as his Ultimate Offering card shattered to pieces. "Now I needn't worry about your silly little field spell."

Gold ground his teeth as more rocks fell, stopping a few feet overhead creating an umbrella of sorts. The openings to either side were quickly sealed off by the next wave of collapsing rocks, leaving no exits from the newly formed cave other than the one that still existed behind Gansley.

**Gold: 6600**

**Gansley: 8000**

"I'll end my turn here," Gold decided.

"Then it's my move," Gansley declared as he drew. "And I'll begin by summoning Avatar of the Pot (1300/1200)."

With an eerie laugh, a green skinned man wearing nothing but a red loin cloth appeared, a Pot of Greed in place of his head. He grinned at Gold with a leer in his eyes as Gansley tossed the last card from his hand into the graveyard.

"Since he's on the field, I can discard my regular Pot of Greed to draw three new cards," Gansley went on as the genie turned toward him and happily handed him three cards from the top of his deck.

"Yeah, I know that one," Gold nodded, looking slightly dismayed. "Draw anything good?"

"Yes I did as a matter of fact," Gansley smiled. "I activate Gift of the Martyr, sacrificing Avatar of the Pot to give his attack strength to Eingana!"

The jar genie suddenly adopted a deep frown as he turned toward Gansley just as the business man played his card. The rock-type gasped in horror as Eingana bore down on him and snatched him up in his jaws. Avatar attempted to hold the snake's mouth open, but failed miserably and was quickly swallowed. Eingana let out a delighted hiss as its attack strength soared (3500/2800).

"Eingana, crush his monster!" Gansley ordered, "Then the rest of you can attack directly!"

Eingana lunged, snatching up the sphinx in its jaws. Gold turned away and heard a loud crunch, then a thud as the bottom half of his monster struck the ground before vanishing. He turned back just in time to be slugged in the face by Man Thro'-thro', followed closely by being jabbed in the stomach by Rock Spirit's spear.

Surprisingly, Gold just shook off the attacks and turned his gaze up to Gansley.

"That all you got?" He challenged.

"Hmm…Impressive," Gansley nodded. "You're the sort of man I'd want as a body guard if I could stand your attitude…And wasn't about to steal your body. Just how tough is it anyway?"

"Tough? Please, I'm a New Yorker," Gold grinned. "We wrote the book on tough!"

Gansley grit his teeth as his monster nervously walked back to him, "I believe I will end my turn here and finish this on my next turn."

Eingana (2200/2800) lowered its head slightly, hissing a bit as it took in Gold's flavor and scent. Gold seemed unworried, lifting his arms a bit as he sunk up to his chest in the floor.

**Gold: 2800**

**Gansley: 8000**

"I'll draw," Gold said, taking a look at his three cards, "And I'll set one monster facedown, and a facedown card to end my turn."

The pair of brown cards appeared between Gold and Gansley, who nonchalantly drew his own card and flicked his wrist toward Gold's field.

"Well, it was fun while it lasted," Gansley smiled. "Eingana, destroy his final monster!"

The snake brought itself in close once more, only for a silver disk to suddenly appeared and jam its mouth wide open before it could bring its jaws together in a bite! Gansley gasped as the ground around Gold began to glow green, lifting him up out of the floor until he was only sunk in to about his waist.

"Draining Shield turns your attack into life points for me, wanna try again?" Gold challenged.

Gansley seemed unsure as he looked at the facedown monster. He set a card onto his disk, and a large purple machine with a massive cannon mounted on its head stomped out from the passage behind him and settled on his field.

"I'd wager only Eingana could beat that, so I'll summon Cannon Soldier (1400/1200) and end my turn," He growled.

**Gold: 5000**

**Gansley: 8000**

Gold drew, seemingly unworried of the massive snake that stood across from him. He removed the monster on his disk (Giant Soldier of Stone) and replaced it with another facedown card before waving one hand to Gansley.

"Oh please," Gansley growled. "You'd have to get up pretty early in the morning to pull the wool over my eyes like that. Let me guess, that's a monster with defense higher than Eingana's attack?"

Gansley set a card into his own disk, and it appeared behind his three monsters.

"Well I can play the waiting game also, I'll draw what I need soon enough, so I end here," Gansley declared. "No lower-middle class dog is going to outsmart me."

"Wrong answer," Gold said as he drew. "You should have attacked, because I couldn't have flipped my Guardian Sphinx (1700/2400) if you had!"

The caverns above Gold suddenly collapsed, and through the hole that now existed in their place a massive sphinx was visible, shining golden in the virtual sunlight. Its stony gaze focused on Gansley's field, and a flash of brilliant purple light flew from its eyes and sent all three of the business man's monsters back into his hand.

"So, I can't outsmart you huh?" Gold asked, crossing his arms. "Just some…How did you put it? 'Lower-middle class dog?'"

Gansley gulped nervously as Gold placed another card into his disk.

"I equip my sphinx with Shield Attack, swapping its defense and attack scores permanently!" Gold called out, the sphinx glowing even brighter as its stats flipped (2400/1700). "Attack with hammer of the ancients!"

"Oh no!" Gansley screamed as the sphinx lifted a massive granite paw and slammed it through the roof over his head and down onto the reptile!

"Heh, I didn't think you could stop direct attacks," Gold said as the monolith moved back to its original position.

Gansley muttered darkly under his breath as the ground began to liquefy beneath him and draw him down to just below his waist in quicksand.

"Since you've dealt me more than 1000 damage with an attack, I can summon Ruklamba the Spirit King (1000/2000) to my field!" Gansley called out.

In a burst of light, a scrawny lizard with murky-brown scales and a tangled mass of black hair appeared before him. Gold seemed unworried as he just waved one hand.

**Gold: 5000**

**Gansley: 5600**

"Your move," Gold offered.

"_I am not going to be defeated by some wage slave like this!"_ Gansley thought angrily as he drew.

"I tribute Ruklamba for his special ability, summoning as many monsters to the field as I want so long as their attack strength total is less than 2000," Gansley announced as he began moving cards about. "I bring back Man Thro'-thro and an Ashinigrai!"

Ruklamaba tilted back its head and let out a strangled howling noise as its own hair began to shift and cover it. Gold's face twisted in disgust as the monster vanished into its own greasy locks, which collapsed to the ground in a discarded pile. The hair vanished, and in its place appeared the massive ogre once again, and another of the squawking, bulgy-eyed birds.

Gansley went on, swapping the cards on his disk some more,"Then I'll use them as tributes to summon Eingana once more!"

Ashinigrai and Thro'-thro both looked nervous as the shadowy snake appeared behind them. With two lunges it had gobbled down both monsters and resolidified as the shimmering monster serpent. Gansley continued to fumble over his disk's functions, a circle of mystic energy appearing next to him as his facedown card lifted up.

"Next I'll activate Ultimate Offering, and give up 500 life points to summon Cannon Soldier back to the field," he declared.

The portal shone brightly and out of it clunked the clumsy looking machine-type once again, aiming its weapon at Gold who seemed massively unimpressed.

"Finally, I remove Gigantes from the graveyard and summon Rock Spirit back to the field," Finished the businessman.

With a rumble, the statue of the Roman warrior forced his way from below again, his eyes glowing red as he glared at Gold.

"'Scuse me, but you seem to be a few points short of beating my monster," Gold pointed out, jerking a thumb back to the Guardian Sphinx.

"Exactly my point," Gansley smiled. "Eingana, attack his sphinx!"

The snake dashed forward and darted out of the hole, wrapping itself around the massive statue with a hiss. The Guardian Sphinx began to glow with golden light, its eyes flaring purple as Eingana tightened its grip. A burst of energy shot from the structure's gaze, enveloping the snake in purple fire, but Eingana's grip refused to slacken as cracks appeared over the surface of the sphinx, much to Gold's surprise.

"You see, when Eingana is destroyed, he takes all of your monsters down with him," Gansley explained with a twisted smile.

"I shoulda seen that comin'," Gold admitted as his monster crumbled to dust while the snake finally gave up the ghost and was consumed by the purple fire.

"Cannon Soldier, Rock Spirit, attack directly!" Gansley commanded.

"_Here we go again,"_ Gold thought, bracing himself as the monsters prepared to attack.

Cannon Soldier's built in gun shone with green energy at its point before firing off, plowing into Gold's arms which he had crossed in front of himself to absorb the blow. Rock Spirit still seemed well aware of Gold's high pain threshold, and opted to throw his spear rather than stab with it. The spear was knocked aside by Gold, which did nothing to halt the dropping of his life points or the subsequent drop of his body into the stony floor beneath him.

**Gold: 2900**

**Gansley: 4900**

"I'm beating you again," Gansley taunted. "End turn."

Gold seemed unperturbed as he drew, taking the two cards from his hand and setting both of them into his duel disk. They appeared, one a monster the other a spell or trap, and Gold nodded.

"That's all I got," he said.

Gansley just shook as his head as he drew his own card.

"You're wasting my time, let's get this over with," He demanded. "Attack!"

Gansley's creatures both launched their projectiles (Rock Spirit hurling a chunk of stone seeing as his spear as still lying next to Gold). Both rock and energy blast were turned away by a shell of swirling energy that appeared over Gold.

"Negate Attack shuts you out, better luck next time," Gold taunted back.

Gansely ground his teeth together before sliding another card into place, "End turn. I'll finish this…"

"I draw, and flip summon my Morphing Jar," Gold announced.

The facedown monster sitting in front of Gold turned over, revealing a gray pot from which a black shadow with a grin and one eye emerged. It cackled madly as every card in both duelists' hands dissolved into grains of sand which deposited themselves into the graveyard. Gold and Gansley each took up five new cards, and Gold removed the Morphing Jar from his disk.

"Next comes the big guy who's fun at parties: Granmarg the Rock Monarch (2400/1000)!" Gold roared. "And with his effect, your facedown gets shot down."

Morphing Jar laughed one last time before vanishing, and from the hole left in the ceiling by Guardian Sphinx descended the twenty-foot golden giant known as Granmarg. His eyes, though unseen under his armored helmet, were focused on the facedown card on Gansley's field, which lifted to reveal a Call of Haunted which turned into gray stone and crumbled away.

"Now, goodbye Cannon Soldier," Gold shouted. "Attack with rock smash!"

The golden armored giant pulled back a massive fist and plowed it down onto the machine which promptly exploded into a rain of scrap metal. Gansley seemed a bit nervous as he sank deeper into the ground, almost halfway between his chest and waist now.

"Two more facedowns, and I'll call it a turn," Gold decided.

**Gold: 2900**

**Gansley: 3900**

Gansley drew, slapping another card down without a word. Gold grunted in disapproval as another Yowie's six-legged grip settled onto his disk, leaving his cards sticky and untouchable for his next draw phase.

"Now that you can't draw next turn, I'll use Ultimate Offering once more and tribute both of my monsters to summon Despair from the Dark (2800/3000)!" Gansley cried out.

Rather than light, a cloud of dark vapors poured from the magic circle next to Gansley. Both of his monsters closed their eyes as the darkness crept over them, and a massive red and black shadow with a jack-o-lantern like face shot up from the ground. Its body shook in silent laughter as a pair of clawed hands formed from the black energy that made up its body.

"Attack his giant, reaping shadow claw!" Gansley ordered.

The dark spectre reached forward, dragging its claws through Granmarg who shuddered at their touch. A blob of slowly pulsing red energy was drawn from the monarch's body and swallowed by the zombie-type. Gold felt himself sink deeper into the ground as Granmarg quickly melted into a puddle of golden ooze on the ground which slid into the cracks in the floor.

"That wasn't pretty," Gold winced, lifting his arms clear of the quicksand once more.

"You're up, make your move count," Gansley taunted as Despair loomed over Gold.

**Gold: 2500**

**Gansley: 3400**

Gold reached for his deck, stopping as he noticed the slimy spit still shining on it, and pointed to his facedown card.

"Let's start with this: Call of the Haunted!" He announced, an eerie purple smoke pouring from the trap as it lifted. "I revive my Guardian Sphinx…"

The mist began to coalesce, forming a ghostly image of the monster Gold had name only for that image to fall apart as a golden light appeared on the "Fighting Mountain's" field.

"…Too bad he won't stick around, because I tribute him to summon Exxod, Master of the Guard (0/4000)!" Gold finished.

The light shone brighter, growing into a tower of energy that pierced the roof one more time. The light faded, leaving the monolithic form of the Exodia statue kneeling on Gold's field, the top half of its body well above the line of the roof. Despair from the Dark was moaning and shielding its eyes from the light given off by the monster, while Gansley seemed nervous once more.

"Hey, don't worry," Gold said. "Exxod won't be the one to finish you, promise. Now go ahead, make my day."

Gansley drew, and swiftly changed the position of the cards on his disk. Despair sank down lower, its face blanking out to signal a move to defense mode.

"I don't know what you're playing at, but I can wait you out," Gansley announced as a card fell from his disk. "I'll remove Yowie to summon another Gigantes in defense mode…"

The earth spirit crashed down through the weakened ceiling, carrying its tree trunk with it and setting it by its side in a defense posture. Gold's facedown card lifted up, however, and suddenly both of Gansley's monsters opened their eyes and stared at the glowing brilliance of Exxod.

"My Staunch Defender trap says why wait?" Gold challenged. "Now both of your monsters have to attack Exxod, they don't have a choice."

"What? NO!" Gansley screamed.

Gigantes lifted his trunk and charged forward, while Despair reached toward the statue with one of its claws. Both monsters howled in pain as Exxod emitted a burst of golden light, forcing both of them away and causing Gansley to almost choke on the quicksand that went splashing toward his face due to the rapid descent into the floor. Gansley was now up to his shoulders in the stuff, his arms resting on the surface of it.

"You…You…" Gansley sputtered out.

Gold just crossed his arms in response and said, "Look buddy, I don't have time to mess around anymore. This ends one way or another on my next turn. So just tell me where Zeffie is and we can forget this whole mess…"

"I set the rest of my cards facedown and end my turn!" Gansley spat back, three cards appearing behind his monsters. "I will not let some…Idiotic pawn like you speak down to me!"

Gold paused for a moment, then drew his card.

"Fine, suit yourself," Gold sighed as he looked at the card he had drawn. "Can't say I didn't give you a chance."

**Gold: 2500**

**Gansley: 1100**

Gold turned around one of his cards, revealing his Pot of Greed. Rather than wait for the animation, the larger man pulled his two cards from the top of his disk. He placed one into his disk, and a massive windstorm began to blow down from the holes opened overhead.

"First is my Heavy Storm card, blowing away all of your spells and traps," Gold began, the winds pulling Gansley's three cards loose and carrying them away from the field.

Gold then placed another card onto his disk, and from the wall behind him emerged a blocky figure carved from granite, carrying a massive sword of the same material. At the same time, Exxod shifted its weight, moving from its defensive position to a standing form, raising its carved fists in preparation for attack.

"Then I summon Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000) and move Exxod to attack mode," Gold went on before playing his last card. "And finally, I use Shield and Sword!"

The room began to twist and sway as lines of wavy energy drew themselves through the air around the two duelists. Exxod (4000/0) gathered all of its power into its mighty fists which it pounded together, sounding very much like a pair of massive bells. Giant Soldier of Stone (2000/1300) watched as its aged and pitted body seemed to freshen itself up a bit, becoming stronger and less worn making it look more like new cement.

By contrast, Gigantes (1300/1900) seemed tired as its shoulders slumped under the weight of its own weapon. Despair from the Dark (3000/2800) laughed silently once more as its body swelled with dark power, but it cringed back as Exxod's glow reached toward it.

"No…No…" Gansley muttered, staring up at the rocks with a pathetic look.

"Exxod, oblivion fist!" Gold ordered.

Gansley laughed triumphantly as the mighty statue pulled back one hand.

"You fool, I'm a better actor than even I realized!" Gansley roared. "I use my deckmaster ability, sacrificing both of my monsters to redirect the damage to your life points and destroy you!"

Both of Gansley's monsters vanished, replaced by a whirling vortex which Exxod's fist vanished into. Gold sighed right before feeling the weight of his own monster's attack plow right into him…

Gansley laughed hysterically as a cloud of dust rose up, covering Gold's field. As such, he didn't see Giant Soldier of Stone come charging toward him until the statue had slammed its weapon against the exposed portion of his chest with a crushing blow!

"What…" Gansley gasped out, the air expelled from his flattened lungs.

The dust settled on Gold's field, showing the huge man pulling himself free from the quicksand prison he had been sinking into. He looked down at Gansley with a look almost like pity, with a hint of anger thrown in.

"My deckmaster cuts effect damage in half, remember?" Gold asked, showing off his duel disk's counter right before Gansley sank into the floor.

**Gold: 500**

**Gansley: 0**

Gold stretched, feeling his back pop and crack in a couple places. He stopped as he heard a creaking behind him.

"Hope that's not me," He muttered, reaching to check his spine.

"Gold!" A familiar voice rang out.

Gold spun around to see Celeste hop out from a strange door that had appeared set into the wall behind him. He smiled as he ran up to the young woman and clapped a massive hand onto her shoulder.

"Hikari, you're alright!" He cheered as Celeste winced.

"I was until you tried to dislocate my shoulder," She breathed out. "Where are the others?"

"Wish I could tell you, I was about to ask you the same thing," Gold sighed. "Hey, where did that door…"

Gold stopped, the door behind Celeste had vanished leaving no trace of it. Celeste seemed just as confused, pointing behind Gold, inviting the large man to turn around.

Another door was now situated in front of the passage that Gansley had entered from. Both humans walked over to the portal, looking it over intently.

"This just got weird," Gold muttered.

"Just?" Celeste asked as Gold reached for the door.

It swung open, and both began to step through it, Gold taking the lead…

A shadowy figure suddenly leapt out from behind the door, aiming a blow at Gold's head…

**000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

"No sign of anyone," Yami reported as he and Victor reunited in the center of town.

"Ugh…Isn't there anywhere else that they could be hiding here?" Victor shouted up to the sky.

"Well, there used to be a silver mine connected to this zone," Jackson reported.

"Perhaps Gozubora…" Yami suggested.

"It's not even connected to the Virtual World anymore," Jackson interrupted. "We scrapped that project just after getting the polygons laid."

"Guess we'll need to try elsewhere," Victor decided. "One…Two…Three!"

Both Yami and Victor jumped and vanished, leaving the ghost town and its rolling tumbleweeds…

_**Well, that's another Big Five down. Anyone who wanted some big, flowery speech before I kicked Gansely's butt has been reading too many of Yugi and Hokage's duels.**_

_**Next time, Zeffie has to hold her own against another jerk.**_

_**But even if Zeffie doesn't win, I'll make sure that this jerk loses…**_

_**Next time**_

_**Trial by Storm**_

_**Hang in there Zefs!**_

**000**

Original Cards

**000**

Ipiria

Three star

EARTH

Reptile/effect

500 attack

500 defense

When this monster is summoned, draw one card.

**000**

Yowie

Three star

EARTH

Reptile/effect

500 attack

500 defense

When this monster is summoned, your opponent must skip their next draw phase

**000**

Ruklamba the Spirit King

Eight star

DARK

Reptile/effect

1000 attack

2000 defense

When you take 1000 or more Battle Damage from 1 attack, you can Special Summon this card from your hand. During your Main Phase, you may Tribute this face-up card to Special Summon as many monsters from your hand with ATK of 2000 or less as possible.

**000**

Rainbow Snake Eingana

Seven star

WATER

Sea-serpent/effect

2200 attack

2400 defense

When this monster is destroyed and sent from the field to the graveyard, destroy all monsters on your opponent's side of the field.

_The above cards were used by Gansley during the "Isolated in Cyber Space" saga of the show. All credit for them goes to their creators._

**000**

Original Deckmasters

**000**

Deepsea Warrior

Five star

WATER

Warrior

1600 attack

1800 defense

Reflector Hole: Activate this power only when one of your monsters is targeted for an attack. Tribute any two monsters on your side of the field to negate the attack and deal damage to your opponent equal to that attack of the attacking monster.

_This monster was used as a Deckmaster during the "Isolated in Cyber Space" saga, so all credit for its effect goes to the writers of those episodes._

**000**

Labyrinth Wall

Five Star

EARTH

Rock

0 attack

3000 defense

Stone Skin: Reduce all effect damage you take by one-half of its total value.


	44. Trial by Storm

Trial by Storm

_**Umm…Hi there. It's Brian again.**_

_**Zeffie should be the one doing this, but she's a little busy at the moment.**_

_**You see, she's gone and gotten herself challenged to a duel with some major stakes. If she can't win then she's never going to get a chance to get out of here!**_

_**Zeffie's not doing the intro, simply because she doesn't realize how much danger she's in…**_

_**To her, it's all just a game.**_

_**Come to think of it…Isn't that how it should be?**_

**Trial by Storm**

"Alright, alright, I can walk, you don't have to push!" Joey grumbled as two rather large security guards began leading him from the control room of the Virtual World.

Joey's plan to find someway to give Yugi support during his mission inside the computer had seemed much better in his head, though that was usually true of most of his plans. Though he had expected some measure of resistance while trying to get in, the measures that had been taken to get him out seemed a bit more extreme than he'd expected.

One programmer looked up from his work as Joey was led past his station toward the doors. As he did, the voice of his young employer sounded over his headset.

"Joey didn't see anything, did he?" Mokuba asked the tech.

"No sir, I don't believe so," The employee answered in a hushed whisper as Joey left. "As far as he knows, Yugi Mutou and Victor Greenstone are the only ones still trapped inside."

As he said this, the programmer didn't notice his screen was displaying an image of a virtual mall, with the message "Potential Target Located…" on the screen. His neighbors were far too absorbed in their own work to pay any attention to the notice as the tech turned back around just as the message vanished along with the image of the mall.

**00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

"Hmph, so they are trying to find the ones we kidnapped," Johnson said as he held up a glowing sphere of digital programming in one hand. "Maybe I should warn the others about this before things get ugly…"

Turning the orb over in one hand, Johnson watched the light play off its surface before he closed one massive hand over it and crushed it to a fine powder.

"On the other hand, these are the guys who decided to try and beat me to a pulp just this afternoon…" The lawyer muttered.

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

"Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys Free Toys!" Zeffie was cheering, very quickly, as she ran about the Virtual Mall's toy store diving into massive piles of plush animals and scooping up video games and water pistols to test out to her heart's content.

Truly, Zeffie had been living in a veritable paradise since losing track of the others. The easily-distracted child had done nothing but play in her personal Toy Land ever since spotting the advertisement for free toys. Even given the girl's minute attention span for anything that wasn't a game of Duel Monsters (and sometimes not even that was enough!) she still had yet to become bored.

Though she had already played with roughly half of the toys in the store, yanking them from their resting places on the shelves for just a few minutes of testing them before moving on to the next one. She was starting to desire a new plaything as she dug her way out of the mountain of teddy bears she had buried herself under, stopping for a moment to catch her breath and rest her tired legs.

"So…many…toys…" Zeffie panted with a big grin on her face.

Zeffie lay down at the foot of "Mt. Teddy," her face red from all her running about. She closed her eyes to try and catch her breath, but as she did she suddenly felt something pat her on the shoulder.

Opening her eyes once more and pushing onto her elbows, Zeffie found herself looking at a somewhat aged brown teddy bear, wearing green a green, corduroy jumper with one button missing from the suspenders. It was peeking at Zeffie from around the edge of the pile she had lied down near, half of its face hidden behind its fellow teddies (though one could still see it was covering its one eye with its paw.)

"Hello Mr. Teddy!" Zeffie smiled before noticing a green ribbon tied to the bear's ear. "Oh, Ms. Teddy."

The teddy tilted its head a bit and ducked backed behind the pile of bears silently. Zeffie scrambled into a crawling position and moved around after the toy, smiling as she found that it was pressing itself against the side of the pile, covering its eyes as though trying to hide. Zeffie giggled a bit, not noticing that one of the teddy's ears was hanging by only a few threads as she reached out one hand.

"Don't worry, Zeffie's name is Zeffie! Did you wanna play?" Zeffie asked.

The bear uncovered one eye to look at the girl, before covering it up again and shaking its head "no" as quickly as it could.

"Awww…." Zeffie frowned.

The bear uncovered its eye again, and gestured with its paw toward a nearby door with the word "EXIT" posted above it in red letters. Zeffie looked at the door, then back to the sentient toy.

"But Zeffie doesn't wanna leave yet," Zeffie huffed. "There are still so many toys to play with! Besides, Zeffie should wait for her friends."

At the word "friends" the bear pointed at the door again. Zeffie looked to the door, then back to the bear once more with a curious look.

"Are Zeffie's friends through the door?" Zeffie asked.

The bear paused for a moment then, still covering its other eye, nodded its head vigorously. Zeffie jumped up to her feet with a grin.

"Then lead the way Ms. Teddy!" Zeffie smiled.

The bear nodded once more then ran up to the door and gently pressed against it. As it did, the door creaked open and a sound of a soft click could be heard from the bear's paws. Immediately, a bright, cheery tune began to echo from deep within the toy's chest. Zeffie's smile grew wider as she started after the bear.

"Zeffie remembers this song! Kind of…" Zeffie grinned. "Da da, da da da da daa, da da, You're sure for a big surprise…Dee dee, dee la la la la, la la, You'd better go in disguise!"

Zeffie's memory of the old song that she hadn't listened to in a few years was coming back remarkably clear as she followed the bear through the mysterious back door, never questioning why she hadn't noticed the exit before…

**000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

"Come on, she'll be here any moment!" Johnson was yelling, swinging one of his iron maces at a scurrying group of stuffed animals as they carried a pile of folding chair into one corner. "How those eliminators were supposed to manage this area is beyond me!"

Johnson looked around the room, a small smile coming to his lips. He may have been stuck in the form of the massive ogre known as the Judge Man, but that only strengthened his love of his battlefield of choice.

Several rows of wooden benches stood with an aisle cutting them into two sections running down the middle to a pair of stands. Each stand had a series of railings around it, tall enough to be about chest height on a grown man. To the right of those platforms was a boxed-in area where twelve folding chairs were set up, while right in front of the podiums was a much larger stand with a cushy chair set up behind a tall desk. Johnson strode up a small flight of stairs and took his seat behind the desk, watching as numerous toys, all in various states of disrepair, filed their way to the folding chairs and benches.

"Not bad for a bunch of toys," Johnson admitted as a large toy consisting of a peg shaped body (with a painted on police uniform and hands) and a round head took a stand next to his desk. "Now all we need is the defendant….Where is that bear!?"

A large pair of doors appeared behind the benches and swung open. The musical teddy bear came skipping into the room as the other toys all scrambled to take seats around the chamber. Zeffie pranced in behind the bear, still singing without truly realizing just where she was.

"_If you go out in the woods today, you'd better not go alone. It's lovely out in the woods today,  
but safer to stay at home,"_ Zeffie continued to sing as she skipped down the aisle past the seated toys. _"For every bear that ever there was, will gather there for certain, because today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic!"_

Johnson glared at the teddy bear Zeffie had been following as it approached the desk, and the stuffed toy trembled in fear, its music shutting off. Zeffie stopped singing, finally looking at her surroundings with a distinctly disappointed look on her face as the bear ran over to one of the podiums and cowered behind the bars.

"Hey, this isn't a picnic!" Zeffie complained, "And where are Zeffie's friends?"

"Order in the court!" Johnson shouted, picking up a gavel and banging it on the stand only for a comical squeak to sound from it.

Never the less, it drew Zeffie's attention to the ogre.

"Who are you?" Zeffie asked, cocking her head. "Oh wait…You're the big meanie that took Zeffie away from Goldie!"

"I let you run amok in a toy store until I finish preparations and you call me mean? Huh, kids these days," Johnson grumbled. "I could have just left you in a holding cell until I was ready, and if I was able too I would have reached a verdict on this case a while back."

"Verdict? Case?" Zeffie asked. "Is this a trial?"

"As a matter of fact, it is. Abandoned toys vs. the children of the world, and you're representing the kids," Johnson declared. "And I, Johnson, former legal advisor of the Big Five, will be serving as the judge, prosecutor, and, when necessary, executioner. Now take your stand and state your name for the court!"

Zeffie looked back at the pair of stand, and swiftly ran up and stood on the one the bear had chosen to cower behind. Zeffie smiled as she picked up the teddy, noticing now that one of its eyes was dangling loose as she set in on the railing around her.

"Zeffie's name is Zeffie Gale, acting as defense…Um…" Zeffie thought, rubbing her chin. "Eternity?"

"Attorney," Johnson corrected, rubbing his temples as a migraine began to form.

"Just like the video game!" Zeffie cheered.

Johnson remained silent before shaking his head, "I don't think I want to know. But actually, you're the defendant in this case Ms. Gale. Your deckmaster will serve as your attorney. Unless you choose to waive your right to have one…"

Zeffie seemed confused and looked to the teddy bear which began to rapidly shake its head "no." Zeffie patted the bear on the head, and pulled out her cards as she started looking through them.

"Zeffie chooses not to "wave at her rights"" Zeffie declared as she pulled out a card. "But if the big mean Judge Man wants to duel, Zeffie will choose Garuda the Wind Spirit for a deckmaster!"

Zeffie raised the card over her head, only for Johnson to pound his gavel again, resulting in another squeak. Growling in frustration, the lawyer tossed the toy aside and pulled one of his spiked clubs from his waist, slamming it against the wall behind him with a sickening crunch of crushed plaster and gravel.

"Actually, this court room only accepts human creatures to serve as deckmasters, no animals or hybrids there of," Johnson ordered, satisfied with the startled and somewhat frightened look on Zeffie's face.

"_Not to mention that monsters deckmaster power is the last thing I want to put up with,"_ Johnson said to himself as Zeffie looked back through her cards.

"No birdies? You're not nice," Zeffie complained, pulling out another card. "But if Zeffie has to pick a person, Zeffie will at least pick someone fun! Come on Chaos Rider Gustaph!"

The roar of an engine filled the room as through the doors thundered the green-skinned cyclist on his massive red motorbike. He brought it to a squealing halt right behind Zeffie's stand, and flashed a grin at the girl.

"Well it's about time I got to party!" He shouted, looking up at Johnson. "Let's stick it to the man!"

"Order! Your deckmaster will remain quiet during the proceedings, and turn that motorcycle off!" Johnson order, brandishing his club again.

Gustaph reluctantly shut off the bike and dropped the kickstand, taking to his feet and leaning against the motorcycle in a relaxed posed. Zeffie giggled as she reshuffled her deck and put it back into her duel disk.

"Now where was I…Oh yes," Johnson muttered as he pulled out a sheet of paper and read it over. "Ms. Gale, you and all children of the world stand accused of abusing, neglecting and abandoning your toys, how do you plead?"

Zeffie looked around the room, and for the first time since entering had a real chance to see the toys seated in the audience and the jury box. Aside from more raggedy teddy bears, there were toy cars with peeling stickers and missing wheels, several action figures and dolls that were missing limbs or had torn clothes or bald patches amidst their hair, and a few cloth dolls with busted seams and patched up holes among the numerous other damaged playthings.

"Umm…Very, very sorry?" Zeffie said, looking apologetic. "But these aren't Zeffie's toys so why…"

"Because you're acting representative of the kids that did abandon or hurt these toys!" Johnson before dropping his voice to add, "This is why I hate kids…"

Zeffie and her deckmaster began whispering between one-another, before nodding and looking back up at Johnson.

"Your honor, my client pleads guilty with an excuse," Gustaph stated.

"This should be good," Johnson sighed, "Go on then."

"Zeffie always gave her old toys to charity so other kids could play with them, and got of other kids at school to do it too," Zeffie explained. "Zeffie thinks it unfair for you to punish all kids for what just a few are doing."

"Hmm…." Johnson mused, looking down at Zeffie before noticing all the toys were looking at her with some form of respect. "Plea denied, the trial will begin. And your punishment should you be found guilty will be eternal imprisonment within this Virtual World while I leave in your body!"

"Objection!" Zeffie shouted, pointing at Johnson.

"Overruled! We shall conduct trial by combat, seeing as you've chosen a deckmaster and I'll be serving as my own," Johnson ordered, holding up his club. "And if you still have any arguments, I'll just hold you in contempt of court! Now let's begin!"

Johnson raised his left arm, showing a large duel disk strapped to it with the cards already loaded. Zeffie switched her own disk on with a frown her face.

"Prosecution always presents first, just so you know, so I'll have the first turn," Johnson declared.

"Okay, but Zeffie's lost in court before!" Zeffie called out.

"I have a feeling you've never been in court before, but that's beside the point isn't it?" Johnson smiled.

"Let's do this!" Both of them shouted together.

**Johnson: 8000**

**Zeffie: 8000**

Johnson drew his first six cards, and set one of them onto his disk.

"Toys of the jury, I present for my opening move, one monster in defense mode," Johnson declared, the back of a card appearing before him. "I rest my case."

Zeffie reached for her, before pausing and looking at Johnson as she opened her mouth.

"Yes it's your turn," Johnson told her.

"Okay, then Zeffie draws," Zeffie declared as she pulled a card then placed on onto her disk. "Then summons Eagle Eye (1300/1200), in attack mode!"

Zeffie had a big grin on her face as Gustaph pointed into the audience of toys and a bolt of green energy leapt from his hand. It struck a stuffed eagle seated amongst the group with its wings almost falling off, and the toy let out a surprised screech as the energy lifted it into the air. In a flash of light, the toy was transformed into a black eagle with a golden mask covering its head, which flew forward and landed on Zeffie's field with a fierce cry.

"Cool! How'd you do that?" Zeffie gushed, looking up at her monster with wide eyes.

"Please Zeffie, I channel magic to increase my power, remember?" Gustaph grinned. "Why shouldn't I be able to use it too?"

"You will refrain from any further metamorphosizing of the toys in this court!" Johnson ordered, banging his club against the wall again and showering the toy bailiff with bits of plaster.

"Sorry your honor, but that's one order I won't put up with, and now that this is a duel you can't hold me in contempt unless Zeffie puts me on the field," Gustaph grinned.

"And Zeffie's not that dumb!" Zeffie cheered, before noticing the teddy bear tilting its head as it looked at her. "Hey, wait a minute, that came out wrong…Oh well! Eagle Eye, attack with freedom dive!"

The black feathered bird took to its wings, rising to the ceiling before plummeting down talons first. As it tried to dig them into the back of Johnson's card however, a bubble of silvery light appeared over it, and drove the monster back. A blue-skinned elf in green robes appeared inside the shield, kneeling and whispering a mysterious prayer.

"My Mystical Elf (800/2000) trumps your witness, now tell him to take a seat, he'll have his chance on the stand," Johnson declared, waving his hand Zeffie's monster was bounced away.

Eagle Eye landed roughly by the foot of Zeffie's podium, and picked itself up to begin fixing its feathers with its beak. Zeffie took another card from her hand, and placed it onto the field.

"One card facedown, and Zeffie ends her turn," Zeffie decided.

**Johnson: 8000**

**Zeffie: 7300**

Johnson drew again, and placed another two cards onto the field.

"For my next witness, I set another monster in defense mode and one card facedown behind it," He declared. "You may begin the cross examination."

Growing familiar with the legalese by now, Zeffie drew her card and immediately smiled as she slapped it down.

"Zeffie summons Takuhee (1450/1100) in attack mode!" Declared the girl, bouncing in place as she looked to Gustaph.

The cyclist snapped his fingers, and immediately a row of wooden ducks held together by dirty strings that were worn to threads rose up from the audience. The smallest duck detached from the end of the line while the other two were put back down.

In another burst of energy, the wooden duck was changed into a brown-feathered hawk which landed next to the bear on Zeffie's railing. The stuffed animal nervously slid itself away from the bird's sharp looking talons as Zeffie pointed to Johnson's field.

"Takuhee, attack the facedown with doom drop!" Zeffie ordered.

Takuhee rose up high like Eagle Eye did before, and dove beak first at his target. The card lifted, and a solid looking bookshelf loaded with tomes and scrolls materialized right in front of the hawk, who smacked right into and peeled off like a piece of trash from a windshield.

"Royal Magical Library (0/2000), you can't find a better resource for legal advice, laws, previous trials and patents…" Johnson grinned. "Or a better four-star defensive wall for that matter. What's better than a defendant that's defeats herself?"

"Take that! Zeffie activates Windstorm of Etaqua!" Cried out Zeffie, waving a hand at her facedown card. "This moves all your monsters from defense to attack mode!"

The trap lifted, and a powerful gust of air blew out sending ever scrap of paper flying from the bookshelf right into Johnson's face! Johnson sputtered in rage as he shoved the pile of books away from him, and noticed Mystical Elf was standing up now, holding her robes tight to keep them from billowing up to far.

"Uh oh," Johnson realized as Eagle Eye rose up.

"Attack his book shelf, freedom dive!" Zeffie shouted, the black bird swooping down and knocking the wooden case over.

The inanimate monster toppled over, landing with a crash as Johnson pounded his club again.

"Witness dismissed…" He growled as his life point began to dip. "You must think you're so clever…"

"Yep yep yep!" Zeffie cheered as she stroked the head of her two birds.

**Johnson: 6700**

**Zeffie: 6750**

"Not bad Zeffie," Gustaph congratulated his duelist as he patted her on the shoulder.

"Thanks! Zeffie ends her turn now," Zeffie grinned.

Johnson plucked up a card, and swiftly added another to his disk. A whirling portal of strange energy appeared behind his Mystical Elf, who looked back into it with a nervous glance.

"I think it's time to call in a new witness. I use Polymerization, fusing Mystical with The Curtain of the Dark Ones in my hand," Johnson proclaimed.

A cape of red velvet fell from above, a pair of hands reaching out from under it and grabbing hold of the elven maiden before the vortex absorbed them both. A howling noise filled the courtroom, causing several of the toys to shudder in terror and the teddy bear sitting on the railing to almost fall off as a black-robed figure carrying a wicked scythe emerged from the portal.

"I call Kamion Wizard (1300/1100) to the stand," Johnson went on as he played another card. "And next, I'll activate a spell card known as Leading Question."

"Zeffie never heard of that one," Zeffie admitted as a spell with the image of an irate Ha Des appeared next to Johnson.

"This one is simple to understand. Every time I attack with a fusion monster that has four stars or less, this spell will give it 800 extra attack points during the fight," Johnson explained, a sickly yellow glow surrounding his body. "But before we get to that, I'm afraid that both of your monsters will need to leave the courtroom, I believe I mentioned that I won't allow animals in here."

"You said that was for Deckmasters!" Zeffie protested.

"My court, it'll apply to what I want!" Johnson snarled as he slammed his club down. "Death sentence!"

Both of the birds on Zeffie's field let out a frightened squawk as a burst of yellow energy surrounded them. Zeffie cringed as her two monsters exploded into piles of feathers, from which the stuffed eagle and wooden duck pulled themselves before scrambling away from the battlefield.

"How did you…" Zeffie asked, her voice trembling.

"It's his deckmaster power!" Gustaph realized.

"Very perceptive of you. I call it death sentence, and after paying 1000 life points to activate it, it destroys all of your monsters and deals you 500 damage for each one you lost," Johnson smiled as the same yellow aura appeared around Zeffie.

Zeffie winced in pain as her life points dropped down, the teddy bear covering its eyes in fear and shaking like a leaf.

"And we're not done yet! Kamion Wizard, attack her directly!" Johnson commanded.

The wizard let out a hollow chuckle as he raised his scythe and glided forward. The Leading Question card glowed, and a black aura boosted his attack to (2100/1100) just before he brought his weapon down on the girl before him. Zeffie screamed and fell back, landing in the arms of her deckmaster as Kamion Wizard faded back to his starting position and attack score.

"That's enough for one turn…" Johnson said with a wave of his hand. "Your witness."

**Johnson: 5700**

**Zeffie: 3650**

Gustaph gave Zeffie a worried look as she eased herself out of his grip. The girl took a deep breath, before drawing her fifth card.

"You're really good at this…" Zeffie admitted as she looked over her cards.

"Well, glad to…" Johnson chuckled.

"Too bad Zeffie is better!" Zeffie interrupted with a big grin on her face. "Zeffie removes Eagle Eye from the grave to summon Garuda the Wind Spirit (1600/1200)!"

Gustaph laughed out loud as he clapped his hand together. This time a toy Native American watched in astonishment as his drum was lifted into the air, the faded bird image on the side peeling off and soaring to Zeffie's field before the instrument fell back to the ground. The painting was engulfed in chaotic magic, transforming to the crow-headed human that had served as one of Zeffie's more recent Deckmasters.

"And Zeffie also summons the Winged Sage Falcos (1700/1200)," The child went on, chaos magic surrounding the eagle toy from earlier and transforming it into a falcon-headed human in white robes.

Both birdmen alighted on Zeffie's field, Garuda raising his taloned hands to battle position while Falcos had a calm, almost meditative look on his face.

"I will not allow this courtroom to become an aviary!" Johnson roared.

"A what?" Zeffie wondered before noticing that Johnson had developed a nerve-inducing tic in his eye. "Umm…Never mind. Falcos, attack with shriek of pain!"

Falcos opened his beak, and a concussive blast of sound waves issued forth, forcing Johnson to cover his ears while Kamion Wizard's screams were drowned out. The Duel Monster shattered apart, and Falcos ceased its attack.

"The best part is, instead of your graveyard, Falcos sends monsters he beats back to your deck," Zeffie giggled. "He beat Kamion Wizard once, so even you fuse him again…"

"I get it! Now you get this…" Johnson sneered in response. "Since I don't have monsters and you do, I activate my Monster Scale trap card!"

The floor of the courtroom began to crack, large chunks of it sinking away to reveal a massive balancing scale beneath the floor. The toys in the audience jury box all grabbed hold of their chairs, the walls, and each for fear of falling into the lake of flames beneath the monstrous device. The teddy bear sitting in front of Zeffie was holding onto the railing, until Zeffie scooped the toy into her arms and held it close.

Soon, the only sections of the floor left between Johnson and Zeffie were the two dishes of the balance, each one lined with teeth. Only the one close to Zeffie was full, her two monsters trapped to its surface by black chains that had shot from the device to pin them down.

"Ahh…Lovely." Johnson grinned. "Now then this trap…Who's singing?"

All the toys and both duelists looked around, a mysterious voice was echoing from nowhere singing a strange melody. The words were becoming more clear, indicating the owner of the voice was getting closer.

"_Do you know, who I am? They call me Judgment Boy…"_ The sing-song voice repeated over and over before an even stranger creature dropped down, centering itself over the scale.

Zeffie and Johnson were both confused by this one. Whatever it was, it wasn't a Duel Monster they were aware of. This creature seemed to be made of brightly colored blocks (red and yellow ones) with a pair of hanging scales in place of arms and counter balance hanging under the center of his body.

"Well, well seems we have someone playing one of my favorite cards here," The balance creature stated, looking over the field before turning to Johnson. "Just leave this card to me, I'll explain the effects."

"Um…Okay…" Johnson muttered, too shocked by the appearance to object.

The creature turned to Zeffie before stating, "You are a young girl, involved in a duel in which your opponent has just activated a trap that will destroy your monsters until you have the same number that he does. In this case, zero."

The creature's arms lit up, bringing attention to the cage dangling from each one. One contained a red, crystal heart, the other held a dollar sign made of gold gems.

"You have two options, either let your monsters be destroyed, or do something to save them." The creature posed. "Which will it be? Money or love?"

"Zeffie wants to save her monsters!" Zeffie called out, pointing up to the creature for no apparent reason.

"Is that so? Well let's ask the balance of truth!" The creature announced as he began to spin around like a tornado. "Judgment…NOW!"

He came to a sudden halt, and the bottom of one of the cages fell out. The golden dollar sign tumbled down, past the Monster Scales into the lake of flames, and a musical chime sounded.

"You say you wish to save your monsters, and you truly do it seems," The creature grinned as Zeffie smiled up at it. "Unfortunately you lack the means to do so, but with your heart in the right place you might be rewarded. It's your choice, you get to live with it."

"But Zeffie doesn't have a choice here…" Zeffie muttered right before Gustaph covered her eyes.

Two shrieks of pain sounded as the tooth covered edges of the dish Zeffie's monsters were tied to slammed together, crushing both her creatures. The floor began to rise back into place, covering the fiendish weighing device as the blocky, balance monster turned to Johnson.

"I'll be back to cover you later," it promised with a devious smirk.

"Hey, I'm the one that summoned you…I think," Johnson protested. "What are you anyway?"

"_Do you know…Who I am? They call me Judgment Boy…" _The creature chanted as it floated back up and out of sight.

"That was weird…" Zeffie commented.

"For once, we agree…" Johnson nodded.

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

Sota looked over his shoulder, and sighed. The tech at the computer behind him (a young woman by the name Kyoko) was nodding off in front of her computer.

"_Not that I can blame her,"_ He thought. _"We pulled together so much time prepping for the tournament, running it, and now this? I don't think some of us have slept for almost two days!"_

Rubbing his eyes, Sota could see plenty of other technicians, some nursing cups of coffee or energy drinks, others yawning, and at least one popping caffeine tablets in an effort to stay awake and see the situation through. Sota yawned, resting his head on his arms…

"Sota, knock it off! You're making me sleepy now," Rei scolded, bopping her coworker on the head and startling him back to a sitting position. "Besides, you wouldn't want to Mokuba to catch you dozing off if he came back from checking on those duelists' vitals."

"Maybe we should look into organizing shifts so we can get a break," Sota suggested.

"_Do you know…Who I am? They call me Judgment Boy…"_ A tinny voice rang out from behind Sota.

"What was that?" He asked, turning around to see Kyoko, her eyes closed on her desk as she snored gently. "Kyoko! Wake up! Your computer's doing something."

Kyoko sat up as the song began to play again, and jolted to attention as she stared at her machine.

"It's one of the helper programs…They go off if there's a dispute about card rulings during a duel," Kyoko explained, typing in some commands. "Or if a really obscure card is played…But no one should be dueling right now except Yugi."

"Unless Jackson isn't telling us something," Sota pointed out as he and Rei turned to their mutual neighbor.

"You mind? I'm a little busy here!" Jackson responded before grabbing his headset. "No, I'm sorry, not you Mr. Mutou. It's my _incredibly rude_ coworkers."

Rei scowled and pulled the wire from her headset from her own terminal, plugging it directly into a spare port on Jackson's before he could protest.

"Excuse, Mr. Mutou, you aren't involved in a duel right now are you?" Rei asked. "I'd ask my coworker but he just keeps telling me to be quiet…"

"No, neither Victor nor myself have dueled since we started searching," Yugi's voice responded.

"Thank you sir," Rei nodded before unplugging her headset. "Kyoko! Figure out where that program is going, we might be onto something."

"I don't think so…The data feed says it's needed in the recycling bin," Kyoko responded.

"And who would be dueling in the recycling bin?" Rei asked, looking around at the other techs.

"I wonder…" Sota mumbled before standing up. "Hey, has anyone noticed any strange activity in the system recycling bin or discarded programs?"

Megu and her neighbor raised their hands before standing.

"I saw an eliminator or something go active in the old Crystal Forest, but since it never stayed stable during testing I thought it was just a shift that the search picked up on accident." She told him.

"My search history shows a hit in the Arctic zone," Claimed a male tech. "Wait…We didn't make any autonomous Des Guardias, did we?"

"The search reacted to the Silver Mine program, but that was the same time Yugi and Victor were passing through the Old West zone," A third tech called out.

Rei, Sota and Kyoko all stared at one another just as Mokuba walked in shaking his head.

"Mr. Kaiba!" Rei called out to their young employer. "We may have a lead on where the missing duelists are!"

"I hope you're right. For some reason their vitals are acting strange, like the safeties went off again," Mokuba called back.

"Did any of them show signs of exposure to extreme cold?" Rei asked.

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

With the courtroom having returned to what passed for normal, Zeffie gently set the bear down by her feet.

"It's still Zeffie's turn, right?" Zeffie asked.

"Um…Yes, regrettably," Johnson confirmed with a nod.

"Then Zeffie sets a facedown card and says you can go," Zeffie declared, placing another card into her disk and watching as it appeared in front of her.

Johnson drew, and grunted as he slid all three of his cards into his disk.

"If we're through with interruptions, I'll activate another Polymerization. This time I fuse Firegrass with my Petit Dragon..." Johnson declared, another vortex manifesting in front of him.

Through the vortex was pulled a strange plant with plumes of smoke rising from its flowers and small, yellow dragon with feathery wings. The hole in space howled before spitting out a stream of red and orange flames that gathered into the shape of a vicious dragon.

"Together they form the Darkfire Dragon…" Johnson called out.

"Objection! Zeffie has a facedown card," Zeffie interrupted with a giggle. "Take that! Compulsory Evacuation Device!"

A large dome suddenly sprang from the floor and a powerful wind pulled the fire dragon inside. A rush of flames burst from the top of the dome, signaling the creature's return to the fusion deck as Johnson ground his teeth together.

"Seeing as I have no evidence to present, I'll allow you to cross-examine…" Johnson snarled.

"Thank you," Zeffie smiled as she picked up a card, the teddy bear silently pumping its paws in the air in celebration. "Zeffie summons…Err…Calls to the stand Sonic Duck (1700/700)!"

Gustaph's magic went to work again as the limp form of the stuffed eagle was picked up from the floor where it fell after being crushed by the Monster Scale. It was gently set back in its seat, while another of the wooden ducks was thrown onto the field and, with a burst of energy, transformed into the green, hypersonic mallard.

"A duck…Sure, why not?" Johnson grumbled.

"Objection! He's a Sonic Duck," Zeffie corrected.

"_Not even worth using my deckmaster ability right now…"_ Johnson thought as he glared at the new bird.

"Sonic Duck, beak bomber attack!" Zeffie ordered, pointing right at Johnson.

With a rapid series of quacks, the duck sprang into the air and began buzzing around the courtroom like a fighter jet. Johnson and all the toys struggled to keep up with the green blur, but only managed to catch glimpses of it before it slammed into the lawyer's chest and bounced back to Zeffie's field with a large dent in its helmet.

**Johnson: 3600**

**Zeffie: 3650**

The teddy by Zeffie's feet began clapping its paws in applause, inadvertently activating its music box. As the charming notes of "Teddy Bear's Picnic" began to fill the court again, Johnson (who had been seething as he rubbed his chest) turned his glare to the child before him.

"Okay…Now I'm mad!" Johnson roared, picking up a second club and reducing the wall behind him to demolished plaster.

The toys all trembled, and Zeffie gasped as she saw the area behind the wall. Flames burnt the landscape and tormented creatures could be seen writhing in cages of black metal. The teddy bear was cowering, struggling to turn off its music as the toy bailiff slowly edged away from where the wall had been.

"I'm setting the rules here, I am not going to lose to a minor! And certainly not one using a _duck_!" Johnson roared. "I was originally going to let you stay in the toy store forever, but since you insist on humiliating me…"

"Zeffie didn't mean to…" Zeffie began to apologize.

"SHUT UP!" Johnson screamed. "As I was saying, you can look forward to spending the rest of your very short existence in the same virtual prison Noah slapped me into originally!"

Johnson jerked one to the fiery plains behind him, an empty cage appearing where he gestured. Zeffie trembled in fear, the bear hugging her ankles only for it to be engulfed in a yellow aura and flung back into the audience. It landed with a squeak on top of a rubber duck, and quickly scrambled into an empty seat.

"Hey, it wasn't Teddy's…" Zeffie started to protest.

"I said quiet! The next one to interrupt will be forcefully restrained!" Johnson decreed.

At that moment, the doors at the back of the courtroom opened again. All present turned, and watched…

Brian Hokage was massively confused as he entered the room. Toys of all kinds were seated, apparently watching a trial of some kind, with a Judgeman seated at the Judge's platform with a field of flames and darkness blazing behind him.

"_Now this is more the kind of place I'd expect to have a duel,"_ He said to himself, thinking back to his own duel from just a moment ago.

"Um…Am I interrupting something?" He asked.

"Bri-bri!" Zeffie cheered. "Teddy did lead Zeffie to her friend!"

"Restrain him," Johnson grumbled to the bailiff as he massaged his temples.

The toy bailiff seemed more than happy to move as far from the infernal plains as possible and swiftly closed in on Brian, clobbered him, and tied him to one of the seat in the audience with a length of colored jump rope before the teen could react.

Looking up from his new seat, Brian gave the bailiff a confused look.

"How did you even do this without arms?" He asked.

The bailiff looked down at Brian, and somehow seemed to convey the gesture of shrugging despite a lack of actual shoulders. Brian was about to speak up again when a length of colored scarves wrapped around his mouth, preventing him from talking.

"Now that we've settled that…" Johnson said as he set both clubs on the stand. "Is your turn over now?"

"What if Zeffie says no?" Zeffie asked, looking worried.

Johnson remained silent, staring down at the young girl. Zeffie looked at her cards, then nodded to Johnson, who took it as a sign to draw a card.

"Well, now I get something useful," He smiled, turning the spell he had drawn around.

The art on the card showed a trio of strange creatures gathered around a letter. An envelope sat on the ground that read "Jury Summons."

"It's called Witness Gathering, here's how it works," Johnson elaborated as a card appeared next to him. "I remove a fusion monster in my fusion deck from the game, and in return I can draw one card for every two levels it had. So I'm going to get rid of my eight-star Gatling Dragon."

The card hovering next to the duelist spun around to show the mechanical monstrosity that had meant trouble for Tim Hokage so many hours ago. Mercifully, rather than appearing on the field, this copy vanished into grains of light, and Johnson added four cards to his hand.

"And what luck, one of the cards I drew is my Pot of Greed," Johnson laughed as he played the common spell and drew twice more. "Next, I call forth my favorite paralegal: Hysteric Fairy (1800/800)."

In a burst of light, a young woman wearing a business suit and horn-rimmed glasses appeared before Johnson. The only thing that truly suggested an angelic origin was the feathery white wings extending from her back. She clutched a book to her chest, and adjusted her glasses as she looked across the field.

"Now, attack her duck!" Johnson ordered.

The fairy adjusted her glasses once more, and opened her eyes wide. White light shone from her eyes, and was focused into two deadly laser points that carved the duck into a Christmas roast and left a very distraught wooden duck flying back into the audience and landing on top of the stuffed eagle, which had just managed to get back to its feet.

"Next I set a facedown card to end my turn," Johnson announced.

"You're mean," Zeffie complained, sticking her tongue out at Johnson.

"That comment will be stricken from the records," Johnson stated.

"_What records? He doesn't have a stenographer,"_ Brian thought.

**Johnson: 3600**

**Zeffie: 3550**

Zeffie drew, pausing for a moment as she looked at the flaming area behind Johnson and shuddered.

"Zeffie doesn't want to go back there…" She moaned.

"Then we'll just have to win this duel," Gustaph encouraged her. "Come on kiddo, you've pulled yourself out of tighter spots."

"_Name one,"_ Brian thought, wishing that he could speak (And that the scarves had been washed recently).

"Besides, you still have my deckmaster power…" Gustaph grinned.

He leaned in close, and whispered in to Zeffie's ear. The girl nodded, before she played another card, and the flames behind Johnson seemed to die down a bit as pure light shone down on the girl. Hysteric Fairy snapped to attention as an angelic woman in white robes descended from above and gently brushed one hand across Zeffie's cheek. Zeffie smiled as she and Gustaph both waved goodbye to the angel as she floated away.

"Let me guess, Graceful Charity?" Johnson queried.

"Yep, yep, yep! Now Zeffie draws three and drops two," Zeffie said with a big smile as she did just that. "And next comes Zeffie's Premature Burial! Come back Whirlwind Prodigy!"

A ring of red light fell to the ground, and inside it appeared the spirit of a young boy in brown clothes. Winds began to blow around him as a duplicate of himself made of dust and wind appeared next to him before Zeffie removed his card from the disk.

"Now Zeffie tributes him to summon Storm Shooter (2300/500)!" Zeffie cheered as boy and duplicate vanished. "Which works because he's a double sacrifice for wind monsters."

Gustaph turned back to the audience, and the first to happen was the toy eagle and wooden duck dropped to the ground and cowered under their bench. Gustaph paused, then snapped his fingers lifting a rubber duck from the audience and surrounding it with his spell.

In yet another flash of light, the toy had turned into a bird-human hybrid, covered in colorful feathers with talons for hands and feet. He landed on Zeffie's field, a light wind blowing around him.

"Now for his effect, Zeffie can bounce any card across from him back to your hand, so bye-bye Hysteric Fairy!" Zeffie laughed.

Johnson's eye began to twitch again as a massive burst of wind shot Hysteric Fairy up to the ceiling as her card reappeared in his hand.

"_Not bad,"_ Brian thought with a nod.

The toys all looked excited as Storm Shooter gathered a cloud of razor-edged feathers over his head…

"Hurri-cannon!" Zeffie commanded.

"Oh no…" Johnson moaned.

With a scream, the former legal advisor found himself lost amidst a fog of sharp plumage and howling wind, his cape and clothes being torn at as well as his skin. The winds finally died out, and Johnson glared down at the toys as if daring them to celebrate.

"End turn!" Zeffie smiled.

**Johnson: 1300**

**Zeffie: 2750**

"Oooh…" Johnson growled, taking a deep breath. "You have to be the single most obnoxious enemy I've ever faced in court!"

Zeffie just maintained her smile as Johnson held up another Polymerization.

"The monster I'm going to fuse this time may not benefit from Leading Question," he announced, gesturing to the long-forgotten spell card. "But she's got a special place in this deck all the same. I fuse Queen's Double and Hibikime to form lady justice herself: The Empress Judge (2100/1700)!"

The vortex appeared for the third time, and a pair of young women were pulled through it. From nowhere came a red-haired young woman dressed in purple robes, wielding a pair of balance scales in one hand and a steel sword in the other.

"Next, I resummon my Hysteric Fairy," Johnson went on.

From the ceiling came the angel/lawyer again, making sure to land in a space that wasn't in front of Storm Shooter (who seemed disappointed at the lack of targets he now had). A facedown card appeared behind the Empress Judge as Johnson waved one hand.

"Go ahead," He offered.

"_And once she attacks, my Covering Fire will seal her monster's fate,"_ He thought. _"And if that fails, I always have my deckmaster power…Life points are precious at the moment so I'd rather not risk it though."_

Zeffie drew, and moved the Storm Shooter card on her disk.

"Zeffie uses Storm Shooter's other effect. She can move him over one spot, so he's across from a new target," Zeffie explained. "But then Zeffie can't bounce anything, so Zeffie puts him across from Hysteric Fairy again."

The birdman moved over several steps, and smiled at the trembling angel before him.

"You're still free to attack, however," Johnson pointed out.

"You summoned two weak monsters and put a facedown," Zeffie pointed out as she played another card. "Zeffie doesn't think that's a good idea. One card facedown, end turn."

"_So much for our failing educational system,"_ Johnson lamented as he drew.

"Fine, if you won't attack then I will," Johnson announced, sliding a spell card down. "I equip Empress Judge with Fusion Weapon, which boost her attack strength by 1500!"

The sword in the fusion monster's hand faded away, and was replaced by a new one made of glowing red steel. She turned the blade over in her hands, before smiling as she pointed at Zeffie with it (3600/3300).

"Attack her monster now!" Johnson ordered. "Blade of divine…"

"Objection! Zeffie uses Compulsory Evacuation Device!" Rang out the young girl's voice.

The resulting string of obscenities that Johnson spat out were drowned out by Empress Judge's scream as she was yanked forcefully into the domed trap and spat out from the top.

"Fine! I'm sick of being nice!" Johnson finally roared, flecks of spit flying from his mouth. "I use another Witness Gathering card, and remove Warrior of Tradition to do so!"

A six-star fusion monster appeared, then faded away, allowing Johnson three more cards. He plugged one into his disk, and a bolt of energy fell down and smote Hysteric Fairy, transforming her into a silvery mist that surrounded the angered attorney.

"Thanks to Mystic Wok and my paralegal's sacrifice, I have plenty of life points now. So I'll spend 1000 of them to use my deckmaster power: Death Sentence!" Johnson declared.

The yellow auras rose again. First around Johnson, then Storm Shooter who burst apart and left nothing but a rubber duck to fly back to the frightened toys of the audience (bouncing off Brian's head on the way), then Zeffie who cringed as her points fell further.

"Then I set one card facedown and end my turn," Johnson shouted, a lone card sitting between him and the trembling Zeffie.

**Johnson: 2100**

**Zeffie:2250**

"Zeffie draws…" Zeffie began, picking up a card.

"FASTER!" Johnson roared, the flames behind him blazing higher with his rage.

"ZeffieusesPotofGreed!" Zeffie squeaked out very quickly.

A toy safe appeared on the field between Zeffie and Johnson, and the tiny spirit from the pot landed in front of it. Before it could attempt to open the safe, however, Johnson tossed one of his clubs at the lockbox and smashed it into bits. No words passed between the duelists as Zeffie drew her two cards.

"Now for Pot of Avarice, so Zeffie…" Zeffie started.

"I know what it does!" Johnson yelled.

"Hey back off, it's her turn!" Gustaph responded as Zeffie took five monsters from her grave and shuffled her deck.

"It wouldn't be if I had my way…" Johnson growled as Zeffie drew twice more.

"Zeffie doesn't like meanies like you!" Zeffie called out, placing down a monster as Johnson responded by reaching for his other club. "Blue Winged Crown (1600/1200), attack! Blue blaze!"

Brian let out a muffled cheer, echoed silently by the toys as a regal blue bird swooped toward Johnson, who dropped his club to the ground in favor of activating his duel disk.

"I use Negate Attack!" He shouted, an invisible barrier turning the bird away at the last moment. "Anything else you want to do?"

"No…" Zeffie muttered, shaking her head.

"Good, then I draw and play my Pot of Avarice," Johnson declared, five monsters falling from his graveyard.

"First you have lots of copies, then you use the same card Zeffie did," Zeffie whined. "Why do you keep copying Zeffie's moves?"

Johnson refused to answer as he shuffled his deck and drew twice. A wicked grin crossed his face as he played two more cards.

"I summon Niwatori to the field…" He declared, a strange, chicken-like monster plopping to the ground before him. "And then…"

Behind him, the infernal fire grew stronger as another vortex appeared…

"Hey, you already used three Polymerizations!" Zeffie protested.

"This isn't Polymerization," Johnson corrected as he placed his last card into the graveyard. "For the cost of one card from my hand, I activate Super Polymerization!"

Thunder rolled throughout the courtroom. The tormented creatures in the cages moaned and groaned as the toys all scrambled toward the door only for a large chunk of the ceiling to collapse and block the exit. Blue Winged Crown struggled as the portal began to pull at it, but was unable to escape the vortex as it drew the poor beast in alongside Niwatori…

"Huh…That's Zeffie's monster!" Zeffie shouted.

"This is bad, very, very bad!" Gustaph shouted over the wind.

"Thank you for the smoking gun, young lady, it's the perfect to close this case!" Johnson called back. "This powerful spell allows me to fuse my monsters with yours and summon a beast from my fusion deck! Behold your future represented perfectly: Punished Eagle (2100/1800)!"

With a horrendous cry, a massive eagle with green feathers emerged from the portal. But the poor beast was covered in hideous scars, its wings barely able to lift it as a chain collar weighed it down.

"Attack, storm of torment!" Johnson shouted.

Zeffie screamed as she, her deckmaster, Brian, and all of the toys were blown backward by a massive gust of cold winds that resulted from the Eagle's struggling wings. Zeffie groaned in pain from the ground as she struggled back up, Johnson laughing the whole time.

"That's that!" He shouted.

"Objection! Zeffie still has life points!" Zeffie called out.

"WHAT!" Johnson roared.

**Johnson: 2100**

**Zeffie: 150**

Johnson stared at the score, and went back over the events of the duel carefully.

"Must have miscalculated…" He growled. "But none the less, I have every advantage now. So make your last move."

Zeffie drew, taking a glance over her three cards…

"Zeffie summons Flying Kamakiri #1 (1400/900)," Zeffie declared.

With a harsh buzz, a large insect covered in chitinous green armor flew in through the new hole in the ceiling. The toys were picking themselves back up, and helping Brian to his feet. Brian spat out the scarves and noted, with great relief, that his recent tumble had loosened the jump rope, a fact that didn't go unnoticed by Johnson.

"I'm warning you young man, you are not to help your friend…" Johnson began.

"Don't need to, Zeffie has you dead to rights," Brian declared, crossing his arms. "Go to town on him Zef!"

"You bet! Zeffie uses Creature Swap!" Zeffie announced.

"Wait, isn't that the card that trades monsters on the field?" Johnson asked.

His answer came in the form of both monsters on the field vanishing, before reappearing in front of new masters. Punished Eagle gave Zeffie a confused look as she gently patted one of his wings. Johnson growled as he stared at the large bug he now controlled.

"I won't stand for this…" He growled.

"Man, you won't stand period," Gustaph declared.

"Go, storm of revenge!" Zeffie called out.

Johnson braced himself as a powerful gale slammed his new bug against the judge's stand, shattering it to bits. Johnson growled as his life points fell to 1400, but laughed at Zeffie none the less.

"Seems you aren't any better at math than I am," He mocked.

"Zeffie knows Flying Kamakiri plus graveyard equals one wind monster from Zeffie's deck to the field," Zeffie responded as she pulled out a new card. "And Zeffie wants Spirit of the Books (1400/1200)!"

Once more from the hole above, Zeffie's monster emerged. It was an eagle-human hybrid, but this one was aged. He carried a dusty tome under one arm and his wings sagged as he landed on Zeffie's field.

"Fine then, I'll use my deckmaster power one last time!" Johnson announced as the yellow aura flared. "Death Sent…"

"Objection!" Zeffie screamed. "Zeffie has her own deckmaster power to use!"

"Huh?" Johnson gasped.

"Forget about me?" Gustaph laughed as he flared with a bright-green aura. "REVOLUTION!"

A bright burst filled the court, and Johnson's own aura was overpowered. He screamed as he felt the burn of his life points dropping from the cost of his own power. As the light faded…

Nothing on the field had changed in the slightest.

"No…How did…" Johnson gasped out.

"By paying half her life points, Zeffie's deckmaster negates one other deckmaster power for one whole turn," Zeffie grinned, pointing at Johnson.

"A deckmaster…That negates other deckmasters?" Johnson shouted.

"I guess there had to be one somewhere," Brian shrugged.

"Attack with winds of wisdom!" Zeffie called out.

Johnson's only response was to scream in both rage and pain as the Spirit of the Books unleashed a blast of dusty green wind toward the crooked lawyer.

**Johnson: 0**

**Zeffie: 75**

"Yay!" Zeffie cheered bouncing up and down as her deckmaster and her monsters all faded away. "Zeffie wins, Zeffie wins!"

Brian carefully made his way past all the toys, which were dancing and jumping around in celebration. He stopped for a moment as he felt something latch onto his back, but quickly calmed down upon seeing it was just the teddy bear that Zeffie had been with earlier.

"Nice one Zeffie," Brian smiled as he walked up to the younger duelist.

Zeffie just giggled, then started laughing as all the toys crowded around her, clapping their hands, paws, or any other appendages they had in applause. Brian grunted a bit as the bear that had latched onto him leapt from his shoulder and into Zeffie's arms.

"_Looks like something out of a kid's movie,"_ Brian thought as Zeffie hugged the teddy.

As he looked away from the heart-warming scene though, Brian gasped and pushed Zeffie behind him. Johnson was back up, and had recovered his maces. He lumbered toward the two, a mad glint in his eyes and the hellish portal behind him still wide open.

"Did you think it would just end? That you'd beat me and everything would be fine!?" Johnson roared, lifting his maces.

The toys scattered, except for the bear which held tightly to Zeffie as she cowered behind Brian. Brian was staring up at the mace wielder, imminent doom plunging toward his face in the form of a heavy iron weapon…

"_Do you know my naaaaaame?"_ A voice suddenly sang out from above. _"JUDGEMENT!"_

Johnson's attention was drawn away, giving his intended victims time to scramble away from him and take refuge with the toys near the audience benches. The same red-and-yellow blocky figure as before fell from above, a new dollar-sign shaped crystal in his cage.

"It's Judgment Boy!" Zeffie cheered.

"Who?" Brian asked, looking confused.

"I said I'd be back, now it's judgment time," The mysterious scale-creature declared as he smiled at Johnson, revealing a row of sharp teeth.

"I'm not interested, get out of my way!" Johnson demanded, trying to shove past.

Judgment Boy suddenly spun around, his cages flailing dangerously and forcing Johnson back to avoid taking a mouthful of metal.

"I said it's judgment time!" The scale ordered. "Now I'm giving you a special judgment and you're going to like it! Ready?"

"If I must," Johnson sighed, lowering his weapons.

"Very well then," Judgment Boy grinned. "You were a successful legal advisor until you attempted to overthrow your employer for control of his company. As punishment, he had you sealed away inside a nearly inescapable prison. You've just lost your one chance of getting back to the outside, so now you have a choice: Will you show the shred of humanity you may still have and honor your agreement with the one who defeated you, or will you attempt to go back on your word and leave anyway?"

Johnson was gritting his teeth, and lifted both maces overhead. He charged forward, swinging the bludgeons out and sending Judgment Boy hurtling to the wall! He reached Zeffie and Brian, both of whom cringed.

"I think that's obvious!" He yelled, about to bring his weapon down again.

"JUDGMENT, NOW!" Judgment Boy called out, flying over Johnson's head and dropping the red heart-shaped crystal onto the lawyer's skull.

Johnson grunted in annoyance as the red shards fell around him…

And then grunted again as one of the rag dolls from the audience jumped forward and latched onto his arm.

"You'd go back on your word, try to imprison an innocent child and throw your ideals around like a tyrant," Judgment Boy listed off as more toys began to throw themselves at their oppressor, weighing down his arms and pushing him toward the judge's stand. "You should have remembered that those who oppress others will eventually find themselves the victims of those they oppressed. It was your choice, you have to live with it."

"NO! Get off of me you….I said leave me…ARGH!" Johnson shouted in frustration as he fell behind the judge's stand and out of view.

Brian had a hand clapped over Zeffie's eyes, something she seemed to mind much less than usual since the teddy was playing its music while covering her ears with it's paws. Zeffie was happily along as Johnson's terrified screams filled the courtroom. He suddenly fell silent as a barrage of multi-colored sparks sprayed out from behind where he fell.

"Okay…" Brian muttered as he uncovered Zeffie's eyes.

"Heh heh heh, seems he didn't have to live with it for long," Judgment Boy chuckled, looking at Brian. "Hmm…You're an interesting sort, aren't you?"

Judgment Boy swooped down right in front of Brian, who stopped to avoid running into the strange being.

"I'd love to pass some judgment on you, but I'm afraid you'll be gone before I can. Ah well," the living scales sighed. "Guess I'll have to hope for next time."

The scales began to lift away toward the ceiling singing, _"Do you know my naaaame?"_ Just as Zeffie's ears were uncovered.

"JUDGMENT!" Zeffie called out.

"_Riiight!"_ Called back Judgment Boy before he vanished.

"Yeah, I'm gonna make sure that Johnson is gone, you wait where you are Zeffie," Brian requested.

"Okay," Zeffie nodded, "Zeffie will play with Teddy while she waits!"

As Zeffie busied herself with the bear, Brian took a moment to notice the Hell portal that Johnson had opened seemed to be shrinking. He slowly edged around the stand, and stopped as he saw a rather gruesome sight.

Johnson was still behind the bench, but his body was broken into pieces now, most of which seemed to be missing. The toys that had tackled him seemed to be absorbing glowing energy from the bits that were left, slowly repairing themselves until they looked fresh-out-of-the-box new. A stuffed eagle perched itself on top of one of the few remaining body parts, an arm, and the limb broke down into an orb of green light.

As the eagle lifted the orb from the ground and flew past Brian, the shocked teen noticed a small, blue creature with tiny, bat-like wings flapping its way out of the rapidly closing hole in the wall. It paused for a moment, looking over the toys who merely waved to it. The tiny fiend then scooped up Johnson's cape and crown, the only remaining parts of the former lawyer, and looked up at Brian.

Boy and demon met eyes for a moment, and despite the awkwardness of the situation Brian felt no different then if he had locked eyes with a passing human. The little fiend shrugged with a small squeak, and jumped back into the hellish plains beyond the portal before it closed completely. Brian went back over the whole scene, holding his head as he did.

"_Johnson was…These toys just cannibalized him to repair themselves,"_ Brian realized, shaking his head. _"Why don't I find that more…Disturbing?"_

An image too horrific for words flashed into his mind, and he felt a cold shudder pass up his spine.

"_On the other had, I did look at Des Guardias' face. I guess after that, it's hard to get scared…Or did looking at it twist me somehow?_" Brian wondered.

"Teddy all better!" Zeffie suddenly cheered from over near the benches.

"_I guess I'll worry about that later,"_ Brian thought as he followed the toys back to Zeffie.

Zeffie was giggling again as she looked over all the repaired toys, including the teddy bear who's jumper, ear, and eye were now good as new. Brian just chuckled a bit at the adorable scene as Zeffie turned up to look at him.

"Judgeman all gone now?" Zeffie asked.

"Yep, totally gone," Brian nodded, looking over the toys for a moment before turning back to Zeffie. "Now we'd better find the others."

"Right!" Zeffie nodded as she set the bear down.

The teddy looked up at Zeffie, with an expression that could best be described as sad seeing as it couldn't truly change expressions. All the toys seemed to have grown upset, crowding around Zeffie as she looked at them.

"Zeffie's so sorry, but Zeffie can't stay," Zeffie apologized. "But you all have each other to play with, and it's all better now that the mean judge is gone!"

The toys all nodded as they headed for the door at the back of the audience. They filed out, the teddy bear last as it stopped to wave goodbye before the doors closed and vanished.

"Bye toys!" Zeffie said with a wave.

"That was sweet and all, but how do we get out now?" Brian wondered out loud.

"That door?" Zeffie asked, pointing behind Brian.

Oddly enough, there was now a door in the middle of the courtroom. It wasn't set into the wall, but seeing as Brian had been through a similar door before this didn't strike him as alarming.

What did was the fact that the door was beginning to open by itself.

"Someone's coming," Zeffie grinned before Brian gently pushed her toward the benches.

"Zeffie, go hide, it might another of the Big Five," Brian warned.

"Oh, okay," Zeffie whispered as she ran toward the benches and hid underneath one.

Brian quickly ran to the side of the door, and braced his left arm with his right, pointing the tray of his deactivated duel disk out.

"_I'll smash whoever comes in with the disk, and sort it out later,"_ Brian thought as the door opened. _"NOW!"_

Brian leapt from around the door, his arm raised to strike….

_CRUNCH! SMASH! CLANG!_

The "crunch" sounded as a rather startled Mr. Gold responded to the attack by swinging his massive fist into Brian's rib cage.

The "smash" was a result of Brian landing in the jury box and pulverizing several of the chairs.

The "clang" came from Brian's disk as it hit the ground where he had been standing before Gold hit him.

"Hokage?" Gold asked, getting a clearer look at his shadowy assailant.

"Goldie!" Zeffie cheered, jumping from her hiding place.

"Zeffie!" Gold yelled, running forward and scooping up the child.

"Brian?" Celeste asked, looking worried as she turned to the jury box after clearing the door.

"Pain…." Brian gasped out, weakly raising one arm.

Gold looked sheepish as Celeste ran over to their mutual friend and helped him to his feet.

"Uh, sorry about that. You should know better than to surprise people like that though," Gold apologized.

"Silly Bri-Bri thought you were a Big Five," Zeffie giggled.

"Well, we have at least one less of those jerks to put up with," Gold chuckled. "I took care of one of 'em back in the cave."

"Zeffie beat one just now!" Zeffie cheered.

"That makes three then," Brian wheezed, leaning on Celeste for support. "From the Arctic area."

"Nope, four," Celeste corrected. "I beat one in a crystal forest."

"One more to go!" Zeffie cheered.

"And two friends to find," Celeste fretted. "Where are Tim and Mako?"

"Not together I hope," Brian grunted.

"Eh, what're the chances of that?" Gold asked, noting that the door he had just come through had closed by itself.

"Considering how this day is going…" Celeste started.

She was interrupted as the door suddenly reopened, and a pair of pained screams echoed from within. Very familiar screams…

"That bodes ill," Brian muttered as the quartet started for the door.

"Rescue team, away!" Zeffie called out as the team charged through and the door disappeared.

**00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

"Sending the judgment program in to help was a good idea Kyoko," Mokuba congratulated the young tech.

"Thanks, but I doubt I can do it twice," Kyoko said as she typed furiously. "And plus, we don't where they just went."

"Shouldn't we be able to track them through the doors, like the random jump does?" Sota asked.

"Has anything worked the way it's supposed to today?" Rei growled. "Those hackers must have cut the tracking program."

"But the search program should still locate them, especially now that we know to only check the discarded files," Mokuba declared. "What's the update on Yugi and Victor?"

"It's strange…They haven't requested a jump since the Ghost Town Zone," Jackson muttered. "And I can't get any video or audio feed on where they are…"

Jackson stopped as he felt Mokuba glaring death at the back of his head.

"I still know where they are…" Jackson began.

"Trust me, no you don't," Noah's voice suddenly broke in as he appeared on the main screen.

"Noah!" Mokuba called out. "What's going on?"

"Gozubora's pulled a clever trick, he's been feeding Jackson a fake tracking signal while Yugi and Victor are in danger!" Noah declared, bits of data floating around him. "Fortunately, since I'm still in the system, I've been able to isolate the fake signal and disable it. I'll put Yugi and Victor up on screen, you guys need to get the hostages clear! I'll keep 'em on the right track from now on…"

The screen changed.

It now showed Victor, staring up at a frightening creature.

Being commanded by a familiar boy with long, black hair…

_**Who's Victor dueling?  
**_

_**What's happening to Tim and Mako?**_

_**Will we be getting out of here anytime soon?**_

_**These questions and possibly more are probably on your mind. We'll get to them eventually, starting next chapter**_

_**Steam Burns**_

_**Tim, Mako, if you two don't get of this one…**_

**000**

Original Cards

**000**

Curtain of the Dark Ones

DARK

Spellcaster

Two star

600 attack

500 defense

_A possessed curtain made by the Magicians using special powers. It is said to enhance the power of magic users._

**000**

Kamion Wizard

DARK

Spellcaster/Fusion

1300 attack

1100 defense

Mystical Elf + Curtain of the Dark Ones

**000**

Leading Question

Spell/continuous

Image: Dark Ruler Ha Des slamming his fist onto a desk

When a level four or lower fusion monster declares an attack, it gains 800 attack points during the damage step.

_The above three cards were used by Johnson in the anime saga "Courtroom Chaos."__ All credit for them goes to the writers of those episodes._

**000**

Witness Gathering

Spell

Image: The three Ojama monsters all crowded around a letter that reads "Jury Duty"

Remove one Fusion monster in your Fusion Deck from the game. Draw one card for every two level stars the monster had.

**000**

Original Deckmasters

**000**

Chaosrider Gustaph

WIND

Warrior

Four Star

1400 attack

1500 defense

Revolution: Once per duel, when your opponent activates their deckmaster effect, you may pay half of your life points to negate the effect and activation of their deckmaster power.

**000**

Judgeman

EARTH

Warrior

Six star

2200 attack

1500 defense

Death Sentence (dub: Clear the Courtroom): Once per turn you may pay 1000 life points to destroy all monsters your opponent controls. For each monster destroyed, your opponent loses 500 life points. You may activate this effect on your opponent's turn.

_Judgeman served as Johnson's deckmaster in the anime. All credit for its effect goes to the writers._

_A/N: Judgment Boy is credited to the brilliant and somewhat disturbing minds behind "The Gregory Horror Show." All credit for him goes to the writers of that confusing animation._


	45. Steam Burns

**Yes, we took a long time with this chapter. Please forgive us, we're trying our best and do intend to finish this fic.**

**

* * *

**

_**Mako Tsunami here once more**_

_**But not for much longer at this rate…**_

_**Of all the times to get thrown into a surprise tag-team match with the one duelist who's company I least enjoy, it had to be the time that I'd have to bet my life.**_

_**Sometimes it feels like I'm not even the one stuck doing this crazy stuff, like someone else is.**_

_**And then they stick me with something like this.**_

_**Well, if I have no choice, then I suppose we'll just have to see how this plays out.**_

_**Time to duel…**_

Steam Burns

A metal pathway hung in pitch-blackness. Absolutely nothing hung around it, or even beneath it. Aside from the two platforms hovering over this empty abyss, the method by which the path remained suspended was unclear.

And only adding to Mako's confusion was the fact that the fact that the path he was on would only continue if Tim ever found the switch on his own platform some twenty feet away. The same scenario had been playing itself out for sometime now, with the two of them alternating between hunting down switches and travelling across platforms.

"Why would they even design something like this?" Mako wondered aloud.

"Like I'd know? I'm just the coffee monkey at the office, remember?" Tim pointed out as he stomped around on the metalwork beneath him, finally feeling something shift under his foot. "Finally!"

Mako braced himself as the iron square he stood on gave a sudden lurch and began to slowly move forward, the destination unclear. Narrowing his eyes, the ocean duelist could see a point of light in the darkness ahead. Slowly, the light grew as he drew closer, revealing it to be some form of emergency lamp, its red illumination highlighting a larger platform with a door on it.

"I think I found the way out!" Mako shouted back to Tim as he stepped onto the new stage.

"Great, then a find a way for me to get over!" Tim called out.

Mako looked around, noting a lever set into the floor next to the door. He reached out and grasped it, pausing for a moment to consider just passing through the door himself, but shook his head.

"_The door probably doesn't even open unless we're both here anyway,"_ Mako reasoned as he yanked the switch.

A comedic _sproing_ sounded in the distance, while simultaneously the door swooshed open. Mako was vaguely aware of the sound of Tim's scream growing closer right before the red head barreled through the now-open portal and crashed to the ground just beyond the doorframe.

"That's an interesting way to do it," Mako commented as he walked through, not bothering to hide his chuckle.

"Is Kaiba making a compilation video out of this or something…" Tim wondered as he picked himself up and shook his head to clear it. "Where are we now?"

That indeed was the question. The empty space from before was gone now, the pair had seemed to have wandered into an industrial plant of some sort. Huge vats containing glowing, molten metals of some sort sat stationary beneath the wide catwalk Tim and Mako now occupied. The catwalk and walls were both made of the same metal, which seemed to be covered in patches of rust but remained smooth to the touch in spite of that.

"I don't really care much where this is as long as there's another way out," Mako commented, brushing past Tim as he started down the catwalk. "Try not to fall behind."

"Fall behind?" Tim grunted as he started after Mako. "You aren't still trying to blame me for this are you? I beat you at one game and…"

"This has nothing to do with our duel," Mako interrupted, spinning to face the younger Hokage. "I lost that fairly, I'll admit…You're the one that feels the need to keep rubbing it in!"

As Mako turned back around and started off again, Tim let out a low whistle and muttered, "Sensing a _little_ hostility here…"

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

High above the two, a pair of piercing red optics viewed down upon Tim and Mako. Numbers whirred across the vision of the one who was watching, and he reached out one metal hand to a screen that formed next to him.

Tim's portrait appeared on the screen, followed by a blur of images and words as a list of his cards displayed next to him. The image remained for a brief moment before fading out, and being replaced by Mako's picture, for which the show repeated itself.

"Download….complete. Subjects analyzed," the Robotic Knight droned as he waved away the screen. "Conclusion: Victory…imminent."

Looking down at Tim and Mako as they moved below him, the robot nodded slowly.

"Tsunami body: Stronger, faster, better…Obviously the superior model," He decided. "If nothing else, that one is the target."

With a gesture of one hand, the robotic member of the Big Five vanished.

**000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

Tim and Mako both stopped short as lines of red energy suddenly descended around them.

"Now what?" Both of them shouted at once as the sections of the catwalk they were standing on were carved loose by the lasers.

Tim fell to his knees as the metal grating he stood on gave a sudden lurch upward, whilst Mako managed to maintain his footing thanks to years of ocean travel experience. The two pieces of catwalk floated away from their original positions toward one of the more distant vats. As they came into view above it, it was obvious this one was filled with something more volatile than melted steel.

"You alright?" Mako asked, looking over to Tim.

"I'd feel much better if I wasn't hanging over a vat of battery acid," Tim responded.

"Actually, that's highly caustic radioactive waste down there," A voice chimed in.

"Yeah, that makes me feel much…" Tim sarcastically responded before looking around in a start. "Wait, who said that?"

In answer to Tim's question, a third platform began to lower at the far side of the vat. On this one stood a red robot, its body shaped as though it were the mechanical version of a Napoleonic soldier, complete with a rapier-shaped lightsaber weapon grasped in one hand.

"That would be me," The robot explained. "Introduction: I am Nesbit, head of weapons research and development for the Big Five. Current goal: To escape from this virtual hell-hole Seto Kaiba saw fit to trap me in."

"So where do Tim and I come in exactly?" Mako wondered, looking confused.

"Explanation: by defeating the two of you in fair contest, I may claim a body to download my mind into. Therefore: we will duel now, I claim the body of either of you that I defeat." Nesbit lined out, sheathing his weapon and raising one arm.

A flat panel sprang out from the side of his arm, quickly expanding into a duel disk tray, while a card holder, with the deck already loaded, rose from the top of his arm. His chest opened, revealing an LCD panel with the number **8000** in glowing green letters.

"Select which of you will go first, I have no preferences. But keep in mind that we're still under the deckmaster system," Nesbit warned.

**000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

"Come one, pick up Joey…" Tea muttered, nervously shifting the phone from ear to the other.

The party at the Kami Game Shop had turned sour in the brief time since Yugi had won the finals. Starting with the images from the reward ceremony suddenly cutting out, followed eventually by the sound. Unfortunately for the PR offices at Kaiba Corp, people all over the world who had tuned in had still been able to hear the first few moments of chaos as the big Five had made their entrance.

"Just what was that anyway?" Grandpa Mutou wondered as he flipped through the channels for the fourth time. "Is another crazy duelist after Yugi?"

"You're probably not far off," Duke winced, "Did he ever mention what happened during the Battle City Tournament right before the final four?"

"Why yes, as a matter of fact…Oh…I see," Grandpa nodded solemnly.

"Joey?" Tea suddenly spoke into the phone, before frowning. "Oh wait, Serenity is that you? What happened, where are Yugi and Joey?"

"Serenity! Is she okay?" Tristan gasped, trying to grab the phone only for Duke to knock him aside as he tried to do the same.

As the two young men began a silent scuffle in the background, Tea wass listening intently to Serenity's story, her face going white as she did.

"The Big Five? Oh…I thought those voices sounded familiar…" Tea moaned as she sat down. "And what do you mean that's not the worst part?"

At Kaiba Land, Serenity was running a worried hand along the top of one of the pods, looking at the spiky-headed teen inside. Mai was keeping watch at the door for guards, and occasionally looking toward the only two occupied pods left in the room.

"Yugi and Mako haven't woken up yet." Serenity stammered out. "I think they're still trapped inside. Along with the Elemental Duelists."

"Don't worry Serenity, if Yugi's still in there he'll find a way to get everyone out okay," Tea voiced assured her.

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

Nesbit was tapping one metal foot impatiently as he watched Tim and Mako continue to throw round after round of 'Rock-paper-sissors.' Any investigator of psychic phenomena would probably have taken this game as a sure sign of the existence of ESP, given the unlikely number of times the two of them had managed to tie so far.

"Why not just give it up Mako, I wanted to take this guy down anyway," Tim pointed out. "Besides, we both know which of us is the better…"

"Don't. Even. Think about it," Mako interrupted, emphasizing every word of the sentence.

"Observation: This is taking entirely too long," Nesbit chimed in. "Proposition: I shall take both of you on at once."

Tim and Mako both stopped their never-ending game and looked at each other.

"How would that even work?" Mako wondered.

"I've dueled tag-team a few times," Tim explained. "But never against just one opponent."

"Rules: No sharing of strategies or cards in hand, each of us will have a separate life point score. Since I face two opponents though, I'll be granted double the usual amount of life points," Nesbit explained, the counter on his chest jumping to a whopping **16000**. "You two may share cards on the field, however. Is that acceptable?"

"Works for me," Tim nodded. "What do you say, fish guy?"

"Fine, whatever gets us out of here faster," Mako sighed, lifting his disk.

"Very well then, one last rule though," Nesbit said with a wave of his hand. "Your deckmasters shall be chosen randomly."

A single card appeared in front of both Tim and Mako, causing the Hokage to throw his hands in the air in frustration.

"Oh come the hell on! I've only really picked my own deckmaster like, twice today!" Tim protested.

"I assume no responsibility for your ineptitude," Nesbit countered.

Grumbling, Tim snatched the card and turned it around. It was a blank white, which quickly began to fill in…

With a clatter of wood against metal, a pile of logs landed behind Tim on his platform, and ignited. The burning wood stacked itself into a humanoid shape, and slammed its fists together as it formed the Blazing Inpachi.

"_Controlled burn, right?"_ Tim double checked. _"I say spell, trap or monster before I draw and ditch cards from my deck till I find one that matches?"_

The wood golem nodded, and Tim shrugged.

"Better than most of the ones I got stuck with," He pointed out.

A rumbling suddenly sounded from far below as Mako brandished his card overhead. With a loud, echoing cry, the massive form of his Fortress Whale suddenly smashed through the floor far below and 'swam' through the air to hover behind Mako.

"You have got to be kidding me," Tim grumbled, shaking his head. "How come he gets his best deckmaster?"

"I'm wondering that myself," Nesbit droned in response.

"Don't blame me, you're the one that said it was random," Mako shrugged, a smile finally coming across his face at the prospect of a duel. "Now, shall we begin?"

**Nesbit: 16000**

**Tim: 8000**

**Mako: 8000**

"Since it's two on one, it only seems fair if I go first," Nesbit announced as he pulled six cards from his deck. "To open, I activate my deckmaster ability. By discarding machine-type monsters from my hand to the grave, I can deal my opponent 500 points of damage for each one."

Two cards were stuffed into Nesbit's grave slot before either of his opponents could speak up. Holographic images of a robotic bird and wolf materialized next to the Robotic Knight, and they swiftly charged forward, each one tackling one of the opposing duelists and knocking them to the ground.

"Uh, and I thought I was good at cheap shots," Tim grunted as he got up.

"Guess he can split the damage between the both of us," Mako pointed out as the holograms vanished."

"Indeed, but that's enough for now. Continuing: I summon Cyber Valley (0/0) in attack mode," Nesbit went on, placing down another card.

From the tank below burst a steel-colored streak, which wound its way around Nesbit before settling to hover in the air in front of him. Once standing still, the creature was revealed to be a serpent crafted entirely from metal, with sharp spikes coming from its sides and two rows red-lights running along its underside.

"That will end my turn," Nesbit completed.

**Nesbit: 16000**

**Tim: 7500**

**Mako: 7500**

Tim and Mako both gave each other confused looks. It was clear neither of them thought much about this new monster.

"You're sure about that?" Mako wondered.

"Do I question your moves?" Nesbit challenged.

"We didn't make any yet," Tim pointed out as he drew his own sixth card. "But if you insist…Let's light this candle with my Solar Flare Dragon (1500/1000)!"

A second serpent burst from the molten waste below, but this one was red in color rather than metallic. It spun high into the air as Blazing Inpachi launched a blast of flames at it, igniting the beast as it soared back down and hovered in front of its duelist. The nigh-infamous Pyro-type hissed comfortably as its flaming mane fully ignited.

"Then one facedown card, and let's see how you like a direct hit!" Tim called out, one hidden card appearing behind his dragon.

"Error! Since this is two on one, you may not attack until everyone has had a draw phase," Nesbit interrupted.

"Who said anything about attacking?" Tim nodded, still grinning. "I've tag-teamed before. I was talking about my dragon's effect though. The one that burns off 500 of your life points each time I end my turn."

"Oh," Was all Nesbit had time to say before catching a blast of fire with his face.

**Nesbit: 15500**

**Tim: 7500**

**Mako: 7500**

"I love the smell of napalm in the morning!" Tim called out.

Tim chuckled a bit before noticing that the flames hadn't hurt Nesbit much. The robot merely brushed a bit of ash off his face as his chest readout ticked down.

"Normally that's supposed to hurt," Tim pointed out.

"I am a machine, and a Fire-attribute one in case you were unaware," Nesbit reminded his young foe.

"Well, it's a start," Mako mused as he drew his card. "Leave the heavy hitting to me! I activate A Legendary Ocean, let flow the seas!"

There was a creaking sound far above, and then the clatter of falling pipes followed by a deafening roar of rushing water. All three braced themselves, tucking their cards close to their bodies in an attempt to keep them dry. Eventually, the downpour stopped, leaving the entire factory flooded with crystal blue water. Regrettably (or not, depending on how one looked at it) the water level was just below the mouth of the vat the duel was over, meaning the toxic goo inside was undisturbed and undiluted.

"_Good thing I'm rust proof,"_ Nesbit told himself as the remaining water rolled off his body.

Tim indignantly spat out a mouthful of water as he turned to Mako.

"How about a little warning next time?" Tim requested, both of his monsters growling and grumbling in response as they attempted to keep their now sputtering flames alight. "You have no clue how much hair gel it takes to keep this 'do!"

"You wouldn't last five minutes on the high-seas," Mako responded, his own deckmaster raising from the waters below with a mighty below. "Ignoring my partner's attitude, this field grants me the advantage. First, all Water monsters lose one star-level, and they gain 200 attack and defense points."

"Not that it helped much against me," Tim muttered under his breath.

If Mako had heard him, he chose to ignore the comment and set one card onto his disk.

"Now I summon my Terrorking Salmon (2600/1200)!" Mako announced, his deckmaster opening its mouth wide.

From the belly of the beast swam a gigantic fish, easily the size of a dolphin. It splashed about in the water, swimming in circles behind the point where Mako's platform hovered.

"Bet you wish you summoned something stronger now, eh?" Mako grinned, pointing directly at the Cyber Valley. "Salmon, attack with ocean king's fury!"

The mighty fish leapt from the water in a single great thrust, aimed directly at the weak machine…

"Cyber Valley, activate emergency escape maneuvers!" Nesbit ordered.

The lights running along the serpent's underside immediately flashed, and in a pulse of blue energy, the creature vanished. Terrorking Salmon continued its flight path undisturbed and splash-landed on the far side of the tank, from where it quickly swam back to its starting point.

"What just happened?" Mako asked.

"I'd say…You missed," Tim pointed out.

"Duel Monsters don't just miss," Mako responded.

"They do when they attack Cyber Valley," Nesbit explained, holding up the card. "By removing it from play when it's targeted for an attack, I can stop the attack and draw one card."

The card vanished from Nesbit's fingers, and the robot pulled a new one to take its place. Mako just grumbled something under his breath before waving one hand to end his turn.

"Very well then, now let's see…" Nesbit droned as he took another new card. "Well, how fortunate."

Turning the card around, he revealed it to be a rather familiar spell.

"Polymerization?" Tim and Mako both wondered aloud.

"That's right, now do either of you recognize this card?" Nesbit wondered, turning around a second card.

The image on the card was similar to Cyber Valley, but the serpent on this one had no spikes or excess lights. It was simply a metal snake, though one got the impression it was a rather large snake.

"Oh no," Tim grumbled, hanging his head. "Of course he'd have a Cyber Dragon. I haven't seen a single Cyber Dragon since the start of the tournament. I should have known better."

"Oh please, even you summon that overblown can opener it's not strong enough…" Mako began.

"Summon it? Illogical," Nesbit agreed, sliding the Polymerization into his disk. "Fuse two together? Significantly more advantageous."

With twin roars, a pair of the giant cyber-snakes appeared in front of Nesbit before they were yanked quite harshly into a swirling vortex of energy. The energy exploded outward, revealing an entirely new beast, this one a giant metal snake featuring two heads.

Neither of the human duelists made a sound. Mako looked to Tim and cleared his throat.

"What?" Tim wondered, turning to Mako again.

"No jokes about two heads?" Mako pointed out.

"I thought I covered this before with you, I don't like abusing the easy material," Tim responded. "That's why I don't usually make fun of Yugi's hair."

"In this case, though, two heads are better than one," Nesbit interrupted.

"_He said it, I didn't," _Tim assured himself.

"In this case, it's because each head has its own attack! Attack the Solar Flare Dragon with strident blast!" Nesbit commanded, his monstrous machine sending forth a gout of flames.

"Denied!" Tim called out, his facedown card flipping up. "Negate attack!"

The flames collided with an invisible force field in front of Tim's monster and spiraled out of existence. Nesbit nodded in response, non-plussed by the turn of events.

"Negate Attack lasts one turn, that's not much time," He rationalized, taking his last card and setting it behind the dragon. "I complete this round with one facedown card."

Tim frowned as he looked over his hand, before jerking a thumb to his deckmaster.

"Alright, I'm using my deckmaster's power; Controlled burn," Tim decided. "And I'll say monster, so now I discard from the top of my deck until I find a monster card to add to my hand instead of drawing."

Blazing Inpachi nodded once, and Tim's cards were immediately consumed in orange flames. The top two burned to ash and vanished to the graveyard before the fire was extinguished, and Tim took the new top card to his hand.

"_Figures, I don't have another Solar Flare Dragon…"_ Tim lamented as he tucked Flame Ruler into his hand. _"But with this guy and my Mirror Force…"_

Tim grinned at the Infernal Flame Emperor that sat right in the center of his hand.

"Well, since the party seems to be winding down a little, let's have Flame Ruler (1500/1600) pick things up a bit," Tim announced, a spark of flames flying from his deckmaster.

The flames swiftly grew into a bonfire, from which emerged the Jamaican-accented Pyro. He stumbled for a moment as he realized that there was no ground beneath him, conjuring up a plate of flames to keep him aloft. Solar Flare Dragon growled appreciatively to Tim before taking up a new position directly behind the new monster.

"Next, I set this card facedown," Tim went on, his Mirror Force settling behind his creatures. "And then we get to the best part of having Flame Ruler on the field. Since he's a Pyro-type, you aren't allowed to attack Solar Flare Dragon until you get rid of him. So next, I'll switch my dragon to defense mode, then let him keep doing what he's so good at."

Nesbit didn't seem any more impressed by the second fireball then he did with the first. This time though, the dragon curled up into a circle behind its new partner on the field.

**Nesbit: 15000**

**Tim: 7500**

**Mako: 7500**

"Really? Nothing?" Tim asked as Nesbit just glared at him. "Huh, tough crowd."

"It's going to take forever to take him down like that," Mako finally chimed in, having been silent through Tim's entire turn.

"Yeah, but it's working," Tim agreed with a smile.

Mako drew and slapped another card to his disk saying, "This works faster. I summon Star Boy (550/500) in attack mode!"

"Star Boy…Wait a minute!" Tim protested.

Too late however. From the waters below sprang a red starfish trailing rainbow tentacles, with a single eye and a mouthful of sharp teeth. The monster let out a high-pitched giggle as a cool mist began to fill the room, drastically increasing the humidity.

Star Boy (1250/700) and Terrorking Salmon (3100/1200) both seemed to enjoy the plentiful moisture. Tim's monsters seemed much less amused. Solar Flare Dragon (1100/1000) let out a pathetic whimper as its fire almost completely died, and Flame Ruler's (1100/1600) clothes became soaked through, its burning disk threatening to go out and drop him into the (still somehow undiluted) toxic waste.

"Mako! My monsters are fire creatures remember?" Tim shouted.

"Oh right, Star Boy would weaken them…" Mako recalled. "But all you've been doing is using burn effects."

"_Eh…Well, the fish is strong enough to beat the dragon now…"_ Tim thought.

"Now then, let's try this again! Terrorking Salmon, smash his dragon!" Mako roared.

Once more, the huge fish sprang from the water, and once more Nesbit gestured to one of his cards.

"Defense systems activated. Dimensional Prison shall remove your attacking monster from the game." Nesbit announced, a swirling vortex of black appearing right in the salmon's flight path.

The fish flew right into the portal, which slammed shut just as its tail went through. Mako mentally slapped himself, while Tim began wishing he was close enough to do the same.

"I set one card facedown and end my turn here…" Mako grumbled, sliding the piece of cardstock into place.

As the card materialized behind Starboy, Nesbit drew his own card.

"Analyzing threats…" Nesbit announced, looking between each of his opponent's monsters. "Target selected: I attack Flame Ruler with the Cyber Twin Dragon!"

The first of the two-headed machine's mouths opened wide, and a blast of flames rushed forth. Unhindered by the moisture in the air, the attack cause Flame Ruler to cower with his arms over his head.

"And here comes Mirror Force!" Tim smiled, the shimmering barrier of blue energy appearing around him and his monsters.

"Counter: Activate My Body as a Shield from my hand," Nesbit responded, turning around his lone card to reveal a quickplay spell. "Effect: I give up 1500 life points to negate any card that would destroy my monsters."

Nesbit's life points quickly adjusted, followed by Tim's as his most powerful trap card shattered apart, followed by Flame Ruler. Tim grunted as he braced himself against the shockwave from his monster's destruction, whilst the second head of Cyber Twin Dragon reared back.

"Next target: Solar Flare Dragon. Double strident blast!" Nesbit ordered, pointing directly at the flaming serpent.

"Crud…" Tim grunted as his second monster went the way of the first, leaving nothing but ashes floating to the waste below.

"Looks like he's well prepared for us," Mako observed, wincing a bit at his partner's plight.

"No, you think?" Tim responded sarcastically. "He's only countered almost every move we've tried to make."

"And there shall be plenty more to come on my next turn," Nesbit promised, flashing his empty hands to his foes. "Until then, I can make no other moves. End of turn."

**Nesbit: 13500**

**Tim: 5800**

**Mako: 7500**

"Time for my deckmaster again," Tim decided, holding over his disk. "I say trap this time, so here's hoping…"

Tim watched as the top three cards burned away and reformed in his graveyard. One eyebrow raised at the sight of the last card before the fire around his deck extinguished. Drawing it, Tim nodded and slid the card into his disk, followed by slapping down a facedown monster.

"These two will do for now. Take it away Fish Boy," Tim smirked.

"Don't push your luck," Mako cautioned as he drew his own card. "Uh…I move Starboy to defense mode."

At its master's orders, the red starfish curled its tentacles around itself and closed its eye and mouth. It was soon accompanied by another monster as Mako set a facedown creature next to it.

"That's all I can do this turn," Mako admitted, glancing over to Tim as though hoping the fire duelist had something better.

"Unimpressive, I draw." Nesbit admonished, pulling another card from his deck and turning around. "Activate: Pot of Greed."

Unlike previous plays of the card elsewhere, no sign of the grinning jar or its spectral inhabitant appeared. Nesbit simply drew two new cards and looked them over, before gesturing to Tim's facedown monster.

"Cyber Twin Dragon, destroy the facedown," Nesbit commanded.

In what was becoming a familiar sight to Tim and Mako, another of their monster was consumed by the machine's flame throwers. This time though, a shell of silvery metal flew out from the scorched remains and shone a red light onto Tim's field.

"And that one was my UFO Turtle, meaning that I get to search for a low powered Fire monster now," Tim declared, pulling a card from his deck and playing it. "So here comes another Flame Ruler (1100/1600)!"

The twin of the humanoid pyro-type that had been destroyed earlier phased into sight as the UFO shell final lost power and plummeted to the burning mess below. The new Flame Ruler immediately began to sway on his feet in the overly-humid room as Starboy's power took its toll on him.

"If you're that desperate to lose life points, then by all means," Nesbit shrugged. "Attack that Flame Ruler!"

The Cyber Twin Dragon roared as it released its second attack, but Tim just laughed as his facedown card turned over and absorbed the fire streak.

"Why do they always fall for this?" Tim asked as the flames shot back at Nesbit.

"Your Magic Cylinder trap, huh?" Mako guessed, smiling a bit as he watched Nesbit's life points go up in smoke.

"Got it in one," Tim nodded. "And the best part is now he's out of attacks."

"Status: Unamused." Nesbit droned out as the flames died around him. "Assumption of safety: Incorrect. Quickplay spell card: Depolymerization! Send Cyber Twin Dragon to fusion deck: Special summon the first two Cyber Dragons (2100/1000) from graveyard!

A single red laser suddenly lanced down from the ceiling, striking directly between the machine's two heads! It slowly carved the giant serpent in half, sealing up the damage along the way as one two-headed Cyber Dragon became two regular Cyber Dragons.

"Battle phase continues: Attack Flame Ruler!" Nesbit declared.

"Oh, HELL no!" Tim lamented as the first of the newly summoned monsters launched its flaming breath.

In yet another puff of ash, Tim's monster was unceremoniously dismissed from the field, along with a piece of his life points.

Nesbit went on, pointing to Mako's facedown card. "Attack: facedown monster! Strident blast!"

Mako stood his ground as his facedown Torpedo Fish was sent to the graveyard.

**Nesbit: 10700**

**Tim: 4800**

**Mako: 7500**

"Any bright ideas, Fish Boy?" Tim wondered, looking over to Mako

"First off, stop calling me that," Mako scolded. "Secondly, just wait for my next turn, I'll handle him."

"If we last that long," Tim muttered.

"If you two are finished with your compelling conversation, I ended my turn some time ago," Nesbit chimed in, impatiently drumming his fingers across his arm.

Tim drew his new card, adding it to the two already in his hand.

"_Ugh, Mako's had that facedown card for a while. Why hasn't he used it?"_ Tim wondered as he looked over his choices. _"Plus summoning that Starboy on me. If this keeps up…"_

Noticing the spell he had just drawn though, Tim's mood immediately uplifted.

"Well alright, I drew my Premature Burial card," Tim declared, playing the spell. "I think I'll use it to revive Flame Ruler!"

A blast of red flames managed to conjure itself from thin air and materialize into the Pyro-type. The well-tanned monster frowned as the excess humidity began to drain his power again, but the smirked as he clapped his hands.

Next to Flame Ruler, another fire appeared, this one quickly taking the shape of its creator. Both the monster and his clone vanished as quickly as they had appeared as Tim removed the card from his disk in favor of another one.

"Then, since he counts as two monsters when I tribute him for a fire monster, I use him to summon the one, the only, the Infernal Flame Emperor (2700/1600)!" Tim cried out.

A blast of flame rose from the waters gathered below, followed by a massive cloud of steam as the liquid began to evaporate. Mako and Tim both covered their eyes against the scalding blasts of vaporized water as the flames took shape into a massive centaur with the head of a lion, formed completely of fire. Despite the fact that Starboy was still weakening it (2300/1600), it showed no signs of its lowered attack score other than a constant cloud of steam to rise from its shoulders and head.

"Attack score: unimpressive." Nesbit stated, waving one hand. "It won't take much to overpower…."

"But he's the strongest one right now," Tim grinned, turning around another spell from his hand. "Oh, and I'm about to equip him with Salamandra, making him even stronger!"

The flaming monolith that now towered over the field roared as the steam faded from around its body and it began to glow white hot with increased heat (3000/1600).

"Get that first Cyber Dragon with Dante's Inferno!" Tim ordered.

Infernal Flame Emperor responded by opening its maw and spraying a blast of orange and red flames that swiftly took the shape of a dragon. The flaming dragon wreathed itself around its metal counterpart, causing the machine-type to release a high pitched whine before it exploded into red-hot shards.

**Nesbit: 9800**

**Tim: 4000**

**Mako: 7500**

"What was that you were saying a second ago, Mako?" Tim grinned to his partner.

"I'll grant that was a good move," Mako nodded. "But you used up all your cards. Guess it's my turn now."

Drawing his own card, Mako let out a cheer and slapped it onto his disk without a second thought.

"Time for my own big guns! Meet the Legendary Fisherman (1850/1600)!" Mako announced.

From next to the Fortress Whale rose a mighty shark, on the back of which was mounted the card that many saw as Mako's doppelganger. Twisting his spear in his hands, Legendary Fisherman laughed as the power of Starboy boosted his score to (2350/1600).

"He may not get a bonus from my field spell thanks to his ability, but he's more than enough to handle your dragon! Starboy goes back to attack mode now, and my Fisherman attacks!" Mako declared.

With the order given, Mako's avatar hurled his spear right through the center of the second Cyber Dragon's head. It exploded, predictably enough, and sent the weapon flying back to its owner.

"Analysis: field empty. Course of action: prepare for direct attack," Nesbit fretted, his robotic drone becoming more apparent.

Mako gestured, and Star Boy lunged forward and chomped on Nesbit's arm with its sharp teeth. Nesbit quickly shook the little monster off, and his chest counter whirred as the life points readjusted themselves.

**Nesbit: 8300**

**Tim: 4000**

**Mako: 7500**

"That ends my turn," Mako announced.

"You're not too shabby after all," Tim admitted.

"Enough!" Nesbit roared as he drew a card, his glowing optics indicating he was not pleased. "Your victory: an illusion! My strategy: Incomparable! Unbeatable! Perfect!"

"Face facts, it was mistake fighting us both at once," Mako pointed out.

"Silence! Activating: Chop Shop," Nesbit called out, playing one of his cards. "Remove one machine from the grave: Draw two cards plus one for every two star levels it had. Cyber Dragon: begone!"

A whir of machinery being dismantled could be heard from within the larger version of the spell that had appeared on Nesbit's field (This one had a rather depressing image of a Decoyroid with its wheels and door laying on the floor of a rather dirty garage). Four cards flew from the image and added themselves to Nesbit's hand, two of which he shoved into his graveyard immediately.

"Discard Proto Cyber Dragon and Perfect Machine King: Activate deckmaster ability!" Nesbit went on.

Two more ghostly machines appeared next to him, though these were considerably more threatening than the first. One was a massive red and white robot, covered from head to toe in powerful armor and high tech weapons. The other looked like a metal snake, and indeed seemed to be a prototype for the Cyber Dragons that had just left the field.

"Here we go again," Tim grunted as each of the spirits fired a bolt of energy, each striking one of Nesbit's opponents to the ground.

"If that's all he's got, I'm not too worried," Mako grunted, shrugging off the attack.

"My field: Zero monsters," Nesbit pointed out, holding up another card.

"You had to say something," Tim sighed.

Nesbit tossed the card into play, and a third Cyber Dragon (2100/1000) roared into existence. It was quickly followed by a platform surrounded with glowing red lights descending from the ceiling and submerging itself into the waters summoned by Mako's field spell.

"Premature Burial: revive Perfect Machine King (2700/1500)!" The smile was obvious in Nesbit's voice now.

The platform emerged from the water, carrying the massive robot that had just been used for Nesbit's deckmaster power. The water didn't seem to have hurt it at all, it just seemed very shiny and clean.

"You're forgetting one thing," Mako interrupted, holding up a finger to emphasize his point. "My Legendary Ocean means that Legendary Fisherman can't be attacked. The only target you can aim at is my Star Boy."

"And if you destroy that, then my Infernal Flame Emperor will just get stronger again," Tim caught on. "And he's already stronger than either one of your monsters."

"Two logical fallacies. First: Perfect Machine King gains five-hundred attack points for every other machine present (3200/1500)," Nesbit announced, his monster clanging its fists together as it drew strength from Cyber Dragon. "Two: I activate Clockwork Night!"

A new spell appeared on the field, this one showing a grouping of gears, behind which a few street lamps were visible. The gears in the picture began to turn, and strange energy pulsed out from the card.

"You ever heard of this one?" Tim asked, turning to Mako.

"Sad to say, no," Mako answered.

"Explanation: All non-machines lose 500 attack and become machines," Nesbit elaborated. "All monsters that start as machines: gain 500 attack!"

Tim and Mako both cringed as their monsters transformed. Starboy's single eye became a red optic, and its body turned to metal causing it to look like a gaudy Christmas ornament (750/700). Down in the water, Legendary Fisherman's skin turned to steel and his spear merged with his arm into a harpoon gun(1850/1600). The shark he stood on changed shape until it more closely resembled a torpedo with fins planted on the sides.

Infernal Flame Emperor suffered the worst of it. The flames were quickly caged and covered by metal armor, which vented itself out though the grill that covered the monster's mouth. It let out a mechanized roar of anger before the finality of its type set in, draining its emotions (2500/1600).

Cyber Dragon (2600/1000) in the meantime was covered with a new chrome plating. Perfect Machine King opened wide its chest plate, revealing a glowing sphere of pulsating energy as its score was boosted by both the spell and all the new machines (5200/1500)!

"No way…." Tim gasped out.

"Attack: Perfect Machine King takes Infernal Flame Emperor!" Nesbit ordered, waving one hand to Tim's monster. "PLASMA BOMB!"

The orb of energy launched from Perfect Machine King's chest cavity and landed with a splat on the mechanized Infernal Flame Emperor. It flashed blue for a moment, before exploding into a massive blast of white-blue energy that left no trace of Tim's monster or the 2700 life points that got shaved off with it. Tim screamed as he fell backward from the force of the blow, digging his fingers into the grate he stood on to avoid being from his platform. His deckmaster was having a much time of it, being of made of nothing but half-burnt wood it was already dangling over the edge of the platform.

"Cyber Dragon, destroy Star Boy!" Nesbit went on.

The serpentine machine released its fire blast, and Mako's Star Boy was no more. However, the flames that carried though were suddenly stopped as a cage of water spouts surrounded Mako and dispersed the incoming damage from the attack.

"Error: How did…" Nesbit griped before noticing the Tornado Wall Mako had just activated. "Oh."

"You had that facedown all this time?" Tim shouted to his partner. "Why didn't you use it before?"

"What? Tornado Wall can't protect your partner from damage," Mako retorted.

"Yes it can!" Tim shouted back.

"You ever seen it used in any of those tag teams you've been in?" Mako challenged.

"Well…no, not really," Tim responded, pointing angrily at Mako. "But still! You could have at least tried using it! You've barely done anything to help me!"

"Now that's just not fair," Mako argued. "I'm not used to dueling with a partner, you take a hit, and then blame me for not knowing whether I could help you or not?"

"You're a professional! You should know anyway!" Tim called back.

"Professional solo duelist! Singular. One. Better off working alone from sound of this," Mako grumbled.

"THAT'S BECAUSE NO ONE WILL TEAM WITH YOU BECAUSE YOU SUCK AT THIS!" Tim screamed at the top of his lungs.

Silence reigned for a moment.

"That's circular logic," Mako said calmly. "But if you're so certain that I'm no good at this then don't bother wasting any cards trying to protect me. I'll handle Nesbit myself."

Tim slapped his forehead with a growl.

"Fine, be selfish. See if I care!" Tim shouted back.

"As for whether or not Tornado Wall would protect your partner," Nesbit began.

"You stay out of this!" Tim and Mako both shouted together.

"Proposal: I attack the fire player directly on next turn." Nesbit went on, ignoring the interruption. "Then we'll know for sure, won't we?"

**Nesbit: 7500**

**Tim: 1300**

**Mako: 7500**

Tim and Mako continued to stare daggers at one another. Nesbit looked from one to the other before loudly clanging his hands together, forcing their attention back onto him.

"My turn: over. Continue please." Nesbit ordered, waving a hand to Tim.

"Fine then, I'm using my deckmaster's power again." Tim announced, Blazing Inpachi igniting his aura as Tim's deck was consumed in fire. "Let's go for a trap this time!"

"_Hopefully something good…"_ Tim prayed as the top three of his deck burned away, leaving one for him to draw. _"Sakuretsu Armor? Damn, I was hoping for Dimension Wall, but I guess it'll have to do…"_

Setting the trap face down, Tim huffed in Mako's direction, indicating the ocean duelist's turn could begin. Mako remained silent as he drew his fourth card and thought over his hand.

"Fine then, one card facedown, and a monster in defense mode," Mako finally decided as he shifted cards around his disk, the backs of two appearing before him as his Legendary Fisherman crossed his arms over his chest. "I'll also move my Legendary Fisherman to defense mode. Do your worst."

"Challenge: Accepted," Nesbit intoned, drawing his own card and immediately turning it to his foes. "Activating: Emergency Provisions. Send Premature Burial to Graveyard: Gain 1000 life points. Since Premature Burial is not _destroyed_: Perfect Machine King remains in play."

"Oh, Hell no! That has to break the rules, I call shenanigans on that one!" Tim protested.

"Actually, it's a legal move," Mako cut in. "If the card doesn't say 'destroy' on it when it gets rid of Premature Burial, then the monster doesn't go down with it."

"You've gotta be kidding me," Tim growled.

Sadly, it seemed Mako was not. Perfect Machine King showed no outward changes after being freed from its ties to the graveyard. Only the increase in Nesbit's life points were evidence of the spell's success.

"Perfect Machine King: Destroy the opponent! Plasma bomb!" Nesbit commanded, pointing directly at Tim.

As the chest plate of the lord of machines opened up, however, Tim's facedown card suddenly swung upward.

"Sorry, you've just attempted an illegal operation," Tim sniped as the black armor of his trap jumped forward. "Perfect Machine King must now go to the graveyard, courtesy of my Sakuretsu Armor!"

The black armor slammed its fist into the energy core inside Perfect Machine King's chest, only for it to begin to dissolve. All three duelists stared as the armor's entire arm vanished into the core, which began to pulse wildly and flash orange.

_**KA-BOOOOOOOOM!**_

Perfect Machine King was blown into spare parts by the force of its own bomb, taking the armor with it and causing Cyber Dragon to shriek in fear. Nesbit's optics focused on Tim, who pumped one fist in victory.

"No reason to celebrate: Cyber Dragon: Attack!" Nesbit commanded, the dragon machine firing off its blast of fire.

Tim's temporary feeling of elation from wrecking the stronger monster quickly faded as he saw his destruction come blazing toward him. He braced himself for the pain…

Which never came. A water spout sprang up in front of him, blocking the fire and sending a column of steam rising into the air. Mako could only stare in stunned silence as his Tornado Wall trap finished negating the damage of the attack, and the water spout collapsed.

"So it does protect partners," Mako managed to sputter out.

In spite of a massive feeling of relief, Tim couldn't do much but grind his teeth as he recalled just how long Mako had kept Tornado Wall facedown on the field.

"Very well. Your defeat: postponed. Turn: over." Nesbit admitted, clenching and unclenching a fist, the robotic dialect asserting itself further.

"Mako, if we get out of this..." Tim gasped out, finally finding his voice as he drew his card.

**Nesbit: 8500**

**Tim: 1300**

**Mako: 7500**

He stopped talking, once more unable to find the words to express his frustration. Stalling for time, he looked at the card he had drawn.

"I set this monster facedown. And for the record, my partner is a moron!" Tim finally shouted. "End turn!"

"Moron, huh?" Mako grunted as he began his own turn. "Fine then, maybe you'd like to try handling Nesbit here yourself. Of course the only reason you're still here is thanks to my card."

"Which would be a lot more appreciated about three turns ago!" Tim snapped back. "I'd be better off with a monkey for a partner!"

"Fine then. I won't help you, you don't help me," Mako suggested.

"Fine!" Tim agreed.

"Fine," Mako nodded.

"_Better than expected."_ Nesbit told himself as he watched the spat. _"Expected: Some degree of animosity and incompatibility of strategies. This goes: beyond calculations."_

"And since I'm not going to try and help you anymore, I'm not going to let you use my Tornado Wall for protection, either," Mako declared, pointing down to his two monsters swimming below.

The Fortress Whale let out a low moan and opened its mouth. Mako's facedown monster (A strange Fish called Ocean's Keeper) was drawn into the mouth of the beast, and the water began to froth and bubbled wildly below as Mako raised his arms over his head.

"Rise from your slumber: Levia Dragon Daedelus!" Mako commanded, the head of the gigantic, blue sea-serpent breaching from the water and pulling level with its master's platform. "But he won't stay long. I tribute him for his full power evolution…."

Swapping the cards on his disk, Daedelus let out a ferocious bellow as a second head suddenly rose from below. The entire beast (what of it was visible anyway) seemed to grow longer, towering over the flooded field and causing the below to be churned into a mess of sea foam.

"Ocean Dragon Lord Neo-Daedalus (2900/1600 3100/1800)!" Mako called out.

"You wouldn't…." Tim shouted to Mako.

"Not before activating Treasure of the Deep. Now if my Legendary Ocean hits the graveyard this turn, I get to draw three new cards at the end of it." Mako smirked.

"Error: No other cards in hand. How shall Legendary Ocean leave the field?" Nesbit queried.

"I was hoping you'd ask," Mako grinned. "Daedalus, unleash your power! I remove my ocean from the field to purge it of all other cards and empty our hands!"

Tim merely curled into a ball and prepared for the worst.

"Fury of Poseidon!" Mako shouted.

In one, unmeasurable, blast, the entire simulated ocean suddenly crashed upward from the floor, flying back toward the ceiling. Tim's lone monster (Revealed to be Hand of Nephthys), Nesbit's Cyber Dragon, and all the cards remaining in any of the player's hands were yanked up with the water, which hung in the air for a moment around them before plummeting back to the factory floor below.

Rather than filling the field again, the water splashed in every direction, draining away as though through unseen grates. Only Daedalus (2900/1600) was left on the field, aside from both of the human player's deckmasters. Tim and Blazing Inpachi both seemed surprised that neither of them were wet this time, and Fortress Whale was somehow miraculously hovering in mid-air now.

Nesbit was also dry, but much less impressed with the situation.

"And the best part? I still have his attack to use on you," Mako grinned as he pointed directly at Nesbit. "Attack! Maelstrom surge!"

Both heads of the sea-serpent reared back, before snapping forward. Unlike their metallic, Cyber Dragon cousins, torrents of water shot forth, slamming into Nesbit's robotic body and sending him skidding backward toward the edge of his platform.

**Nesbit: 5600**

**Tim: 1300**

**Mako: 7500**

"Defeat: An impossibility." Nesbit droned out as the water let up and he stumbled back to the center of his stage.

"Let's hear you say that next turn," Mako challenged, crossing his arms. "Until then, I end my move, and my Treasures of the Deep card goes to work."

Mako's deck shone with golden light as he pulled the top three cards from it. Nesbit drew his own card, and plugged it into his disk without a second thought.

"Card of Sanctity: Activate." Nesbit intoned, the arena blazing with golden light as all three players refreshed their hands. "Your loss: Inevitable. Prepare for: Destruction!"

Nesbit slammed a card into play, and the machinery around the field began to whir to life once again. A pair of conveyor belts rolled out, each one carrying a mass of broken machinery.

"Junk Dealer: Activated. Can summon two Machine monsters from the grave: By cutting their attack score in half." Nesbit explained as his choices slowly rose from the discarded parts.

Proto Cyber Dragon (550/600) fell onto the field, its body limp and dented. It was closely followed by Gigatech Wolf (600/1400), which let out a mechanical whimper as its four limb collapsed beneath it.

"So your plan to beat fish boy's big monster is to summon two monsters that can't even stand up?" Tim guessed, looking at the pathetic machines.

"No. My plan: Use Inferno Reckless Summon on Proto-cyber Dragon," Nesbit elaborated as two more conveyor belts appeared. "I can now summon any monsters that share a name with mine. Proto-cyber Dragon's ability: It counts as Cyber Dragon…"

"Oh no…" Mako and Tim both realized.

From the new conveyer belts, two new Cyber Dragons (2100/1000) rolled into play, glaring down at their opponents. Mako just scoffed though as he pointed up at his own monster, which was still lording over the field.

"In case you forgot, my two-headed serpent is much stronger than that metallic one you summoned earlier," He taunted.

"That's why I'm not summoning Cyber Twin Dragon," Nesbit declared, holding up his Polymerization card. "I fuse two Cyber Dragons and one Proto-Cyber Dragon to make…Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800)!"

"You had to say something," Tim grumbled.

"You already said that," Mako pointed out.

"It bears repeating," Tim retorted.

All three dragons were yanked higher into the air, away from their stands as they were smashed against one another by a vortex of energy. Electricity crackled at the point where all three collided, and exploded out in a blinding flash…

In place of the three dragons, a towering, three-headed dragon now stood. It spread a pair of metal wings behind it, glaring down upon Neo Daedalus, which visible trembled in fear.

"Then, I tribute Gigatech Wolf for Machine King (2200/2000)," Nesbit went on, the robotic wolf fading away.

In its place rose a monster Tim recognized from his match with Bandit Keith much earlier: A human-sized robot that almost looked like a giant action figure if not for the sinister red optics that gazed over the field. Tim winced as he recalled the monster's ability, and watched as its score rose to (2400/2000).

"Cyber End Dragon…Super strident blast!" Nesbit commanded, a trio of flames flying from his monster directly at Mako's field. "Destroy Neo Daedalus!"

Mako braced himself, and as he did he noted just how little his deckmaster's ability had helped him in this duel so far. Neo Daedalus didn't even have time to roar in anguish as it was immolated by Nesbit's ultimate machine. Both Tim and Mako cried out in surprise as the shockwaves from the attack nearly knocked them off their feet.

"Machine King, direct attack…" Nesbit ordered.

Tim noticed his life points and fought the urge to cringe.

"_One shot from that thing and I'm toast…"_ He realized, clenching his fist nervously.

"Strike the water duelist!" Nesbit ordered. "Jet rocket punch!"

Tim's eyes went wide as Nesbit's monster fired its fists at Mako rather than him. Mako grunted as he took the rocket-powered fist to the chest and fell to his back, his life points dipping. As he got up, Mako was chuckling and glanced over to Tim.

"Well now, isn't this a surprise?" Mako grunted, rubbing his fresh bruise. "Here I'd thought he'd attack you."

"Yeah, me to," Tim admitted.

"Error: Mako is the more dangerous opponent. He's the one that destroyed most of my monsters," Nesbit corrected. "Neutralization required to further plans…"

"But you would have beat Tim if he'd taken that direct attack," Mako pointed out.

Nesbit's face, being robotic, couldn't change. It was quite clear though that he was angry. Tim held up his disk, showing **LP 1300**, while Mako's read **LP 4000**.

"Guess even I can get lucky, my opponent's as dumb as you are Ma…" Tim began.

"Don't start that," Mako warned. "You do realize that this idiot is the one we fighting over earlier, right?"

"Oh yeah, you speared him, I tried to flambé him…" Tim grinned, the frowned. "Wait, you mean we actually fought over this guy? Suddenly having my monsters solder my name to his chest doesn't seem worth it."

"You….." Nesbit growled, sparks flying from around his eyes. "Defeat order…Unimportant….Victory…Imminent…"

"That's what you think, Tin man," Tim taunted, "Don't forget, you just gave me a full hand, and my turn is next."

"Your loss: Imminent." Nesbit repeated. "End turn."

**Nesbit: 5600**

**Tim: 1300**

**Mako: 4000**

**00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

Unnoticed by any of the duelists, the shockwaves from Cyber End Dragon's attack had pushed open a door leading to the catwalk.

And as Tim and Mako shouted from the damage Nesbit had dealt, four figures came rushing through.

"Tim, Mako!" Brian shouted, looking around frantically as Celeste did her best to support him (his ribs were still sore where Gold had pounded him).

"Ooooooh, what's that?" Zeffie gasped, pointing over the edge of the catwalk.

The three older duelists looked to where the girl pointed, and drew back. Cyber End Dragon was just about eye level with them, and did not seem appreciative of the intruders.

"I've got a funny feeling Mako and Tim are close by," Celeste said, gulping nervously.

"If there's one thing marriage taught me, it's never argue with a woman's intuition," Gold agreed, looking down through the metal grate that made up the catwalk. "I think I can see 'em down there too…"

"How did things get so bad that a Cyber End Dragon got on the field?" Celeste asked as she and Brian slowly moved to the edge of their view point and looked down on the dueling field.

Noticing that Tim and Mako both had active Duel Disks and were standing side-by-side across from Nesbit, Brian let out a groan.

"Question answered…" He pointed out. "Tim, Mako! Up here!"

The pair back down on the field were getting back to their feet when they heard Brian's voice. Turning around and looking up, Tim's smile grew wider at the sight of his older brother.

"About time you came, you're just in time for the show!" Tim shouted back.

"Goody!" Zeffie cheered, hopping from Gold's shoulder and running over to kneel next to Brian and Celeste. "You and Makie gonna beat the big dragon?"

"In a word, yes," Mako nodded. "Now then, continuing, I'd wager it's almost Tim's turn…"

Nesbit looked over his two remaining cards (His last Polymerization and a Morphing Jar he kept handy for hand refreshing) before waving one hand to Tim, who drew his seventh card and plugged one into his disk. A light appeared in his graveyard as he discarded two more of his cards.

"Guess I can get lucky twice when the chips are down. Activate Magic Stone Excavation!" Tim called out, holding his hand in front of the graveyard slot. "Since I discarded two cards, I can get a spell back from my graveyard. I choose Premature Burial, and use it to resurrect my Sacred Phoenix of Nepthys (2400/1600)!"

A ring of flames burst into life in front of Tim, and a familiar bird song began. From the flames burst Tim's giant golden phoenix, which sang out its melody as it rose on its own waves of heat to the ceiling

"I knew it would be handy when my deckmaster sent it there," Tim explained to the stunned Nesbit as he played one last card. "And this Salamandra card is pretty handy too!"

The flames around the golden bird (3100/1600) shone brighter, changing to orange. At the edge of the flames, the head of a dragon seemed to form temporarily before fading down.

"Hey, Mako, if I take Machine King can you handle that six-eyed eye-sore?" Tim called to the water duelist.

Mako took a moment to appraise the Cyber End Dragon before nodding.

"Yeah, I think I can manage that…" He said confidently.

"Alright then, Phoenix, sacred dragon fire!" Tim cried out, flame rushing from his side of the field to Nesbit's. "Time for that Machine King to suffer a fatal meltdown!"

Nesbit was still silent as his monster was struck by the flames and quickly melted into a useless pool of red-hot metal. Cheers erupted from the four by-standers above, prompting Nesbit to point up at them, his Cyber End Dragon let out a furious roar at the audience, sending them stumbling backward.

"Rude." Tim commented at Nesbit's behavior as he placed two more cards into his disk. "I'll set these two facedowns and hand it off to Mako."

**Nesbit: 4900**

**Tim: 500**

**Mako: 4000**

Drawing his card, Mako paused for a moment…

"I activate Spiritual Fire Art: Kurenai!" Tim shouted.

"What!" Nesbit snapped out.

Tim's phoenix let out one final, melodious cry before collapsing into a wave of golden fire that flew directly at the robotic duelist. The heat finally seemed to be getting to Nesbit, causing his legs to collapse under him and sending the Robotic Knight to a kneeling position.

**Nesbit: 2500**

**Tim: 500**

**Mako: 4000**

"Was that: truly necessary?" Nesbit glared at Tim.

"Fire is always necessary!" Tim taunted.

"Well that works! I was worried I didn't have enough fire power for a moment," Mako laughed as he opened his field spell zone. "Time to call back the waters! I play my second Legendary Ocean!"

This time, no waters fell from above. The floor far below merely flooded over once more, and soon the artificial ocean was back as though it had never left. A single spot of red light appeared in the water as Mako played another spell from his hand.

"Next comes my Premature Burial, and I'm using it to revive Torpedo Fish (1200/1200)," Mako continued.

From the patch of glowing water swam a mechanical fish, a small propeller shaped like a set of fins spinning behind it as it moved in idle circles around its summoning point.

"Then next, thanks to my field spell, I call forth my Orca Mega-Fortress of Darkness (2300/1400)!"

At this latest prompting from Mako, a killer whale breached from below the water and landed with a mighty splash, sending a spray of water high into the air. As it resurfaced, a battery of artillery not uncommon on a battleship became visible on its back.

"Cyber End Dragon: Superior to water creatures," Nesbit stated with confidence.

"Attack power wise, sure," Mako confirmed as he removed Torpedo Fish from his disk and watched as the smaller monster entered his Orca's mouth. "But thanks to my monster's effect, I can tribute Torpedo Fish to instantly destroy any monster on the field!"

Before any protest could rise from Nesbit, the military-grade killer whale fired one of its many cannons directly at the point where the three heads of the Cyber End Dragon met. All three let out a shrill of surprise as a massive explosion tore them asunder and sent pieces of machinery tumbling into the acid vat and water.

"Error…Error…" Nesbit droned out, waving his hands in denial. "My life points: Higher than…"

"I've learned my lessons," Mako interrupted, waving dramatically toward the field. "I'm moving my deckmaster onto the field! For the second time today, come forth Fortress Whale (2550/2350)!"

With a single moan, the Fortress Whale's own battery of cannons, missile launchers, and torpedo tubes all took aim at one target.

"Impossible: Victory: Assured…" Nesbit contined to drone on.

"Double direct attack! Massive artillery strike!" Mako called out as both of his floating fortresses fired every cannon available to them.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Nesbit cried out as massive explosions rocked his side of the field. "ERROR: ERRORERRORERRORERROR 1001001101010010101010010010101……."

**Nesbit: 0**

**Tim: 500**

**Mako: 3200**

All six Elemental Duelists stared at Nesbit, who had suddenly fallen silent.

Finally, one word seemed to squeak out, "Two…."

Nesbit's optics flashed wildly as steam whistled from every joint on his body.

"TTTTTTWWWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Nesbit screamed as his platform finally fell away.

Gold had one hand over Zeffie's eyes, the others (except for Brian) all winced as they heard the sizzle of Nesbit hitting the acid and melting away into nothing.

After a moment to gather their thoughts had passed, Brian leaned back over the railing.

"You two alright down there?" He asked.

"Never better, bro!" Tim confirmed.

"Same here, any clues on how we can get home now?" Mako wondered. "For once, I think I've dueled enough today."

"Maybe if Zeffie clicks her heels together three times and whishes to go home, we will!" Zeffie suggested, hopping up and down in excitement.

The child's idea drew no response other than silence from the five older duelists, before Gold gave her a reassuring pat on the head.

"Alright, Zefs, you give it a try," Gold nodded with a smile.

Cheering, Zeffie got up on her toes and began to click the heels of her sandals together as Gold looked to the others.

"So, what's the other…." He started to ask.

Before another word could leave his mouth, Zeffie clicked her heels for the third time, and all three vanished.

**00000000000000000000000000000000000000**

"The final six are confirmed, we've got 'em!" Rei cheered.

"Well, let's get them home then," Mokuba ordered. "Preferably before anything else goes wrong."

"At least Noah was able to find Yugi and Victor," Sota commented. "And it gave us more time to find the hostages."

"How're those two doing anyway?" Jackson wondered, suddenly falling out of his chair as Noah's face appeared on every screen in the command center.

"Alright, Yugi and Victor are confirmed," Stated the green-haired youth. "I'm broadcasting images to you now, Mokuba."

"Actually, extend the broadcast range," Mokuba suggested.

"What? I'm not sure Seto would be fond with...Oh…" Noah realized, catching on to Mokuba's thought process. "If Yugi can't succeed you mean then…"

"Then the whole world has to know what's about to happen," Mokuba nodded.

"This is gonna be a PR nightmare," Noah commented as he began extending his influence beyond the control room. "But who are we kidding? After this fiasco, it's not the like the Virtual World will be able to go public for a while."

"Maybe there's a jinx on it," Sota suggested as the image on the screen changed.

**00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

In Los Angeles Kaibaland, Zeffie yawned groggily as she sat up in her pod. Blinking, she looked around the Virtual World pod center and smiled as she saw Gold and Celeste both rising from their pods.

"It worked!" Zeffie cheered as she pounced out and landed on her guardian's back. "Zeffie knew TV wouldn't lie to her!"

Gold and Celeste merely shared confused shrugs.

**000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

At Washington Kaibaland, the Hokage Brothers sat back-to-back, recovering from the latest ordeal. Tim took a deep breath as though to say something.

"Sooo, we call shenanigans on that, right?" Tim suggested.

"Shenanigans," Brian confirmed with a nod.

**0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

Simultaneously, Mako was being assisted from his pod by Serenity in Domino City's Kaibaland.

"Much appreciated…" He grunted as the girl steadied him on his feet. "Joey and the others?"

"Waiting for us outside," Mai confirmed before the door suddenly flew open heralding the entrance of Joey Wheeler. "Or maybe not…"

"Good, there you three are!" Joey shouted, gesturing frantically toward the door. "You all gotta get outside, now!"

"Joey, what's wrong?" Serenity asked, looking worried at her brother.

"It's Yug, he's up on the…Just come, not enough time to explain!"

**000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

All around the world, people stared in awe as the channel that had been playing highlight reels of the Virtual Tournament suddenly switched to a new image.

Yugi was standing near the edge of a small arena.

In the center of which stood Victor, staring up at a massive monster.

Said monster, seemed to be taking commands from a familiar youth…

And in the control center, Mokuba's fist shook with rage as he saw the duelist facing Victor looked exactly like himself…

To the world at large, it seemed Victor was dueling Mokuba Kaiba.

**Victor dueling Mokuba. While Mokuba is outside the Virtual World.**

**Most of you are probably curious about how this came around.**

**So am I.**

**Sorry to say, you'll have to wait for the next chapter to find out the whole story.**

**It's titled**

**Survival of the Fittest**

**We're playing for keeps next time around.**

**000**

**Original Deckmaster**

**000**

Robotic Knight

Machine

FIRE

Four star

1600 attack

1800 defense

Back up Blaster: Once per turn, you may discard Machine-type monsters from your hand to the graveyard. Deal 500 damage to your opponent for each card discarded in this way.

**000**

**Original Cards**

**000**

Chop Shop

Spell

Image: A Decoyroid that's been dismantled

Remove one Machine-type monster in your graveyard from the game. Draw two cards, plus one for every two star levels the removed monster had.

**000**

Clockwork Night

Continuous Spell

Image: A factory visible through a mesh of gears.

All monsters on the field change to Machine-type. Any monsters whose original type was Machine gain 500 attack points. Any monster that is not originally a machine loses 500 attack points.

_Clockwork Night was originally used by Nesbit in the anime. All credit goes to the writers of Yu-Gi-Oh_


End file.
